History of the English Language

“Those who are unaware of history are destined to repeat it” – George Santayana

Abandon

Lunar

Kindergarten

Saga

Plethora

Penguin

Whiskey

What do these words have in common?

4 Phases of English

English has gone through 4 major periods:

• Old English (5th Century - 11th Century AD)

• Middle English (11th Century - 15th Century AD)

• Early Modern English (15th century - 17th century AD)

• Modern English (17th Century – Present)

Before Old English

Celtic tribes were some of the earliest settlers of the British Isles.

By 100 BCE Celtic tribes were the dominant culture on the islands.

Languages with Celtic origin exist today: Gaelic (Irish), Welsh. They have impacted modern English.

Before Old English: Roman Rule

The Roman Empire entered Britain in the 1st Century AD.

Latin was the official language of government.

Latin later evolved into the “Romance Languages”, namely: Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese.

There are many Latin words in English, and these are often similar or identical to words in Spanish or Italian.

The Anglo-Saxon InvasionStarting in the late 400s after the collapse of the Roman Empire, Germanic tribes invaded the British Isles. The Jutes, Angles, and Saxons, and also Frisians migrated.

These tribes spoke Germanic languages.

English grammar is closest to German.

These Germanic tribes laid the foundation for Old English.

Old English is Born

By around 600 AD, the Germanic tribes controlled most of the British population.

Celtic groups continued to exist.

Old English was formed from a mix of the Germanic groups’ languages, Latin, and pieces of the Celtic language.

Old English is virtually impossible for a Modern English speaker to understand.

Example of Old English

Fæder ureðu ðe eart on heofenum

si ðin nama gehalgodto-becume ðin rice

geweorþe ðin willa on eorðan swa swa on heofenum.Urne ge dæghwamlican hlaf syle us to-deag

and forgyf us ure gyltasswa swa we forgifaþ urum gyltendum

ane ne gelæde ðu us on costnungeac alys us of yfle.

The Lords Prayer

Viking InvasionsVikings began invading around the 9th century.

The conquered much of the British Isles. English has words of Norse origin today.

Beowulf is a Viking tale written in Old English.

Middle English and the Normans

In 1066 the Normans (From Normandy, now France) led by William the Conqueror invaded the British Isles.

Norman (pre-French) became the official government language. Nobles used it.

English remained the common man’s language. But the languages blended.

As a result, there are many duplicate words. “Formal” speech uses more Latin/French words.

Middle English established the alphabet we use today. Chaucer wrote the Canterbury Tales in Middle English

Example of Middle English

Oure fadir that art in heuenes,halewid be thi name;

thi kyngdoom come to;be thi wille don, in erthe as in heuene.

Yyue to vs this dai oure breed ouer othir substaunce,and foryyue to vs oure dettis, as we foryyuen to oure

dettouris;and lede vs not in to temptacioun, but delyuere vs fro yuel.

Amen.

The Lords Prayer

Early Modern English

England unified under the Tudor Dynasty, first led by King Henry VII in the 15th century.

The Printing press allowed texts to be mass-produced in a single style.

The government pushed for a standardized English form, this would be Early Modern English.

English drama emerged during this time.

EModE is relatively easy for native English speakers to understand.

Example of EModE

Our father which art in heauen, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdome come. Thy will be done, in earth, as it is in heauen.

Giue vs this day our daily bread.And forgiue vs our debts, as we forgiue our debters.

And lead vs not into temptation, but deliuer vs from euill: For thine is the kingdome, and the power, and the glory, for

euer, Amen

The Lords Prayer

Modern English Today

Modern English was established with dictionaries written in the 18th and 19th centuries. This eliminated the spelling irregularities that plagued the language before.

Today, English continues to evolve. It adopts words from other languages, invents new words, and changes according to its culture.

Computer

Seatbelt

Antibiotic

Twerking

Texting

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