Line 30 - Genaman

"-an" is a late spelling for "-on" pl.past indic. termination (see Context : Language of the poem). The exact phonetic value of the stressed vowel is uncertain. Standard OE would suggest either "a" (from the etymological singular) or "o" (from the etymological plural). Swanton argues that the inverted positioning of the verb underlines the violence experienced by the tree. However, this appears to be the unstressed position for the verb in verse. See the discussion of verb stress in Context, The Metre of the poem and notes to lines 65b - 77.

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