The History of Englisc (That would be English in 2011)
Jan 28, 2016
The History of Englisc
(That would be English in 2011)
Indo European Languages
Influences on English
Old English ~ CE 450-1066
Celtic Influences – cradle, griddle, glen and whisky
Latin influences (Roman) (part 1)
- occupied Britannia for 350 years
- Latin also in languages of Angles, Saxons, Jutes
Angles, Saxons, Jutes
- invaded Britannia starting around CE 450
- from what is now The Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark
Anglo-Saxon -> Englisc (Old English)
CE 597 Christianity arrives- Latin (part 2)- Priests also wrote in Anglo-
Saxon CE 700 language called Englisc CE 827 King Egbert
renamed Britannia – Engla-land Englisc words that have survived
bedd, eorth, moder, nama, healp, mann, and waeter
Beowulf
Da com of more under mist-hleopum
Grendel gongan godes yrre baer
Mynte se man-scao manna cynnes
Sumne besywan in sel pam hean.
Beowulf
Da com of more under mist-hleopumOut from the marsh, from the foot of misty
hillsGrendel gongan godes yrre baerGrendel came bearing the hatred of the godsMynte se man-scao manna cynnesHoping to kill any human beingSumne besywan in sel pam hean.She could trap in the high hall.
The Norman Invasion
Middle English – CE 1066-1485
CE 1066 – Norman ConquestWilliam the ConquererBattle of Hastings
CE 1066 – 1366 French - Official Languagegovernment, art, society
Englisc – peasant language
Middle English – CE 1066-1485
French words flood the English Language
e.g. parliament, armour, prisoner, chivalry,tournament, penance
Englisc still used by peasantsEnglisc French (polite)pig pork (porc)cow beef (boeuf)
Chaucer – The Canterbury Tales1380
Whan that Aprill with his shoures soote
The droghte of March hath perced to the roote
And bathed every veyne in swich licour
Of which vertu engendred is the flour
Chaucer – The Canterbury Tales1380
Whan that Aprill with his shoures sooteWhen in April the sweet showers fallThe droghte of March hath perced to the
rooteAnd pierce the drought of March to the root,
and allAnd bathed every veyne in swich licourThe veins are bathed in liquor of such powerOf which vertu engendred is the flourAs brings about the engendering of the
flower
Oxford UniversityOldest English Language University in the
World – dates from the 11th Century CE
Technology Changes EnglishThe Printing Press
1456 – Johannes Gutenberg (Germany)- moveable type
1474 – William Caxton (England)
English becomes more fixed and less phonetic
Printed books become dramatically cheaper- more readers
The Great Vowel Shift ~ 1400-1600
The pronunciation of vowels shifted
Before the Shift
i pronounced “ee” “bit” pronounced “beet”
e pronounced “ey” “meet” pronounced “meyeyt”
ea pronounced “ay” “meat” pronounced “mayt”
u pronounced as “u” in put
The Renaissance New interest in Latin and Greek Sciences
Translation into English
No English words existed to adequately express some ideas – Latin and Greek words added to English at a frantic pace
About 65% of words in modern English dictionaries are of Latin or Greek origin.
Latin & Greek InfluencesLatin or Greek
English Words
struere, to build up structure, constructionreconstruct, constructive
credere, to believe discredit, creditor, incredible, credulous
monere, to warn admonish, premonition, monitor
monos, one monogamy, monotheism,monologue, monopoly
poly, many polyglot, polygon, polytheism
Modern English 1600 -
Shakespeare
Major dramatist, poet
Used 20,138 different words in his writing
1,700 had never been used before
He invented about 8.5% of his vocabulary
Shakespeare’s Words
aerial, bedroom, frugal, generous, lapse,
critic, amazement, gloomy, bump,
amazement, assassination, dislocate,
laughable, hurry, sneak, exposure,
baseless, courtship, impartial,
majestic, useless, pious
Dr. Johnson’s Dictionary - 1775
Defined 43,000 words
Supported them with more than 114,000
e.g.
Dedication. A servile address to a patron
Gambler. (a cant word, I suppose, for game, or gamester) a knave whose practice it is to invite the unwary to game and cheat them.
Exploration ~ Colonialism1400 - 1900
The Sun Never Sets ~
In the late 1800s, the British Empire, controlled one quarter of the world and
was present on every continent.
English -> foreign languages
Foreign languages -> English
~ on the British Empire
Adopted WordsIndia bandanna, bungalow, calico,
cashmere, cot, curry, polopajama
Asia gingham, indigo, mango, typhoon
Africa banana, boorish, gorilla, gumbo, zebra, okra
Canada moccasin, raccoon, squash, toboggan, kayak, parka, wigwam
Canadian, eh!
British Canadianlift elevatorpram strollerchemist drugstoredust bin garbage canqueue up line upmacintosh raincoatsweets candiescrisps potato chipschips fries
Today’s Technology
Alexander Graham BellElectromagnetic Telephone - 1876
Today’s Technology
Reginald A. Fessenden
Today’s Technology
Reginald A. FessendenInvented AM Radio in 1906
Today’s Technology
Today’s Technology
The First Television
Today’s Technology
Apple II – 1977 – First practical microcomputer available to public
Today’s Technology
Printers – make self publishing possible
Today’s Technology
Computer Language
Toolbar attachment modemMenu internet downloade-mail login virusBrowser web MouseWeb site hotlinks pop-upsBookmark scroll bar search
engine
- words that mean something else in another context
Today’s Technology
The Cellphone
First Cellphone CallApril 3, 1973
First Commercial CellphoneMotorola – 1983
Weight - 831g, (28 Amer. Oz.)
Cost - $3,500 US
Today’s Technology
Smart Phones
Text
Internet
Photographs
Videos
Scheduling
Voice
Potential bankruptcy
Today’s Technology
A New Language?
omg! tmi!1
1 – a student’s reaction to this presentation