Saxons

The Saxons were a Germanic people who originated in parts of what is now northern Germany and the Jutland peninsula. In continental Europe they inhabited areas that roughly correspond to the later regions of Old Saxony and Eastphalia, among other territories, and they spoke Old Saxon as part of the West Germanic language group. Over time, various Saxon communities formed sub-tribes and confederations.

In late antiquity, during the migrations that followed the Roman departure from Britain, Saxons, along with other Germanic groups such as the Angles and Jutes, settled in Great Britain. By the early medieval period they established several Anglo-Saxon kingdoms: the West Saxons (Wessex) in the southwest, the South Saxons (Sussex) in the southeast, and the East Saxons (Essex) in the southeast and east; the East Angles occupied the eastern region, and other peoples such as the Mercian and Northumbrian kingdoms emerged in later centuries. Kent is often associated with Jutish settlement rather than Saxon.

Christianization began in the 6th century with missions such as Augustine’s to Kent in 597, followed by the spread of Christianity to other kingdoms and the establishment of monastic centers and Latin literacy. From the 9th century onward, Viking incursions affected Anglo-Saxon England, leading to reforms and defensive measures under rulers of Wessex. The eventual unification of several Anglo-Saxon kingdoms into a single English realm occurred in the 10th century, with the House of Wessex playing a leading role and later dynasties continuing the process of consolidation.

The term “Saxon” remains a historical label for these early medieval Germanic populations, whose language evolved into Old English and later into modern English.