OLD ENGLISH (VI – XI CENTURY)

The earliest known inhabitants of Britain were the Celts, also

called the “Britons” or “the painted people” because of their warriors

habit of painting their bodies. But a few traces of their culture can still

be seen today. Stonehenge which was probably a Celtic temple.

The Welsh language of Wales and the Gaelic

languages of Scotland and Ireland are Celtic

languages, descendants of the dialects spoken by

the ancient Britons.

In 43 A.D. the Britons were conquered by Roman

legions, and Britain became part of the Roman

Empire. During the 400 years that the Romans

stayed in Britain their famous engineers and

well-disciplined soldiers founded towns such as

London.

In the 5th century A.D. began a massive

migration of Germanic tribes from Central and

Eastern Europe towards the west and south. The

Roman Empire, already weakened quickly

succumbed to the barbarians’ ruthless attack.

Romans pulled their troops out of Britain trying

to save Rome, leaving the Britons defenseless.

The 2 largest of the migrating tribes were the

Angles and the Saxons, who spoke a common

language known as Anglo-Saxon (also called Old

English).

the Anglo-Saxons were pagans. They were

converted to Christianity. But they continued to

worship their old German gods. In fact, the

names of the week in Modern English come from

the names of the main Anglo-Saxon gods – for

example:

Thursday was Thor’s day – Thor was the god of

thunder.

Friday was Freya’s day – Freya was the goddess of

fertility.

Sunday was the day in honor of the sun-god.

Beowulf is the greatest Old English poem:

“haeleth hiofend hlaford leofne

alegdom tha tomides maerne theoden

ongunnon tha on beorge bael-fyra maest

wigend weccan wudu-rec astah

sweart ofer swiothole swogende leg

wope bewunden.”

“The sorrowing soldiers then laid the glorious prince

their dear lord, in the middle. Then on the hill the

war-men began to light the greatest funeral fires.

the wood-smoke rose black above the flames,

the noisy fire mixed with sorrowing cries.”

MIDDLE ENGLISH – XI – XVI CENTURY

The Anglo-Saxons were a doomed people. Continuous Viking raids smashed their little communities, leaving the first English society seriously weakened.

Once the Anglo-Saxons had become an easy prey for another and even greater military people – the Normans. The Normans came from Normandy in northern France. When they conquered England they imposed their laws, system of government and even the Norman French language upon English.

For many years after the Norman Conquest, England was divided into two societies: Anglo-Saxons speaking German and the Normans speaking a dialect of French. Partly as a result of this linguistic confusion, Latin, the international language of the Church, became the official language of the land and was used in schools.

The language itself was transformed by the disappearance of the old poetic terms and the infiltration of new words imported by the Normans. Modern English was formed in this period. Its basis and the words which we use most often in ordinary speech remained Anglo-Saxon, but words of French origin or derived through French from Latin and Greek are far more numerous and form the bulk of our vocabulary, 60% (Latin/French/Greek) and 40% German.

Example:

Tales of Canterbury

“But nathles, why I have tyme and space,

Er that I ferther in this tale pace

Me thinketh in acordaunt to resoun.”

“But now, while still I have the time and space,

Before that I farther in this story pace,

I think it only reasonable and fair.”

MODERN ENGLISH – XVI century to the present days

Examples:

I am I have

Thou art Thou hast

He /She / It is He/ She / It hath

We/ You/They are We/ You/They have