As for English ballads of unknown authorship, they started in the 12th and 13th centuries and prospered in the 14th and 15th, only it is often difficult to date them.

• 至于不明作者、起于民间的英语民谣，12、13世纪就有，到14、15世纪大盛，只是无法查明它们较确切的创作年代。