seventeen percent of the Modern English lexicon is of Old English roots, more than half of the most commonly used modern words, such as be, water, and strong, derive from the four major dialects of Old English. Many of the technical Modern English words in use today, however, are of foreign origin and are often products of the European Renaissance and the increased favor of Latin, French and Greek that came with it (Brief Look at the History of English).
             While Old English was spoken for more than 600 years, it produced very few notable pieces of literature. Important among these few is the poem Beowulf, which has been translated into Modern English (and many other languages, for that matter). Beowulf depicts the story of the Norse warrior, Beowulf, containing historical and legendary accounts of the Geats, Danes and other Germanic tribes. Old English continued as the language of choice in the British Isles until the Norman Conquest in 1066 AD. William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy, and his entourage of invaders spoke an Old French dialect ca
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