origin of english, impact of invasions on the language, development throughout history till present day

1. The Story Of English
It has been rightly said by R.W.
Emerson, “the English language is
the sea which receives tributaries
from every region under heaven.”

2. More than 2000 years ago, when there was loose political demarcation in the
British Isles, a small country called ‘Angles’ (modern England) attracted a lot
of attention from its neighbors due to its exceedingly rich natural heritage, its
pleasantly mild weather and its vast, beautiful meadows stretching across the
horizon. Being an island, England was invaded many times, the invaders
bringing their language and politics.
Therefore, the strength of the English language today is a result of the weakness
of ‘angle-land’.

3. Saxon Invasion
The Saxon invaded the Celts of Britain in the middle of the
5th century. The Anglo Saxons preferred their own Runic
language, mixing it with Celtic.
Christian missionaries begin arriving in 597AD, led by St.
Augustine, which integrated Latin and Biblical language
into Celtic.
This way, Anglo-Saxon settlement ushered in what we call
today ‘Old English’.

4. Norman Invasions
Led by William the Conqueror, the Normans invaded the Anglo-Saxons in
the year 1066 AD. French was established as the language of power
and officialdom.
Because of this there are often two words for many concepts in English,
one being of Anglo-Saxon origin, the other of Norman French origin.
Examples are, kingly (Saxon) and royal (Norman), or buy/purchase,
forgive/pardon.
In addition, With Latin as the language of the church and of education,
England becomes a truly trilingual country.
As a result, almost 40 % of Modern English has Latin roots, and another 40
% generates from French.

5. Influence of foreign languages on
English
Norse – 5 %
French – 40 %
Latin – 40 %
Arabic, Spanish, Germanic – 10 %
Almost all of administrative, political and military terms such
as lieutenant, government, Marshall, colonel, admiral, naval
etc are derived from French language, while words relating
to art and music have come from Italian.
Scientific words, medical terminology, and academic words
come from Latin, as it was the official language of Roman
Empire. If you were to look at the Latin language itself,
even a person without classical training would be able figure
out the meaning of most Latin words due to the fact that
most Latin vocabulary has made its way into the English
language in one form or another.

6. Spanish and Arabic words relating to warfare and tactics
(example – guerilla warfare) also crept into this universal
language.
Infact, the word ‘coffee’ comes from the Arabic word
‘kahwah’. Due to business and trading, Arabic also lent
English words such as - alkali, algebra, alcohol and muslin.
Here are some examples of English word of French, Spanish
and Arabic origin –
English - French/Spanish - Arabic -
Assassasin Hasohishin Hashish
Music Musica Mousique
Carat Carato Qarat

7. Biblical Influence on English -
King James Bible is the most common source of
English phrases after Shakespeare.
Some common Biblical phrases which have been
imbibed by English language are –
“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”
“A wolf in sheep’s clothing”
“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”
“As you sow, so shall you reap”
“Can a leopard change its spots”
“Flesh and Blood”
“The apple of his eye”

8. Arrival of Printing Press (1478)
Once luxury items, books became more affordable. Over
20,000 titles appeared following the setting up of printing
press by William Caxton.
The 'Great Vowel Shift' which took place during the 15th
century, represented a major development in
pronounciation. Spelling also became more standardised
and the pace of grammatical change slowed.
Hence, we witness the emergence of ‘Modern English’.
The following slide contains a page from Shakespeare’s “A
Midsummer’s Night” which was one of the first printed
books.

10. Classification of English language –
Old English (450 AD -1100AD)
Medieval English (1100 AD – 1500
AD)
Modern English (1500 AD onwards)

11. Old English
Under the influence of Latin civilization of the Roman
church, the Anglo-Saxon language underwent the
process of Re-Christianization, which gave birth to Old
English.
According to Bede (673-735 A.D) , who was the first great
English historian, this language acquired an added
importance under the influence of Saint Augustine. Later
on, a great writer known as Beowulf became an eminent
spokesman of this language by his poetry.
During its development, this language also received a
substantial body of religious language based on
scriptural sources and the Bible. It, therefore had a good
deal of scripture language, biblical elements as well as
elements from Norse, Saxon, French.
The following slide contains a page from Beowulf’s poetry.

13. Medieval English
Medieval English started from the 11th century after the
conquest of England by the Normans.
It was during this period that we had the poems written
particularly by the people of English church. However,
the most notable work during this period remains
Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales”.
This language is full of inflection, with a different tone
and intonation. But the language of this period also
records a rich presence of poetry, scripture writing and
late religious medieval writing projecting many
successful poets and writers like Gower, Langland,
Geoffery Gaimer, Lydgat, Chaucer, Mallory and Caxton.
The following slide contains an excerpt from Chaucer’s
“Canterbury Tales”.

14. Whoso shal telle a tale after a man,
He moot reherce as ny as evere he kan
Everich a word, if it be in his charge,
Al speke he never so rudeliche and large,
Or ellis he moot tell his tae untrewe,
Or feyne thing, or fynde wordes newe.

15. Modern English -
The Modern English era can be roughly divided into the
following –
Renaissance (1450 -1650)
Restoration (1660- 1688)
Classical Era (1740 -1800)
Romanticism (1800 -1840)
Victorian Era (1840 – 1900)

16. Renaissance (1450 -1650)
Renaissance , usually defined as “revival of classical learning
and Hellenism”, contributed immense and spectacular
achievements in the field of art and literature.
While Shakespeare took drama to its pinnacle with his
comedies and tragedies, written in the vigorous musical
rhythm of “Blank Verse”, and his universal vision of life and
human existence; John Donne brought in the new concept
of metaphysical elements in poetry, and Edmund Spencer
revealed the mystery and enigma of renaissance life with
his art of allegory and deeper meaning of life.
Thus, with the advent of renaissance, English language
acquired new dimensions in poetry with the richness of its
symbol imagery and got a new vocabulary in its dramas
with its dramatic monologue and its power of expression;
while the language was simultaneously enriched by new
words of euphuism, repartee and wit.

17. Restoration (1660- 1688)
Restoration, that followed the arrival of King Charles the
Second in England, actually brought in all the French
fashion, code and conduct of life and French manners,
which in consequence gave rise to what is known as
Restoration drama.
The Restoration plays are, in a real sense, a true reflection of
French fashion and artificiality which affected the entire
English life and society. As a result of which we have
restoration comedies with characters who use language
and expressions to exhibit their double dealing in life.
Hence, wit and conceit, repartee, and double-meaning
phrases dominated the English language during this period.
An example of this may be found in Congreves ‘ play, “The
Way of the world” where he says “to live in a woman’s
heart is like living in a windmill”, reflecting the uncertainty
of women’s nature.

18. Classical Era (1740 -1800)
Great writers like Alexander Pope, Dryden, Swift and
others vigorously reacted against the sentimental and
emotional expression which dominated renaissance. To
these poets and writers, nature and truth were the
norms which they followed and with the dictum that
“art is to follow truth and nature, and thereby eschew
all that is fanciful, imaginative, emotional and all that is
far from normal life”. But the whole attitude of these
poets was most formal and factual. This concept
logically turned the writers of the age to satire, irony,
criticism and the device of anti-climax.

19. Romanticism (1800 -1840)
Romantic period has been rightly defined as a reaction against the
classical mode of life and literature. Rejecting the formal attitude of
the classical poets towards life, the romantics turn back to nature in
order to emphasize the importance of primary feelings of man, his
natural emotions and imagination and his deep relation with
nature, along with the mysteries and supernatural elements which
define human life.
Hence, romantic poetry has been defined as “wonder of renaissance”
or “strangeness added to beauty”. It is in this sense that
Wordsworth defines poetry as “an outburst of powerful feelings
recollected with emotions”.
In short, romantic poetry added a new language known as the
romantic expression of the personal life of the poet with new terms
like ‘melancholy, hope and despair, happiness and sorrow,
appearance and reality’ all expressed with a wistful hope of a better
future for mankind. As Shelly Cooper “if winter comes, can spring
be far behind ?”

20. Victorian Era (1840 – 1900)
In many respects, Victorian age was a continuation of the
romantic vision of life. But, it was during that time that the
vast progress of industrialism and the great expansion of
British Empire filled the people with a new sense of progress
and sheer materialism.
Simultaneously, the advance of scientific theories challenging the
old age Biblical beliefs created doubts and conflicts in the
minds of the people. Hence, we have Charles Dickens exposing
the maladies of industrialism in social life while, the great poet
Tennyson expressing doubts and conflicts in his great poem
“The Inmemorium”.
Obviously, the Victorian age brought in new mode of expression
with fresh language of expressing its doubts, conflicts,
diffidence, disapproval for materialism, as well as a sense of
uncertainty and disillusionment at the vain pursuit of man
towards unreal things as expressed by Tennyson, “we are the
dreamers of dream, we are the makers of dream”.

21. Present Day English
Throughout the ages, English has
been a vast canvas on which every
country of the world has used its
brush to add fresh colours which
proves its universal vision of
accepting influence from nook and
corner of the world. Today, the
language is spoken by billions and
has been rightly called a universal
language.