This volume identifies historical metrics as an important discipline within English studies and raises significant questions about the composition and transmission of early English verse. The chronological range of the book covers the Old English to the pre-Renaissance periods, while its theoretical range is multidisciplinary. The keynote introduction by Thomas Cable identifies major current issues within the field. The work concludes with an extensive and up-to-date bibliography which includes linguistics, philological and text-critical work. The distinguished team of contributors includes: Russom, McCully, and Obst (focusing on Old English, with a conspectus by Stockwell); Minkova (on the Ormulum and early Middle English); Borroff, Matonis, and Osberg (Middle English verse); Bunt and Duggan (editing and Middle English metrics); and Duffell and Youmans (the origin and structure of the Chaucerian long line).