--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, diegof@... wrote:
>
>
> Hi Bob,
> I'm currently studying Old Norse at the university of Oslo, and I'm
using
> Terje Spurkland's handbook "Innføring i norrønt språk" (in
Norwegian,
> Universitetetsforlaget, 8. edition 2004, Oslo). That is a grammar
which
> can give you a general background; however, I personally think the
best
> book ever is "Old Icelandic - an introductory course", by Sigrid
Valfells
> and James E. Cathey, Oxford university press, Oxford 1981, in that
it
> gives you a progressive explanation of the matter, allowing you the
time
> to digest everything. Moreover, the exercises are extremely useful
(they
> are very similar to the material you've been using up to now) and
they
> change slowly from artificial texts to real exerpts from mediaeval
> literature. It's also great to learn the vocabulary, because you are
> supposed to work without dictionary (in every lesson you are
introduced to
> new words), and the last thing, which I think it's the best of all,
> vocabulary is given with tematic vowels: for instance, when you
learn the
> word "hjálmr", you find the form "hjálm-a-" between brackets, so
that you
> can guess the rest of the pattern (i.e. you can form the plural
nominative
> according to the thematic vowel: "hjálm-a-r"). This is something
very
> useful you cannot find in many other books.
> I hope this has been helpful to you!
>
> Kveðja,
> Diego
>