The English Language Has Changed Dramatically Since Its Beginning

840 Words4 Pages
English ESSAY The english language has changed dramatically since its beginning The English language has significantly evolved since old English was developed. One way the English language has changed is through different invasions within the European settlements. Not only has invasions played a major factor in the change of English, but also influences from people such as Shakespeare and Chaucer. Language has taken a great leap forward and much of the responsibility for the change falls onto modern technology. Over the centuries, the English language has been influenced by a number of other languages. During the 5th Century AD three Germanic tribes Saxons, Angles, and Jutes came to the British Isles from various parts of northwest Germany as well as Denmark. These tribes were warlike and pushed out most of the original, Celtic-speaking inhabitants from England into Scotland, Wales, and Cornwall. Through the years, the Saxons, Angles and Jutes mixed their different Germanic dialects. This group of dialects forms what we refer to as Old English or Anglo-Saxon. The word "English" was in Old English "Englisc", and that comes from the name of the Angles. The Romans came to Britain in 54-5BC they brought Latin to Britain, which was part of the Roman Empire for over 400 years. Many of the words passed on from this era are those created by Roman merchants and soldiers. These include win (wine), candel (candle), belt (belt), weall (wall). The arrival of St. Augustine in 597 and the introduction of Christianity into Saxon England brought more Latin words into the English language. They were mostly concerned with the naming of Church dignitaries and ceremonies some such as church, bishop, baptism, monk and Eucharist. Around 878 AD Danes and Norsemen, also called Vikings, invaded the country and English got many Norse words into the language, particularly in the north of

More about The English Language Has Changed Dramatically Since Its Beginning

Open Document