Niw Englisch/Kapitel 1

This chapter will deal with the basic aspects of Niw Englisch word order. Further comments will be made in later chapters.

Word Order in Statements

Subject - Inflected Verb

In clauses that stand alone, a main clause, the subject commonly appears in the first position, followed by the inflected, or conjugated, verb. The inflected verb then takes the personal ending that agrees with the subject.

Þe Student	rædeþ	þat Dæȝblædd	the student reads the newspaper
subject	verb	direct object

In modern English, an adverb may be placed between the subject and the verb. In Niw Englisch, this cannot be done. The verb must be the second element in the sentence.

ic	ræde	oft	þat Dæȝblædd	I often read the newspaper
	verb

Inverted Word Order - Element X-Inflected Verb-Subject

When you wish to emphasize information and to establish a topic of a sentence, elements other than the subject often appear in the first position. Those elements are most often adverbial expressions. For stylistic reasons, it is important for you to vary the elements in the first position in order to avoid beginning too many sentences with the subject when you write in Niw Englisch. Please note that in Niw Englisch, similar to how German works, does not set off such elements with a comma.

Heodæȝ	rædeþ	þie Lernestre	þat Dæȝblædd	Today the student is reading the newspaper
time	verb	subject	direct object

In þem Gererdsaal	etteþ	manige Lerner	Many students eat in the cafeteria
place	verb	subject

Other elements, such as the grammatical object or a participle, occasionally also occur in the first position. They may be used to connect sentences effectively, to respond directly to a previous statement, or to emphasize something.

Here Weiffreond	besœkþ	þie Lernestre	morgen	The student will visit her friend tomorrow.
direct object	verb	subject	time expression

Gelernd	hafþ	schie	þisse Wuke	noȝht micel	She hasn't studied much this week.
direct object	verb	subject	time expression

When an element other than the subject of the sentence occurs in the first position, the inflected verb must remain in the second position. The subject follows the inflected verb. To summarize, the subject of a given statement typically appears first, but if anything else appears in the first position, the subject of the sentence must appear directly after the verb.

Gefremmung 1-1

Understandung Identify the subject of each sentence below.

1. Þen Lernryne hœdeþ Michael ælcen Tiwsdæȝ and Þunersdæȝ.
2. Þie Friende besœkeþ Hannah om Wukenende.
3. Æfens gæþ Kristina oft mid Hannah int Kino.
4. Andi brœmþ om Sunnendæȝ seinen 30. Gebyrddæȝ.
5. Þen Kaken bringeþ Erika and Katrina.
6. Þie Gedrenke geholþ Kristine.

Gefremmung 1-2

Geþiedung Restate the following sentences by using the bolded words at the beginning, following the grammar reviewed above.

Example: ic ga þissen Æfen mid Karl int Kino. -> Þissen Æfen ga ic mid Karl int Kino.