Oisc of Kent
Encyclopedia
Oisc was an early king of Kent
who ruled from about 488 to about 516.
Little is known about him, and the information that does survive regarding his life is often vague and suspect. He seems to have been the son or the grandson of Hengest
, who led the initial Anglo-Saxon
conquest and settlement of Kent. According to Bede
's Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Oisc's given name was Orric. Bede indicates that he was the son of Hengest, and came to Britain
with him, with the permission of the British king Vortigern
. He was the father of Octa
, who succeeded him. His descendants called themselves "Oiscingas" after him.
Kingdom of Kent
The Kingdom of Kent was a Jutish colony and later independent kingdom in what is now south east England. It was founded at an unknown date in the 5th century by Jutes, members of a Germanic people from continental Europe, some of whom settled in Britain after the withdrawal of the Romans...
who ruled from about 488 to about 516.
Little is known about him, and the information that does survive regarding his life is often vague and suspect. He seems to have been the son or the grandson of Hengest
Hengest
Hengist and Horsa are figures of Anglo-Saxon, and subsequently British, legend, which records the two as the Germanic brothers who led the Angle, Saxon, and Jutish armies that conquered the first territories of Great Britain in the 5th century AD...
, who led the initial Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
conquest and settlement of Kent. According to Bede
Bede
Bede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
's Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Oisc's given name was Orric. Bede indicates that he was the son of Hengest, and came to Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
with him, with the permission of the British king Vortigern
Vortigern
Vortigern , also spelled Vortiger and Vortigen, was a 5th-century warlord in Britain, a leading ruler among the Britons. His existence is considered likely, though information about him is shrouded in legend. He is said to have invited the Saxons to settle in Kent as mercenaries to aid him in...
. He was the father of Octa
Octa of Kent
Octa was an Anglo-Saxon King of Kent during the 6th century. Sources disagree on his relationship to the other kings in his line; he may have been the son of Hengist or Oisc, and may have been the father of Oisc or Eormenric. The dates of his reign are unclear, but he may have ruled from 512 to...
, who succeeded him. His descendants called themselves "Oiscingas" after him.
See also
- List of monarchs of Kent
- AskAsk and EmblaIn Norse mythology, Ask and Embla —male and female respectively—were the first two humans, created by the gods. The pair are attested in both the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson...
, the first male human in Norse mythology.