It is a widely known fact that monks practice abstinence. Yet, the monastic scribes of the Old English riddles had to copy lines about a man raising up clothing and thrusting with something stiff,...Show moreIt is a widely known fact that monks practice abstinence. Yet, the monastic scribes of the Old English riddles had to copy lines about a man raising up clothing and thrusting with something stiff, about a girl gripping a swollen and boneless thing, and about something by a man’s thigh that often fully fills the same hole. Unlike these lines might suggest, these riddles do not concern any unholy acts, but merely butter churning, a girl kneading dough, and a key unlocking a door. The power of riddles lies in their ability to change a mundane act or object in something so vastly different it is hardly recognisable, which makes them both a fun and mentally stimulating challenge. In Anglo-Saxon times, riddles circulated in Old English as well as in Anglo-Latin; the two Anglo-Saxon riddling traditions. The majority of current research on riddles claims that the two traditions are very similar in every aspect, except for the presence of sexual riddles. That particular subtype of riddles is said to only occur in the Old English tradition. Although the classroom, where the Anglo-Latin riddles are generally believed to be used, does not strike as a fitting place for crude jokes, some evidence of traces of possible sexual riddling have been found by Andy Orchard and Mercedes Salvador-Bello. Exploratory studies such as theirs leave room for future research, which inspired this thesis.Show less