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History Of English Language. A Time Line. The History of English Language. From its start in a jumble of West Germanic dialects to its role today as a global language--is both fascinating and complex. English began with a prehistoric language called Indo-European.
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History Of English Language A Time Line
The History of English Language • From its start in a jumble of West Germanic dialects to its role today as a global language--is both fascinating and complex. • English began with a prehistoric language called Indo-European. • The first settlers of the island that is now Great Britain spoke one form of Indo-European.
The History of English Language • Great numbers of words entered English from Latin, Greek, early Germanic languages, and French. • Gradually, the language developed. • What we call Modern English had formed by about 1500 A.D.
Germanic invaders entered Britain on the east and south coasts in the 5th century.
The Prehistory of English A,….Bbb,…C,D………….. • The main source of information for the culture of the Germanic peoples (the ancestors of the English) in ancient times is Tacitus’ Germania, written around 100 AD.
The Prehistory of English • According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, around the year 449, Vortigern, King of the Britons, invited the "Angle kin" (Angles allegedly led by the Germanic brothers Hengist and Horsa) to help him in conflicts with the Picts ; who ultimately stem from the religion of the Proto-Indo-Europeans.
Old English (450-1100 AD) • The invading Germanic tribes spoke similar languages, which in Britain developed into what we now call Old English. • Old English did not sound or look like English today.
Old English (450-1100 AD) • Native English speakers now would have great difficulty understanding Old English. • Nevertheless, about half of the most commonly used words in Modern English have Old English roots. • The words be, strong and water, for example, derive from Old English. Old English was spoken until around 1100.
Translated by Francis Gummere Lo, praise of the prowess of people-kingsof spear-armed Danes, in days long sped,we have heard, and what honor the athelings won!Oft Scyld the Scefing from squadroned foes,from many a tribe, the mead-bench tore,awing the earls. Since erst he layfriendless, a foundling, fate repaid him:for he waxed under welkin, in wealth he throve,till before him the folk, both far and near,who house by the whale-path, heard his mandate,gave him gifts: a good king he!
Middle English (1100-1500) • In 1066 William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy (part of modern France), invaded and conquered England. • The new conquerors (called the Normans) brought with them a kind of French, which became the language of the Royal Court, and the ruling and business classes. This wouldn’t be such a problem if William Never Came to England.
Middle English (1100-1500) • For a period there was a kind of linguistic class division, where the lower classes spoke English and the upper classes spoke French. • In the 14th century English became dominant in Britain again, but with many French words added. • This language is called Middle English. • It was the language of the great poet Chaucer (c1340-1400), but it would still be difficult for native English speakers to understand today.
Modern English It’s hard to cut joke in the modern era with all the Grammar.. • Early Modern English (1500-1800) • Towards the end of Middle English, a sudden and distinct change in pronunciation (the Great Vowel Shift) started, with vowels being pronounced shorter and shorter. • From the 16th century the British had contact with many peoples from around the world. • This, and the Renaissance of Classical learning, meant that many new words and phrases entered the language.
Modern English • The invention of printing also meant that there was now a common language in print. • Books became cheaper and more people learned to read. • Printing also brought standardization to English. • Spelling and grammar became fixed, and the dialect of London, where most publishing houses were, became the standard. • In 1604 the first English dictionary was published.
Hamlet's famous "To be, or not to be" lines, written in Early Modern English by Shakespeare.
Late Modern English (1800-Present) The main difference between Early Modern English and Late Modern English is vocabulary. Late Modern English has many more words, arising from two principal factors: firstly, the Industrial Revolution and technology created a need for new words; secondly, the British Empire at its height covered one quarter of the earth's surface, and the English language adopted foreign words from many countries.
Varieties of English • From around 1600, the English colonization of North America resulted in the creation of a distinct American variety of English. Some English pronunciations and words "froze" when they reached America. In some ways, American English is more like the English of Shakespeare than modern British English is. Some expressions that the British call "Americanisms" are in fact original British expressions that were preserved in the colonies while lost for a time in Britain Spanish also had an influence on American English, with words like canyon, ranch, stampede and vigilante being examples of Spanish words that entered English through the settlement of the American West. French words and West African words.
Today's English Today, American English is particularly influential, due to the USA's dominance of cinema, television, popular music, trade and technology (including the Internet). But there are many other varieties of English around the world, including for example Australian English, New Zealand English, Canadian English, South African English, Indian English and Caribbean English.
English is a member of the Germanic family of languages.Germanic is a branch of the Indo-European language family.
Shakespeare's influence William Shakespeare's influence extends from theatre to literature to present day movies and to the English language itself. Shakespeare is the second most quoted writer in the history of the English-speaking world after the various writers of the Bible, and many of his quotations and neologisms have passed into everyday usage in English and other languages. The influence of Shakespeare on the English language, both spoken and written, has been debated and opinions have varied over the centuries.
Shakespeare’s contribution to the expansion of the English language was commented on as early as 1598, when commentator Francis Meres, applauding English literature in relation to the classics, placed Shakespeare among the writers who had dignified the language. Later in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, critics and scholars began to doubt whether Shakespeare had a significant effect on the expansion of English vocabulary. This is mainly based on the neoclassical image of him as a poor Latinist. In the early twentieth century, there was an overreaction to this, so that one critic credited William Shakespeare with having coined nearly 10,000 words, though some critics wonder how his audience could have understood his plays if they were full of words of which nobody had ever heard.
Persian Words Words from Latin
Other Contributors to English language • African Words: Banana, banjo, chimpanzee, cola, mumbo jumbo, raffia, vodoo, vuvuzela, yam and zombie. • Dutch Words: Brandy, decoy, landscape and schooner • Spanish Words: Bravado, cafeteria, lasso, rodeo and. • German Words: Noodle, nix, snorkel and spiel. • Chinese Words: Ketchup, kowtow, tea and typhoon. • Caribbean Words: Barbecue, canoe, hammock, hurricane, maize, mosquito and tobacoo. • Arabic Words: Alcohol, algebra, amber, assassin, cipher, crimson, cotton, ghoul, mattress, sofa and zero.
