What is Old English also commonly called?

Old English is also commonly called Anglo-Saxon.

The name refers to the earliest attested stage of the English language, spoken in England and parts of southern and eastern Scotland from roughly the 5th century into the 11th or 12th century. It developed from West Germanic varieties brought by groups traditionally identified as the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, which explains the historical label Anglo-Saxon.

Old English was very different from modern English. It had grammatical gender, several cases, richer verb inflection, and vocabulary that can look unfamiliar today. Its four major dialect groups were Northumbrian, Mercian, Kentish, and West Saxon. West Saxon became especially important as a written literary standard.

The Norman Conquest of 1066 accelerated the transition toward Middle English, as Norman French became influential among the ruling class. “Anglo-Saxon” remains a common traditional name for the language, although modern scholars often prefer “Old English” because Anglo-Saxon can also refer to a people, culture, or period—and because the historical identity was more complex than the label suggests.