Ælfric's Use of his Sources in the Preface to Genesis, together with a Conspectus of Biblical and Patristic Sources and Analogues

The preface to Genesis by Ælfric which, in three surviving manuscripts, precedes either his translation of the first half of Genesis or the OE Hexateuch, is an independent composition in the form of a letter to "Ælfric's patron, the ealdormanta Æthelweard. The immediacy of the circumstances which gave rise to this letter, the directness of its epistolary style, and the inclusion of some autobiographical material may give the impression that it is an original piece of writing. Perhaps because of this, no systematic study of its sources has ever been made and its editors have been content to point out only the obvious quotations from the first chapter of Genesis and the allusions to other parts of the Pentateuch. However, the introduction to the symbolic interpretation of the Old Testament which forms the main body of the letter is heavily dependent on Biblical exegesis known to Ælfric. It is the purpose of this article to examine his use of scripture and patristics in this text, showing in particular how these sources cast light on the meaning of the preface.