Language Change Flashcards
Early English
Anglo-Saxon language for spoken
Latin used for written/religious context & language of power
Roman conquest
EE- 55BC
Roman General - Caesar invades Britain
Latin language enters
Celtic pushed out (Irish, Welsh, Cornish, Scottish)
EE- 597AD
Saint Augustine arrives in Britain
beginning of of Christian conversion of Anglo-Saxon (no more Roman Gods)
‘Christianity born’
‘Roman Catholics’
Everything is written in Latin, church speaks Latin
Words- angel, bishop, chalice, beacon are from what origin?
Latin
Middle English
Norman French was language of Nobles- language of government/administration
Latin is still used in religion
Anglo Saxon spoken only by peasants
ME- 1066
Battle of Hastings /Norman conquest
William conqueror - king of England
French language from Normandy
Language of power & administration
ME- 1384
John Wycliffe
Publishes English translation of ‘the bible’
ME- 1385
English replaces Latin as main language in schools (except oxford & Cambridge)
ME- 1450
The great vowel shift
Change in pronunciation of English
Before it was Latin influenced - sheep sounded like shape
Long vowels changed pronunciation
ME- 1476
William Caxton
Establishes first English Printing Press - copies of text
Early Modern English
English spoken throughout England except Western Cornwall
Also known as the “Renaissance”
EME- 1500
Start of English Renaissance
EME- 1590
William Shakespeare writes his first plays
He invented over 1700 of our common words by changing nouns into verbs
New rules for spelling & word order
EME- 1619
Slavery in America - aid production of tobacco
African slaves forced to give up their several African languages and were spoken to in only English
Creole and languages developed, some of which variants of spoken English today - Jamaican
The standardisation of English
Industrial revolution- effect on socio-economic, cultural traditions of England Social class was a concern - language used as a marker for social identity
Extensive borrowings from around the world e.g. Spanish and Portuguese
Lexicon expanded & started the concern that language was moving too quickly & language needed to be fixed
Emergence of “prescriptivist” ideas - development of dictionary and grammar guides to establish a form of ‘correct’ English