Transcript History of the English Language

History of the English Language
All the Details Your Momma Didn’t
Tell You
The Big Picture
• The primary reason English is so quirky is that it’s
a Germanic language upon which they have
forced Latin grammar.
• 5 big events in the history of English language
(h.e.l.l.=history of the English language Luigi)
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Anglo-Saxons settled in England
Vikings toddled over too
1066 Norman conquest
Attempt at standardization
Globalization
A Complex Timetable
Old English (where we started)—
Aelfric talking about how the Pope
decided to send missionaries to
England
• Eft he axode, hu ðære ðeode nama wære þe
hi of comon. Him wæs geandwyrd, þæt hi
Angle genemnode wæron. Þa cwæð he,
"Rihtlice hi sind Angle gehatene, for ðan ðe hi
engla wlite habbað, and swilcum gedafenað
þæt hi on heofonum engla geferan beon."
Anglo-Saxons Come to Britain
• Anglo-Saxons brought a Germanic language with
them.
• There is no point in calling their early language
English because it was the same dialect that was
spoken on the continent of Europe.
• Over time, Old English emerged as a separate
dialect of Old German.
• In the meantime, speakers of the older Gaelic
languages were pushed into Wales and Scotland.
Gaelic is also the mother tongue of Ireland.
Vikings
• After the Romans went home to watch their
empire be destroyed, the Vikings decided that
England was ripe for raiding and eventual
settlement. By the 11th century there was
even a Danish king, Canute, in England.
• The Vikings brought their own version of a
Germanic language with them, and Old
English sucked a number of words that are in
common use today, like take and they.
Norman Conquest--1066
• This was a monumental event in HELL, but not for
the reasons that you might think.
• For roughly 300 yr. French was the official
language of England. That’s not the big deal
because English continued to be spoken
everywhere outside of the court.
• The important thing is that the language was
neglected for 300 years and left to change as
people wished. By the time it again became the
official language, it had become bizarre and
fragmented.
Middle English
•
Lauerd me steres, noght wante sal me:
In stede of fode þare me louked he.
He fed me ouer watre ofe fode,
Mi saule he tornes in to gode.
He led me ouer sties of rightwisenes,
For his name, swa hali es.
For, and ife .I. ga in mid schadw ofe dede,
For þou wiþ me erte iuel sal .i. noght drede;
Þi yherde, and þi stafe ofe mighte,
Þai ere me roned dai and nighte.
Þou graiþed in mi sighte borde to be,
Ogaines þas þat droued me;
Þou fatted in oli me heued yhite;
And mi drinke dronkenand while schire es ite!
And filigh me sal þi mercy
Alle daies ofe mi life for-þi;
And þat .I. wone in hous ofe lauerd isse
In lengþe of daies al wiþ blisse
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•
Lord my steres, not want shall me:
In stede of fode there me looked he.
He fed me ouer water of fode,
My soul he turns in to good.
He lead me ouer sties of righteousness
For his name, as holy is.
For, and if I go in mid shadow of dread,
For thou with me while iuel shall I not dread;
Thy yherde, and thy staff of might,
They are me roned day and night.
Thou graithed in my sight borde to be,
Ogaines thas that droued me;
Thou fatted in oil my head yhite;
And my drink dronkenand while schire is ite!
And filigh my shall thy mercy
All days of my life for-thy
And that I wone in house of lord is
In length of days al with bliss
Standardization
• Charles I lost his head (literally).
• Oliver Cromwell and his Puritan Happy Boys were
running the show in England for a few years.
• Charles II returned to England, claimed the
throne, and English became, once again, the
official language.
• The word nerds of the time looked at the
confused state of the language and called for new
standards. Frankly, nobody really cared about
that but…
Printing Press
• Before this time, William Caxton brought the
printing press to England.
• THIS is what really brought about
standardization of English. Imagine trying to
print something for sale throughout England
when “Hooked on Phonics” was the only
spelling rule. Even as late as Shakespeare’s
time, spelling was largely free-form.
• Letz luk at sum egzampuls.
Barriers to Standardization
• While the Normans were speaking French and
ruling England, the language fragmented into
literally hundreds of regional dialects. So—
whose English becomes the “correct” one?”
Have you ever heard of the “king’s English?”
• The tradition in English has always been to
keep the original spelling of loan words, i.e.
the French word cuisine. In English this would
have been pronounced cheweezyn.
They Tried It Anyway
• There was a chance at this point to REALLY make
a change in the language. (time period=1600 to
about 1750)
• But they let the chance slip away.
– These guys were still bowing down to Latin as a model
of a great language and tried to make English
grammar as close to that as possible. It wasn’t
possible.
– They chose to keep the most “popular” spellings,
pronunciations and word meanings rather than the
ones that made the most sense, hence rough, slough,
debt, etc.