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Hwæt!

@hwaet.info

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Translations of the first word of Beowulf. Created by @jesse.lansner.com. See more at hwaet.info.

Posts Replies Media

Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 14/10/2026

Not yet…

A black and white photo of a lone figure standing on the shoreline as small waves crash. Over it is the text “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 13/10/2026

I address that on the website.

I created this site as an accompaniment to the puzzle. Originally it had about two dozen translations, all in English. Now it's up to 146 entries in 28 languages. Because I am only concerned about translations of hwaet, this list includes a number of adaptations that do not even pretend to be translations, such as Zach Weinersmith's wonderful graphic novel Bea Wolf, in which the 5-year-old heroine must defend a tree house from the evil Mr. Grindle. It also only includes versions of Beowulf that treat hwaet as in interjection. George Walkden, of the University of Manchester, argued in 2011 that hwaet should be read simply as part of the opening sentence. Whatever the linguistic merit of that argument, I find it boring on a literary level. An epic poem deserves an epic beginning.

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 29/09/2026

It's definitely weird on its own, but I think it's less clunky in context.

FOREFIT

HEY now hear
what spears of Danes
in days of years gone
by did, what deeds made
their power their glory —
their kings & princes:

SCYLD SCEFING,
wretched foundling,
grew under open skies & in him glory thrived
& all who threatened his meadhall ran in terror
& all neighboring nations brought him gold
following whaleroads.

BEOWULF,
this good king’s son
grew glorious in the heart of all Scandinavia,
born to keep his fathers’ rule & answer
his people’s need & his gifts brought trust,
men to stand by him in war, in old age —
the tribe thrives with each man’s rewarded deed.

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 14/09/2026

You know, I was thinking about the Spear-Danes again, and their kings, and all the great things they did. Shilly – that’s Scyld Scefing – used to win so many battles.

“You know,” Martha says, after Daisy asks whether she’s watching any good TV, “I was with John-John — this is JFK Jr. — the Monday before the Friday when they died.” Every piece of this is masterful. First, the faux-casual you know essentially functions as the opening of an epic poem, a way to call the audience to attention. You know is the Martha Stewart equivalent of Beowulf’s “Hwæt!”

Excerpt From
“RHONY Lets Martha Stewart Cook”
Kathryn VanArendonk
New York Magazine

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 13/04/2026

That’s how @zachweinersmith.bsky.social started “Bea Wolf”

An image from the graphic novel “Bea Wolf” showing a kid in a hoodie shouting “Hey,Wait!”

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 15/09/2025

🤬

Screenshot of the NYT game Spelling Bee, showing that the word HWAET is “not in word list”.

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 06/08/2025

A drawing of Bugs Bunny lying on his back and eating a carrot. The caption reads "Ehhhhh... Hwæt's Up, Doc?"

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Hwæt! @hwaet.info · 03/02/2025

Google, hwaet the fuck are you talking about?

Screen shot of google AI overview. Text:

The opening line of the Old English poem Beowulf is often misconstrued as "Oi you, listen to this!". However, research suggests that the opening line is actually "hwæt", which was likely used an an interjection.

There is also a drawing of a kind of cute dragon.

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