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I. The Pre-English Era: Celtic Languages and the Roman Latin Influence

a. Celtic Invasion and Settlement800 BCE to 100 CE

The Celtic peoples were warrior tribes whose origins likely stemmed from the Danube

region. These tribes, who wielded the best iron weaponry and engaged in widespreadtrade along the Atlantic coast, had expanded their occupation of Western Europesettling as far as Spain (northern Iberia) and northern Italybetween the 5thcentury BCEand the Roman conquests.1As a result, a substantial part of Europe spoke varieties ofCeltic language.2

Celtic peoples lacked political unification. However, they commonly spoke varieties ofCeltic language which are categorized as a group under the Indo-European languagefamily. Although Celtic invasion and settlement in modern-day France started around1500 BCE during the Bronze Age,3settlement in the British Isles took place between the8thand 6thcenturies BCE, during the earliest part of the Iron Age.4The settlement

patterns of Celtic peoples throughout Europe produced marked divisions among thelanguages they spoke. These languages can be divided into Continental Celtic languagesand Insular Celtic languages. Lepontic, Celto-Iberian and Gaulish are classified asContinental Celtic languages, whereas Goidelic (i.e. Irish, Manx, and Scottish Gaelic)and Brythonic (Welsh, Cornish, and Breton) languages fall under the Insular Celticlanguages groupwhich all surviving modern Celtic languages stem from.5

Many Celtic language varieties disappeared over time with theRoman occupationand, ina more pronounced manner, with the subsequentGermanic invasionsof the British Islesduring the 5thcentury.6Segments of the Celtic population were displaced across theChannel and settled in a region within north-western France, known today as the Britannypeninsula.7Although they brought Celtic and Latin language varieties to this region,Britanny is associated with one of the surviving modern Celtic languages: Breton.8

1History of the French Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online],[http://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=french_history](December 28, 2011).2OSTLER, Nicholas.Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World, New York, HarperCollins,2005, pp. 274-276.3LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Gaule,Encyclopdia Universalis, corpus 10, 5thed., Paris, EncyclopdiaUniversalis, 2002, p. 5.4

History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online],[http://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=english_history](December 28, 2011). See also: HEIBERG, D. (ed.),United Kingdom, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Macropdia, Chicago, EncyclopdiaBritannica, Inc., 2002, p. 21.5HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Celtic languages, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia,Chicago, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 17.6SOLODOW, Joseph B.Latin Alive: The Survival of Latin in English and the Romance Languages, NewYork, Cambridge University Press, 2010, p. 45.7HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Celtic languages, 2002, p. 17.8SOLODOW, Joseph B., 2010, p. 45.
http://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=french_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=french_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=french_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=english_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=english_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=english_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=english_historyhttp://www.slmc.uottawa.ca/?q=french_history


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b. Roman Invasions of the British Isles55-54 BCE and 43 CE

As a general and a statesman, Julius Caesar played a central role in the transition of theRoman Republic into a vast European empire. Caesar expanded the Roman presenceacross Europe after acquiring the provinces of Cisalpine and Transalpine Gaul (southof the Alps9and beyond or across the Alps).10From both provinces, Caesar gatheredthe necessary resources to pursue his campaign across northwestern Europe, beginningwith the rest of Atlantic Gaul which was conquered between 58 and 50 BCE.11His nextobjective was the conquest of the British Isles, for which he prepared two separateinvasions: the first in 55 BCE and the second in 54 BCE.12The invasions did not result inthe full annexation of the British Isles given that Caesars efforts were strained by anumber of revolts erupting throughout Gaul.13It was only through the campaign ofEmperor Claudius in 43 CE, who was equipped with four legions of 10,000 men, that thisphase of the conquest was deemed complete.14

Strategically-speaking, this territorial occupation known asBritannia represented animperial command of the first rank whichbecame an important Roman governorshipfor the empire.15Roman Britain orBritannia, which began with Emperor Claudiusinvasion, lasted until 410 CE (seeFall of the Western Roman Empire).16

The impacts of this era fuelled the Romanization of the local languages, as well as theadoption of Roman values. Romanization, in the context of languages, refers to the use ofLatin for official documents and literature. This process was mostly visible among theelite in urban towns while Celtic language varieties endured in rural areas. Generally andover time, Latin never became the common language in Britain;17rather, Latin-Celticbilingualism was common during the Roman occupationespecially among the upperclasses.18

9Oxford English Dictionary, [online], Cisalpine (adj.), [http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/33451](September 26, 2012).10Oxford English Dictionary, [online], Transalpine (adj.), [http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/204586](September 26, 2012).11HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Csar, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Macropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 403.12LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Csar,Encyclopdia Universalis, corpus 5, 5thed., Paris, EncyclopdiaUniversalis, 2002, p. 234.13

Ibid.14History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online]. See also:HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 21; LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Grande-Bretagne(histoire),Encyclopdia Universalis, corpus 10, 5thed., Paris, Encyclopdia Universalis, 2002, p. 572.15SHERMAN, C.P., The Romanization of English Law, (1914) 23 -4 Yale L.J.318.16BBC HistoryBritish History in Depth, BBC Online, [online],[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtml](December 22, 2011).17OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 295.18HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 24. See also:History of the English Language, Site forlanguage management in Canada, [online].
http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/33451http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/33451http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/33451http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/204586http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/204586http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/204586http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.oed.com/view/Entry/204586http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/33451


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Visigoths and other Germanic tribes continued their campaigns towards Western Europe,forcing a gradual breakdown of the Western Roman Empire with every attack. 28

The collapse and breakdown of the Western Roman Empire greatly impacted thelanguage scenarios across Europe. The way in which Germanic tribes forged their paths

across imperial lands would ultimately have an immense influence in determining theboundaries of Roman speech we find today29as well as impacting the degree to whichGermanic language varieties maintain their fundamental traits or become Latinized, andvice versa.

b. Germanic Invasions in the British Isles300-500 CE

Before the city of Rome was sacked by the Visigoths in 410 CE, Honorius (395-423 CE)the first emperor of the Western Roman Empirerecalled his legions fromBritanniabetween 407 and 410 CE, thus abandoning its inhabitants in the wake of incomingGermanic tribes (seeFall of the Western Roman Empire).30

In the 4thand 5thcenturies CE, Germanic peoples began settling in the southern coastsand river valleys of Britain asfoederati, or allies of Roman and post-Romanauthorities.

31These Roman mercenaries consisted of Angles, Saxons, Frisians, Jutes,and Franksmost of whom originated from parts of Denmark. Despite their diverseorigins, they commonly identified themselves as Angles and Saxons.32It is believed thatthese mercenaries initiated the first significant revolts against the remaining Romanauthorities in Britain during the mid-5thcentury.33

From the mid-5thcentury onward, large numbers of Germanic peoples immigrated to theBritish Isles. These people, including the mercenaries, were considered to be Germanicas they were part of westbound-migrating populations whose cultural and linguisticdifferences (apart from the local Celtic-Roman population) became obvious as theyneared the lower Rhine River region and moved further intoBritannia.34It became clearthat Germanic peoples spoke a distinguishable group of language varieties.35

Despite the ending of the Roman occupation, Latin would remain the language oflearning in Britain until the Renaissance during the 15thand 16thcenturies, while Latinspeech would eventually fade out in the 5thcentury.36Latin speech was therefore being

28Ibid.29SOLODOW, Joseph B., 2010, p. 32.30

LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Grande-Bretagne (histoire), 2002, p. 572. See also:History of the EnglishLanguage, Site for language management in Canada, [online].31HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 25.32History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].33THOMAS, C. Christianity in Roman Britain to CE 500 , Berkeley, University of California Press, 1981,

p. 271.34LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Germains,Encyclopdia Universalis, corpus 10, 5thed., Paris, EncyclopdiaUniversalis, 2002, p. 305.35Ibid.36OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 303.


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gradually replaced with Germanic language varieties given that the ruling elites had fledtheir domain. Also, this was due to the fact that the Romans in Britain were, in manycases, hunted down during the Germanic invasions.

37

Latin was revived in the late 6thcentury through the adoption of Christianity by the

Germanic peoples.

38

Their abandonment of pagan faith was due to the efforts ofSt. Augustine and his congregation of missionaries, who were sent to the British Isles byPope Gregory I in 596 CE in order to carry out the conversion of the region (seeChristianity and the Rise of Wessex).39

Alongside these impacts upon Latin, the invading Germanic languages also affected and were being affected byBritains Celtic presence. Even though Celtic languageswere mostly assimilated, or displaced towards modern-day Cornwall and Wales,Germanic invaders would commonly borrow terms from Celtic vocabulary.40

The Germanic languages that invaded Britain, notably those spoken by the Jutes, Angles,

and Saxons, were fore the most part kept in tact. Meanwhile, the Runic Alphabet wasoften used for written language.41Over time, the name Engla land (or Angle-land)was given to the collective territory belonging to these three groups of Germanic peoples.Furthermore, the name of Englisc was given to their speech, even though the varioustribes retained their respective language varieties.42Overall, the phenomenon of languagereplacement and displacement that took place in Britain was seen as unprecedented forthat particular time period. It was considered the one and only time that Germanicconquerors were able to hold on to their own language.

43

III. The Emergence of Old English (Anglo-Saxon)

a. Formation of Germanic Kingdoms in Britain600-800 CE

From the Germanic invasion and settlement emerged a heptarchy of political unitsbased on the various ships of peoples that landed in Britain and the allegiances of theships captains to the monarchies of their homelands.

44 By 600 CE, the seven Germanickingdoms of England consisted of Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Essex, Wessex,Sussex, and Kent.45

Four different groups of Anglo-Saxon languages came to be associated with the mainregions of the heptarchy: Northumbrian for the language(s) spoken north of the Humber

37

HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15th

ed.,Macropdia, Chicago, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 630.38SHERMAN, C. P., 1914, p. 318.39Ibid.40HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 640. 41History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].42HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 659. 43OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 310.44PILKINGTON, C.Devolution in Britain Today, Manchester, Manchester University Press, 2002, p. 20.45Ibid.


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River; Wessex for the language(s) spoken south of the Thames River; Mercian for thelanguage(s) spoken between the Humber and Thames rivers (the midlands); and Kentishfor the language(s) spoken within the kingdom of Kent itself.46The language scenarioinevitably changed due to the Viking incursions which took place across the British Islesduring the 8thand 9thcenturies: the first wave consisting of Danes, and the subsequent

wave consisting of Norwegians entering England from Ireland and the Western Isles (seeViking Incursions).47

Over the year, regions of the heptarchy merged and took turns as the center of politicalpower in England. The first kingdoms to occupy this role were Northumbria during the7thcentury under the rule of thelfrith (593-616 CE)48and Mercia during the 8thcenturyunder thelbald (716-757 CE), followed by his successor Offa (757-796 CE).49Offaachieved an important series of mergers to maintain the dominance of Mercia,specifically annexing the kingdoms of Kent, Sussex and Wessex and acquiring Londonand Middlesex from Essex, while [he] completed the making of his kingdom with theaddition of East Anglia in 794.

50

As a result of theViking incursionsand subsequent establishment of a permanent army inEngland during the 9thcentury, political leadership became increasingly concentratedwithin Wessex under Egbert (802-839 CE), who had acquired the kingdoms of Kent andEssex.51The Kingdom of Wessexunder Egberts successors, thelwulf (839-858 CE),thelred I (865-871 CE), and lfred (871-899 CE)withstood numerous Viking attackswhile gaining control of large portions of Mercian lands.52The subsequent threegenerations of successors to the House of Wessex were marked by a series of gainsacross East Anglia and Northumbria as well as subsequent reversals at the hands of theViking armies.53

The central role of Wessex made it a unifying kingdom for the Anglo-Saxon landscape,especially at the height of its power under Edgar (959-975 CE)the first English kingto open his reign with a coronation, held at Bath in 973 CE.54His son thelred II (979-1016 CE), however, faced another aggressive wave of Viking incursions before theunified English kingdom was eventually conquered by the Danish king Cnut (Canute orKnut) in 1016 (seeViking incursions).55

46SKEAT, W. W.English Dialects: From the Eighth Century to the Present Day, Teddington, EchoLibrary, 2006, p. 5. Sources differ on the regional categorization of these language groups, see: HEIBERG,D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 659.47LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Grande-Bretagne (histoire), 2002, p. 572.48

PILKINGTON, C., 2002, p. 20.49HAIGH, C. (ed.). The Cambridge Historical Encyclopedia of Great Britain and Ireland, Cambridge,Cambridge University Press, 1985, p. 60.50PILKINGTON, C., 2002, p. 20.51HAIGH, C. (ed.), 1985, p. 60.52Ibid. See also: HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 65 9.53HAIGH, C. (ed.), 1985, p. 60.54PILKINGTON, C., 2002, pp. 20-21.55HAIGH, C. (ed.), 1985, p. 60. See also: LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Grande-Bretagne (histoire), 2002,

p. 572.


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Alongside the growing status of Wessex was the growing dominance of its West Saxonlanguage(s), which later became known as standard Old English.56Sources refer to OLDENGLISHor (ANGLO-SAXON) as the earliest stage of the local vernacular which, for someauthors, also encompasses the language varieties associated with the different Germanickingdoms.57This stage spans from approximately 450 CE to 1150 CE,58thus beginning

with the invasion and settlement of Germanic peoples and ending with the NormanConquest of Britain in 1066 CEas well as the first century of Norman rule.59Despitethe political turmoil caused by the Viking threat, standard Old English was developedinto a literary language by the 9thcentury.60

b. Christianity and the Rise of Wessex in England5th

to 9th

centuries

A key element underlying the growing status of the Wessex kingdom in England duringthe 8thand 9thcenturies was its alignment with Christianity. Such an alignment, in turn,created important impacts upon the language scenario throughout Britain.

When the Western Roman Empire collapsed in Britain around 410 CE, Christianity wasgradually replaced by the pagan faith of the invading Germanic peoples.61However, inthe late 6thcentury, Pope St. Gregory I sent St. Augustine to lead a mission to evangelizeEngland.62He was able to convert the kingdom of Kent and its king, thelbert I (580-590 CE), establishing the town of Canterbury as the primatial see of Englandled by St.Augustine himself as its first archbishop. He established the Episcopal sees of London in604 CE, thus further contributing to the institutional foundations of Christianity insouthern England.63

St. Augustine, the apostle of England, had set off a gradual conversion towardsChristianity throughout Britain that was deemed complete by the late 7thcentury.64The

56HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 659. Walter W. Skeat (2006) adds that textualevidence of the languages of the different Germanic kingdoms was made available through a document

prepared for the Early English Text Society published in 1885, and that any textual evidence prior to thisdate was mostly written in West Saxon (Wessex) (p. 5). The author, however, does not elaborate on thenature or purpose of the textual evidence.57HEIBERG, D. (ed.), English language, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia,Chicago, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 501. Walter W. Skeat (2006) provides an interestingdiscussion on the implications of conceptualizing this initial language stage as Anglo-Saxon or OldEnglish (p. 5).58History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online]. See also:HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 640.59DURKIN, P., Old English an overview, Oxford English Dictionary, [online],

[http://www.oed.com/page/oldenglishintro/Old+English$an+overview](November 13, 2011).60OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 457.61Les Anglo-Saxons la conqute de la Bretagne , Questmachine Encyclopdie, [online],[www.questmachine.org/article/Conqu%C3%Aate_de_la_Bretagne_par_les_Anglo-Saxons](April 2,2012).62HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Augustine, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 700.63Ibid.64HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 658. According to Bentley and Ziegler (2011),the spread of Christianity throughout Western Europe was also enabled by the absorption of Roman culture
http://www.oed.com/page/oldenglishintro/Old+English$an+overviewhttp://www.oed.com/page/oldenglishintro/Old+English$an+overviewhttp://www.oed.com/page/oldenglishintro/Old+English$an+overviewhttp://www.questmachine.org/article/Conqu%C3%Aate_de_la_Bretagne_par_les_Anglo-Saxonshttp://www.questmachine.org/article/Conqu%C3%Aate_de_la_Bretagne_par_les_Anglo-Saxonshttp://www.questmachine.org/article/Conqu%C3%Aate_de_la_Bretagne_par_les_Anglo-Saxonshttp://www.questmachine.org/article/Conqu%C3%Aate_de_la_Bretagne_par_les_Anglo-Saxonshttp://www.oed.com/page/oldenglishintro/Old+English$an+overview


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kingdom of Wessex, which emerged as the unifying kingdom of England during the 9thcentury, gained much of its status through the reign of Alfred the Great (849-899 CE)whose leadership was defined by his own ties to the Christian faith. Firstly, heaccompanied his father, thelwulf of Wessex (839-858 CE), to Rome in 853 to beaccepted as godson to Pope Leo IV (847-855 CE).65He was also received into the

Carolingian court by Charles the Bald, Holy Roman Emperor (875-877 CE) and King ofthe Franks (840-877 CE).66The Franks were a group of Germanic tribes that foundedmodern-day France. They originated from the east bank of the lower Rhine River areaand established a dominant stronghold which expanded east into modern-day Belgium bythe end of the 5thcentury.67

The Franks built this hegemony through the Merovingian dynasty (500-751 CE), whichwas named after its founder Merovech (who died in 458 CE).68Among the notablemonarchs of this Frankish dynasty was Clovis I (466-511 CE), whotook advantage of thecollapsing Roman Empire by unifying the Frankish tribes under a single kingdom underhis rule.69Part of the unification process was rooted in Clovis conversion to Catholicism,

as symbolized by his baptism sometime in the late 5

th

century or early 6

th

century.

70

The abandonment of pagan faith and the movement towards Christianity became awidespread phenomenon throughout the kingdom during the succeeding Frankishdynasty. They were the Carolingians (750-887 CE), named after the founder CharlesMartel (or CarolusMartellusin Latin).71The Carolingian monarchs, Ppin (752-768 CE)and Charlemagne (768-814 CE), ensured the growth of the Frankish kingdom byfostering a relationship with the Roman papacy.72Each monarch had turns at defendingRome from siege and occupation by other Germanic tribes, notably the Lombards.73Thesymbolic moment of this relationship occurred in 800 CE when Charlemagne was

by the Germanic peoples. This absorption process is reflected in their conversion towards Christianity aswell as the adoption and adaptation, in some cases, of Roman law (p. 333).65BUNSON, M.Encyclopedia of Catholic History Revised, Huntington, OSV, 2004, p. 65.66Ibid.67HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Frank, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 936.68ANDERSON, D., BINGHAM J., CHRISP, P., GAVETTE, C.Exploring the Middle Ages, Tarrytown,Marshall Cavendish, 2006, p. 513.Merriam-Webster Dictionary, [online], Merovingian, [www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingian](October 2, 2012).69History of the French Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online]. See also:HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Gaul, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 149.70Cusack (1998) notes that the exact date of Clovis Is baptism varies between 496 and 508 CE depending

on the source (p. 72).71HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Frank, 2002,p. 936.72This dynasty takes its name from CarolusMartellus, the Latin name of Charles Martel who was thefounder (BENTLEY, J. and ZIEGLER, H. Traditions and Encounters, 5thed., vol. 1, McGraw-Hill, 2011,

p. 333).73The Lombards were a Germanic tribe originally based in modern-day Austria, around the lower basin ofthe Elbe River, who established small strongholds scattered throughout north and central Italy during the 7thcentury (YUST, W. (ed.), Lombards, The Encyclopdia Brtiannica, 14thed., Chicago, EncyclopdiaBritannica, Inc., 1958, p. 342). See also: OSTLER, Nicholas.Ad infinitum: A Biography of Latin, NewYork, Walker & Company, 2007, p. 131.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/merovingian


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crowned the first Holy Roman Emperor of the revived medieval Roman Empire in

Rome.74Charlemagne therefore unified a western counterpart to the Byzantine Empire,which was a direct continuation of the Roman empire in the regions east of theMediterranean basin that lasted until the mid-15thcentury.75

Through his contact with the Carolingian court and Charlemagnes grandson, Charles theBald, Alfred the Great of Wessex cultivated a rule of artistic, legal, and intellectualachievement

76within England which followed the themes of the Carolingian renaissancewithin the expansive Frankish kingdom. The renaissance, initiated by Charlemagne,sought to elevate religious observance, morality and the process of justice

77byemphasizing a return to classical Latin. This objective demanded the hired assistance ofscholars and grammarians, notably Alcuin of York, to guide the revival of a purer

Latin.78

The rise of Wessex as the dominant Anglo-Saxon presence in England was enabled byAlfreds alignment with the key cultural and religious trends of the broader western

European context: the spread of Christianity as well as the restoration (and continuity) ofRoman classicism (see alsoViking Incursions). On one level, such continuity ensuredthat Latin would remain the dominant language, particularly in the spheres of religion,governance, and academia.79On another level, the revival of classical Latin contributedto a marked divergence between vernacular speech and written language across Britain aswell as modern-day France and Spain. Texts written in the vernacular speech began toemerge in the 8thand 9thcenturies,80and in the case of the English language, according toPhilip Durkin (2012): [n]early all of our surviving documentary evidence for OldEnglish is mediated through the Church, and the impress of the literary culture of LatinChristianity is deep on nearly everything that survives in Old English.

81

Another important manifestation of Wessexs emergence was the mobilization of 7th-century Anglo-Saxon laws by Alfred. He compiled a code from these previous lawsoriginating from Mercia, Kent, and Wessex itselfwhich was used as a pseudo-legal

74SHERMAN, C. P., 1914, p. 319.75BENTLEY, J. and ZIEGLER, H. Traditions and Encounters, 2011, p. 328. See also: HEIBERG, D. (ed.),Frank, 2002,p. 936. It is interesting to note that the term Holy Roman Empire is translated in French asle Saint Empire Romain Germanique, thus emphasizing the Germanic and Christian character of the empire

as it stood at that particular point in history.76BUNSON, M., 2004, p. 65.77Ibid.78HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, pp. 630-631. For more on Alcuins career, see:Stenton (1971) at pp. 188-189.79McKITTERICK, R., The Carolingian Renaissance of Culture and Learning in STORY, J. (ed.),Charlemagne: Empire and Society, Manchester, Manchester University Press, 2005, p. 154.80HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002,pp. 630-631. See also: McKITTERICK, R., 2005,

p. 154.81DURKIN, P., Old English an overview, Oxford English Dictionary, [online].


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system for his subjects.82Aspects of this consolidation survived into the Normanoccupation (11thand 12thcenturies) and beyond.83

c. Viking Incursions in the Kingdom of England8th

to 11th

centuries

Charlemagnes once powerful and expansive Frankishempire came to an end in 840 CEdue to quarrels over the division of inherited powers among his grandsons Charles theBald, Lothair I, and Ludwig the German. The weakened state of the Frankish kingdomwas such that Western Europe, as a whole, became more vulnerable to foreign invasionand settlement.84Three different waves of invasions attacked the Frankish realm toacquire its wealth: Muslims (from the south) who raided Mediterranean Europe, modern-day Sicily, southern Italy, and southern France; Magyars (from the east), originally frommodern-day Hungary, who raided regions in modern-day Germany, Italy, and southernFrance; and the Vikings or Norsemen (from the north) who carried out the mostsignificant and widespread incursions throughout Western Europe during the 8 thand 9thcenturies CE.85

The Viking incursions took place during the Viking Age (750-1050 CE), a period markedby population expansion of the Nordic peoples throughout Europe.86The term Vikingwas originally reserved for a group of raiders from a region called Vik in southernNorway who led incursions in the British Isles. Over time, this term was broadly appliedto seafarers from northern Europe (modern-day Norway, Sweden and Denmark) withGermanic cultural roots, who invaded territories throughout Europe.87

The expansion was fuelled by different possible reasons, notably the search forcommercial trade opportunities and the search for new lands for cultivation, all of whichwere enabled by the advanced shipbuilding and seafaring skills of the Nordic peoples.88During the mid-9thcentury, Vikings raided settlements to the southeast of their Nordicbases, all the way down to the Mediterranean Sea.89Waves of Viking invasionseventually veered towards Western Europe and, within the context of the British Isles,historians commonly identify the Danes as the dominant contingent of invaders.90Thefirst significant wave of isolated raids and colonizing attacks by large armies of Danes onthe Anglo-Saxon kingdoms started around 835 CE, following attacks on the Frisian andFrankish kingdoms.91

82BUNSON, M., 2004, p. 65.83HAIGH, C. (ed.), 1985, p. 62.84HORIZO,Histoire des Vikings, [online], [www.horizo.com/suede/suede_vikings.php](April 11, 2012).85HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002,p. 28. See also: BENTLEY, J. and Ziegler, H., 2011,

p. 335.86HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 650.87BENTLEY, J. and Ziegler, H., 2011, pp. 335-336.88Ibid., p. 335. See also: SHORT, W.R.Hurstwic: Norse Lands in the Viking Age, [online],[www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htm](April 11, 2012). The author elaborates onthe importance of durable ship designs of Vikings for long-distance travel, alongside their capacity forlarger amounts of cargo.89BENTLEY, J. and Ziegler, H., 2011, pp. 335-336.90HORIZO,Histoire des Vikings, [online].91LOGAN, F. D., The Vikings in History, 3rded., New York, Routledge, 2005, p. 123.
http://www.horizo.com/suede/suede_vikings.phphttp://www.horizo.com/suede/suede_vikings.phphttp://www.horizo.com/suede/suede_vikings.phphttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.horizo.com/suede/suede_vikings.php


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Although this initial wave lasted until approximately 954 CE and inflicted widespreaddamage across British landscapes, it did not result in a complete Danish takeover of theAnglo-Saxon kingdoms.92However, it led to the necessary realignment of the powerstructure among the kingdoms, with the territories of Wessex becoming the center of

Anglo-Saxon rule.

93

King Alfred (871-899 CE) managed to defend Wessex and maintainsome control over Mercia as wellhowever, the Danes won control over Northumbria,East Anglia and parts of Mercia. Their campaigns also won them an implicit right tosettle in vast parts of England.94

A second series of incursions began in 980 CE, with attacks on the Anglo-Saxonkingdoms growing in intensity and frequency over time.95This wave ended around1035 CE with the death of Cnut the Great (Canute or Knut), who had won the Englishthrone in 1016 through the conquest initiated by his father Swyen I Forkbeard, the king ofDenmark.96By acquiring the Danish throne in 1018 and control over the Norwegians aswell as a portion of Swedes in 1027-1028,97Cnut built an Anglo-Scandinavian empire

with England as its power-base and resorted to the aid of local Englishmen to controlthese central territories.98The Danish legacy faded alongside the deaths of Cnut and hissuccessors, with the return of the English crown to the House of Wessex under Edwardthe Confessor in 1042. It was later won by the Normans in 1066 under William II ofNormandy in his conquest of England (seeNorman Conquest).99

In terms of cultural impacts, it is known that the Nordic peoples brought their pagan faith,the Old Norse language, and their phonetic writing system to Western Europe during theinvasion and settlement process.100However, these aspects of Viking culture did notthrive in the conquered lands. Beyond word borrowings and the preservation of certainNorse place-names, Old Norse did not instil any significant changes within the localvernacular.101From generation to generation, Norse culture was increasingly integratedand assimilated into Anglo-Saxon culturea process similar to the experience of Norse

92HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002,p. 28.93LOGAN, F. D., 2005, p. 130.94Ibid, p. 132.95Ibid, p. 153. See also: HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 30.96HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Canute (I), The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, pp. 820-821.97HORIZO,Histoire des Vikings, [online].98LARSON, L.M., The Political Policies of Cnut as King of England, (1910) 15-4 The American

Historical Review 720.99HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Canute (I), 2002, p.821.See also: LOGAN, F. D., 2005, pp. 122-123; HORIZO,Histoire des Vikings, [online]. Upon Cnuts death in 1035 CE, the English throne had descended to his twosons Harthacnut and Harold I (Harefoot). Both sons died shortly after Cnut and the throne reverted toEdward the Confessor in 1042 CE. Edward died without an heir, which left the duke of NormandyWilliam II (Guillaume le Btard)to claim the crown 1051 CE on the grounds that the Normans hadprovided support in Edwards acquisition of the crown.100HORIZO,Histoire des Vikings, [online].101PINKER, S. The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language, New York, HarperCollins, 1994,

pp. 250-251.


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settlers amidst Frankish culture in Normandy.102Simultaneously, written Englishpresumably the dominant West Saxon languagewas actively employed in officialdocuments within Anglo-Saxon government structures.103Written English was fostered,notably by King Alfred, as a necessary supplement to Latin due to the fact that itsteaching was stalled by Viking attacks upon English learning centers. Later, due to the

Norman Conquestof 1066, official documents were once again written in Latin.

104

IV. Invasion of Romance Languages and the Emergence of Middle English

a. Norman Conquest of England1066 CE

During the 11thcentury, the powerful Scandinavian ruler Cnut became king of Denmark,Norway, and England. Upon his death in 1035 CE, the English throne had passed to histwo sons Harthacnut and Harold I (Harefoot).105Both sons died shortly after Cnut and thethrone reverted to the Old English (Anglo-Saxon) monarchical line in England; Edwardthe Confessor succeeded to the throne in 1042 CE. Although Edward died without

children on January 5, 1066, it is claimed that he named the Duke of NormandyWilliam II (Guillaume le Btard)to be his successor in 1051 CE.106This claim wasmade on the grounds that the Normans had provided support to Edwards acquisition ofthe crown.107

Resisting the outcome of a Norman king and a vassal of the French crown, the witan (acouncil of English nobles and clergy) electedand proclaimed Harold II, son of Godwinthe Earl of Wessex, to be the king of England.108In response, William II led an invasionof England which resulted in his crucial victory at the Battle of Hastings on October 14,1066. As a result of the campaign, Harold II and his brothers Tostig and SweynGodwinson were killed, and William II was crowned king of England at WestminsterAbbey on Christmas Day in 1066.109As William I of England (Guillaume leConqurant), he pursued his conquest of England by dispossessing the Old Englisharistocracy and Christian clergy of their lands and archdioceses.110The control over these

102Peter Trudgill (2010) offers a possible explanation that Old English and Old Norse were too similar asrelated Germanic languages to impact one another significantly. He clarifies that there might have been asufficient degree of lexical similarity between the two languages to enable communication though theirmorphology was different, specifically with regards to the use of inflexions in Old English. The author addsthat Anglo-Norse interaction would have contributed to the decreasing use of inflexions in English (p. 11).103THOMAS, H. M. The Norman Conquest: England after William the Conqueror, Lanham, Rowman &Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2008, pp. 8-9. See also: SHORT, W.R.Hurstwic: Norse Lands in the VikingAge, [online], [www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htm](April 11, 2012).104THOMAS, H. M., 2008, pp. 8-9.105

BARBER, J. W.Elements of General History, New Haven, H.C. Peck, 1866, p. 146.106HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Norman Conquest, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia,Chicago, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 766.107GASTLE, B., Historical Context for Middle English Literature in KLINE, D. T. (ed.), The MedievalBritish Literature Handbook, London, Continuum, 2009, p. 25. See also: BRITANNIA, William I, theConqueror, [online], [www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon22.html](February 13, 2012).108BARBER, J. W., 1866, p. 146.109INNES, A. D.A History of England and the British Empire: Volume I to 1485, Chestnut Hill,Adamant/Elibron, 2006, p. 88.110HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Norman Conquest, 2002, p. 766.
http://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htmhttp://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon22.htmlhttp://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon22.htmlhttp://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon22.htmlhttp://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon22.htmlhttp://www.valhs.org/history/articles/society/text/norse_lands.htm


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possessions and institutions later shifted to Norman barons, dignitaries, and lawpractitioners.111Through these different processes of occupation, the Normanscontributed a sense of organisation and administration

112in order to secure the unifiedkingdom of England and expand its borders within the British Isles between 1066 and1154.113

The Norman occupation thus entailed a unique and complex language scenario inEngland: English vernacular languages continued to be spoken by local inhabitants, whileAnglo-Norman (or Anglo-French) was declared the official language of England.ANGLO-NORMAN(c. 11001400 CE) was a regional dialect of French which resultedfrom the assimilation of the Norse presence, which in turn founded the duchy ofNormandy by the surrounding Frankish culture and its langue dol.114At the same time,Latin remained the written language of scholarship, law, and religious administrationasseen in court judgments, royal commands (writs), and historical records.115

Anglo-Norman thrived in England for approximately two centuries until its usage was

gradually superseded by the language of the le-de-France.

116

It became common practicefor Norman aristocrats to send their children to school in France or to local specializedschools in order to learn the central Parisian language, thus reflecting its growth incultural prestige among the aristocracy and clergy in England.117

The transplanted French languages carried a proliferation of literature in the British Islesbeginning in the 11thcentury. A classic example is the Chanson de Roland,which wasoriginally composed around 1100 and more widely published between 1140 and 1170.118Composed by the Norman poet Turold, it is described as an Old French epic poemwhich depicts the Battle of Roncevaux of 778 CE (in modern-day Navarre, northernSpain) between Charlemagnes Frankish army and Basque forces.

119

During the Norman occupation, the development of the English vernacular was heavilyinfluenced by the Anglo-Norman and le-de-France languages, with many of their traitsretained well into the modern era. The Norman Conquest thus catalyzed the MIDDLEENGLISHera (c.1150-1450).120Three outcomes characterize this period, the first beingthe shifting power dynamic among the dialects of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms:

111History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].112PILKINGTON, C.Devolution in Britain Today, Manchester, Manchester University Press, 2002, p. 22.113BBC HistoryBritish History in Depth, BBC Online, [online]. See also: OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005,

pp. 461-463.114

DICTIONNAIRES LE ROBERT, Anglo-normand, ande,Le nouveau Petit Robert 2011, p. 2049. Seealso: OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 406.115OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 461.116HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Norman Conquest, 2002, p. 633.117History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].118Encyclopdia Universalis en-ligne, La Chanson de Roland, [online],[www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/la-chanson-de-roland/](October 5, 2012).119Encyclopdia Britannica Online, La Chanson de Roland , [online],[www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105825/La-Chanson-de-Roland](October 5, 2012).120OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 252.
http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/la-chanson-de-roland/http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/la-chanson-de-roland/http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/la-chanson-de-roland/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105825/La-Chanson-de-Rolandhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105825/La-Chanson-de-Rolandhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105825/La-Chanson-de-Rolandhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105825/La-Chanson-de-Rolandhttp://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/la-chanson-de-roland/


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One result of the Norman Conquest of 1066 was to place all four OldEnglish dialects more or less on a level. West Saxon lost its supremacyand the centre of culture and learning gradually shifted from Winchester toLondon. The old Northumbrian dialect became divided into Scottish andNorthern, although little is known of either of these divisions before the

end of the 13

th

century. The old Mercian dialect was split into East andWest Midland. West Saxon became slightly diminished in area and wasmore appropriately named the South Western dialect. The Kentish dialectwas considerably extended and was called South Eastern accordingly. Allfive Middle English dialects (Northern, West Midland, East Midland,South Western, and South Eastern) went their own ways and developedtheir own characteristics.121

With all dialects placed on an even level relative to the dominant Norman presence, ashift towards London as the cultural centre occurred. This allowed the dialect of Londonto develop and gain important status over the long term.

The second outcome was the frequent borrowing of words from French languages.122According to Durkin (2012), over 40 per cent of word borrowings from French wereattested in the English language by 1500, a large proportion of which became part of theModern English vocabulary.123Lastly, the third outcome was the adoption of the writingsystem used by the Normans, the Carolingian script, which in certain cases affected thespelling of Old English.124

The English vernacular regained momentum when the king of England, John Lackland orJean sans Terre(1199-1216), an Anglo-Norman ruler of the Plantagenet dynasty (1154-1485), lost Normandy to King Philip II of France in 1202-1204.125This loss broke tieswith continental Western Europe, thus isolating the language scenario within the BritishIsles and allowing the English vernacular to compete with the residing French and Latinlanguages (see Barons Wars and the Magna Carta).

121HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 660.122LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Anglaise (Langue),Encyclopdia Universalis, corpus 10, 5thed., Paris,Encyclopdia Universalis, 2002, p. 375. See also: HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002,

p. 660.123DURKIN, P., Middle English an overview, Oxford English Dictionary, [online],[http://public.oed.com/aspects-of-english/english-in-time/middle-english-an-overview/](October 26, 2012).124HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 501. See also:History of the EnglishLanguage, Site for language management in Canada, [online].125PINKER, S.,1994, p. 251.
http://public.oed.com/aspects-of-english/english-in-time/middle-english-an-overview/http://public.oed.com/aspects-of-english/english-in-time/middle-english-an-overview/http://public.oed.com/aspects-of-english/english-in-time/middle-english-an-overview/http://public.oed.com/aspects-of-english/english-in-time/middle-english-an-overview/


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V. Declining Status of French and Assertion of the English Language in England

a. Magna Carta and the Barons Wars 12th

and 13th

centuries

The king of England, John Lackland orJean sans Terre(1199-1216), an Anglo-Norman

ruler of the Plantagenet dynasty (1154-1485),

126

lost Normandy to King Philip II of theFrench Capetian dynasty in 1202-1204.127Tensions between John and his barons, as wellas the English Catholic church, were brewing over increased taxation and propertyconfiscations following the costly loss of Normandy. The barons, particularly those fromthe northern regions of England, led resistance campaigns against the oppressive actionsof the king.128Under the threat of civil war, and with the support of the Catholic Church,the rebellious barons successfully established meeting grounds with King John atRunnymede, along the Thames River, on June 15, 1215.129On this date John sealed thedocument known as theArticles of the Barons, which later became the basis for the GreatChartertheMagna Carta.130

The Charter contained sixty chapters of provisions guaranteeing the rights of the CatholicChurch and the provisions which controlled the kings feudal practices.131It alsocontained provisions which established the peoples rights under English common law which had already lived a complex process of evolution rooted in King Alfreds

codification of existing Saxon law during his reign (849-899 CE),132its adaptation byWilliam I during the Norman Conquest (1066), and the codification undertaken by HenryII (the first Plantagenet monarch) in 1185.133These rights ultimately enabled a newpower dynamic in which the king would be subject to the rule of law.

126Following the reign of the House of Normandy, with William I (1066 -1087) as the first king of thedynasty, the English crown was passed down to the House of Plantagenet (or the Angevin dynasty)

through the marriage between the count of Anjou, Geoffrey Plantagenet, and Matilda who was the

daughter of Henry I (1100-1135), the last monarch of the original Norman dynasty. The union betweenGeoffrey and Matilda produced the first king of the Plantagenet era, Henry II (1154-1189) (EncyclopdiaBritannica Online, House of Plantagenet, [online],[www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/463365/house-of-Plantagenet](October 5, 2012).127The Capetian dynasty, which succeeded the Frankish Carolingian era (750-887 CE) was founded byHugues Capet (393-996 CE) and produced fifteen kings (History of the French Language, Site for languagemanagement in Canada, [online];Merriam-Webster Dictionary, [online], Capetian, [www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetian](October 2, 2012); Pinker,1994, p. 251).128PLUCKNETT, T.F.A Concise History of the Common Law, 5thed., Union, The Lawbook Exchange,Ltd., 2001, p. 22.129

HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 35.130HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Magna Carta, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 673.131IBEJI, M. King John and the Magna Carta,BBC HistoryBritish History in Depth, [online],[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/magna_01.shtml](December 21, 2011). See also:PLUCKNETT, T. F., 2001, pp. 22-23.132KYNELL, K. von S. Saxon and Medieval Antecedents of the English Common Law, Leiston, EdwinMellen Press, 2000, p. 12.133Ibid.See also: IBEJI, M. King John and the Magna Carta, [online]; PLUCKNETT, T. F., 2001,

pp. 22-23.
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/463365/house-of-Plantagenethttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/463365/house-of-Plantagenethttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/463365/house-of-Plantagenethttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetianhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/magna_01.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/magna_01.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/magna_01.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/magna_01.shtmlhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetianhttp://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capetianhttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/463365/house-of-Plantagenet


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Magna Cartawas a valid law for only nine weeks before it was altered and reissued in1216a move which angered the barons.134By 1216, the rebellious barons wereprepared to offer the English crown to the French Capetian king Louis IX (1226-1270),thus willing to merge forces with Louis IXs invasion of England.135In an ironic twist offate, King Johns death on October 18, 1216 ensured that the Plantagenet dynasty in

England would endure: the barons supported the crowning of Johns young son, Henry III(1216-1272), as the new king of England.136The unexpected succession of the crown ledto the withdrawal of Louis IXs army from England in 1217.

137

Tensions between the Crown (ruled by a regency council until Henry III was of age) andthe barons did not cease. In 1261, theProvisions of Oxford, a document installed by thebarons, was overthrown by Henry III with the support of the papacy.138By rejecting thegovernment structure proposed by theProvisions of Oxford, the king catalyzed thesecond rebellion (1263-1267). The rebels, led by Simon de Montfort, won crucialcampaigns against the forces of Henry III and his son, Prince Edward (later Edward I).139However, the rebels were defeated at the Battle of Evesham (1265), thus restoring the

kings authority in England (albeit under the peace terms of theDictum of Kenilworth).

140

These events resulted in crucial changes in the development of the English language.When the French king Philip II won control over Normandy in 1204, the physical dividebetween continental Europe and the British Isles produced a political dynamic in whichthe English barons, [w]ithin the rigours of the feudal system,141were forced to declaretheir loyalty to the kingdom of France or the kingdom of England. This situation led tothe isolation and gradual decline of French language variations amidst the Englishvernacular. The cultural standing of Norman French was already in decline in comparisonto the growing prestige of the standard French of Paris.142Moreover, learning centersbegan to teach the French language in Englishthus treating French as a foreignlanguage taught within an English framework.143

At the same time, official documentation demonstrates an Anglicisation of governmentaffairs in England as well as the spread of English speech among the upper classes insociety.144Among the clearest indications of this Anglicisation process are theProvisionsof Oxford, which were issued by King Henry III (1216-1272) on October 18, 1258. Theproclamation of the provisions was the first official address given in English since the

134HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Magna Carta, 2002, p. 673. The Magna Carta would undergo further alterationsand was reissued in 1217 and 1225. It is the 1225 version of the document, reissued under king Johns son

Henry IIIthat became a part of the permanent law of the land (HEIBERG, D. (ed.), UnitedKingdom, 2002, p. 35).135

IBEJI, M., King John and the Magna Carta, [online]. 136Ibid.137Ibid.138HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 36. 139Ibid.140Ibid.141OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 466.142BAUGH, A. C. and CABLE, T.A History of the English Language, London, Routledge, 2002, p. 129.143Ibid, pp. 125-126.144Ibid, p. 125.


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Norman Conquest in 1066.145Although they were recorded in Latin and issued in Frenchas well, theProvisionswere diffused in English in order to reach a wider audience oftown folk, county sheriffs, and the middle echelons of the aristocracy.146

b. Hundred Years War 1337 to 1453

Decades of tensions between England and France followed Normandys surrender to theFrench king in 1202-1204, which resulted in a long period of intermittent hostilitiesitshistorical description is often divided into eras separated by different treaties andtruces.147Various causes underlie the Hundred Years War, though the catalyzing disputewas a claim to the French throne made by the Plantagenet kings of England, who pursuedtheir claim by invading France and raiding several of its regions.

On one side, the kings of Francethe House of Valoisaimed to unify their control overtheir lands on the continent, especially those that were previously controlled byCarolingian kings during the dark ages.148On the other side, the kings of England sought

to fortify and further expand their control over lands in southern France that were tied tothe heritage of Eleanor of Aquitaine, the grandmother of king Edward III (1327-1377).149Englands retaliationagainst France was also fuelled by the alliance forged between theFrench king Philip VI (1293-1350) and Edward IIIs enemies: the Scots.150

The early stages of the war saw important victories for the English,151the devastatingimpact of theBlack Deathon both French and English armies around 1348,152as well asthe signing of the Treaty of Brtigny in 1360. The treaty marked the resignation ofEdward IIIs claim to the French throne in return for full control of the duchy ofAquitaine and a number of counties in France.153The treaty set the tone for subsequentreversals won by the French which were aided by local revolts in the affected counties.154

From the antagonism at the root of the Hundred Years War, feelings of national prideemerged amongst the population on both sides. The notions of being an Englishman ora Frenchman were, of course, linked to the vernaculars spoken within these different

realms. Within England, French became known as the language of the enemy, thus

145Ibid, p. 125 (at footnote 33).146Ibid.147Ibid, p. 129.148YUST, W. (ed.), Hundred Years War, The Encyclopdia Brtiannica, 14thed., Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 1958, p. 889.149

Ibid.150Ibid., p. 890.151These would include, most notably, the battles at Crcy in 1346 and Poitiers (1356). See BAUGH, A. C.and CABLE. T., 2002, p. 129.152Ibid.153The treaty also called for a hefty sum of 4,000,000 gold crowns as the ransom for the French kingJohn II (1319-1364). See YUST, W. (ed.), Hundred Years War, 1958, p. 891.154The French had won back all the lands except for the original holding in Guienne. The tactics of theconstable of France during this period, Bertrand du Guesclin, are often credited for these victories. SeeYUST, W. (ed.), Hundred Years War, 1958, p. 891.


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leading to its gradual abandonment. Meanwhile, the dominance of spoken Englishbecame further entrenched within society.155

The proliferation of English manifested in various societal spheres. English officiallyreplaced French as the language of instruction at the University of Oxford in 1349a

shift which later occurred in other academic centers over time.

156

Furthermore, thevernacular began to pervade record-keeping practices as well as the practice of law.157These transitions, particularly those regarding the court system, were extremely gradual.An example is the STATUTE OF PLEADING (1362), which officially recognized English asthe sole language of usage in court pleadings.158On a symbolic level, the statuteembodied a socio-political shift rooted in the vernacular: [i]mplicit in its text are notionsof realm and people which clearly associate the boundaries of spoken English with the

reach of English power.159However, the spirit of the statute was not immediately

enforced as law practitioners had to progressively adapt their vernacular to thespecializationthus, French remained in practice until 1731.160Interestingly, the Statuteof Pleadingwas also written in French when it entered the parliamentary rolls.161

It is also known that the first monarch to speak the language as his mother tongue wasKing Henry IV (1399-1314).162Henry IV was the first monarch of the House ofLancaster, a branch of the Plantagenet dynasty, who took the English throne bymurdering his cousinthe last monarch of the direct line of the Plantagenet dynasty,Richard II (1377-1399).

The later stages of the Hundred Years War saw periods of civil war within France, withfactions clashing over the French crown,163as well as the revived pursuit of Edward IIIsoriginal claims in the person of Henry V (1413-1422).164The involvement of Joan of Arc(1412-1431), among other heroic figures, sparked a movement lasting over twenty years

155BAUGH, A. C. and CABLE, T., 2002, pp. 129-130.156Ibid.157HEIBERG, D. (ed.), United Kingdom, 2002, p. 41.158BAUGH, A. C. and CABLE, T., 2002, p. 138. The authors note that French was previously thelanguage used in court proceedngsa practice that was installed following the Norman Conquest.159YEAGER, R.F., Politics and the French Language in England during the Hundred Years War: TheCase of John Gower, in BAKER, D. N. (ed.), Inscribing the Hundred Years War in French and English

cultures, Albany, State University of New York, 2000, p. 136.160BAUGH, A. C. and CABLE, T., 2002, p. 138. The authors note that while proceedings may be debatedin English, the case record would ultimately be entered in Latin. See also:History of the English Language,

Site for language management in Canada, [online]161Ibid., pp.136-137.162History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].163The reign of the Valois king Charles VI (1380-1422) over France was troubled by various factors, manyof which stem from his bouts of madness enabling clashes over his throne between the dukes of bothhouses of Orleans and Burgundy: Louis I of Valois (younger brother of Charles VI) and John II ofBurgundy (cousin of Charles VI) (VALE, M., Chapter 19(a): France at the End of the Hundred Years War

(c. 1420-1461) in ALLMAND C. (ed.), The New Cambridge Medieval History VII: c. 1415 - c.1500,Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1998, p. 392).164YUST, W. (ed.), Hundred Years War, 1958, p. 892.


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in which Henry Vs gains were lost and the English were gradually expelled from Frenchterritory.165

England was preoccupied with its own civil wars, particularly the War of the Roses(1455-1485) between the House of Lancaster and the House of Yorkboth branches of

the Plantagenet dynasty. The Lancastrian reign of Henry Vs son, Henry VI, waschallenged by Richard, the Duke of York, who shared blood ties with Edward III. Atumultuous period of intermittent fighting resulted in a Yorkist victory, with the crownpassing to Edward IV (1461-1470 and 1471-1483).166Two Yorkist monarchs went on torule England until the late 15thcentury, when a distant claimant of the House ofLancaster, Henry Tudor (1485-1509), won the English throne (seePivotal Reign ofHenry VIII).

c. Black Death1348 to 1350

A major factor leading to the disuse of the French language in England was the Black

Death, a plague which was likely bubonic and pneumonic in nature.

167

The plague (withorigins believed to be from Central Asia) swept through Europe during the mid-14thcentury. Around 1347, an army of Turkic peoples, the Kipchaks, besieged a trading poston the north-western coast of modern-day Italy. Members of this army had already diedof the plague and their corpses were unloaded at the trading post. This enabled thetransmission and spread of the disease to other mainland regions of Italy, Mediterraneanports, northern Africa, the Baltic regions, Scandinavia, and Western Europe.168

The plague reached England and France around 1348 and its manifestation lastedapproximately two years, although recurrences of the disease were documented duringthe 14thcentury throughout Europe.169In England, three types of related effects wereobserved: population reduction, shifts in socioeconomic classes, and the rising status ofthe English vernacular as a result of such shifts.

As a result of the plague, the population in England was reduced to approximately half ofwhat it was around the year 1300.170The magnitude of the Black Deathsimpact on thepopulation caused a number of significant socioeconomic shifts in England:

165Ibid, pp. 892-893.166History of the Monarchy: The Lancastrians, The official website of The British Monarchy, [online],

[www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspx](October 30, 2012).167HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Black Death, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 253.168Ibid.169Ibid.170Ibid. Sources conflict as to the exact (or approximate) number of dead at the hands of the plague. Thedetailed account of Dr. Mike Ibeji, for instance, estimates a total of 2.25 million people by 1350 (IBEJI, M.Black Death,BBC HistoryBritish History in Depth, [online],[www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/black_01.shtml](October 29, 2011).
http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspxhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/black_01.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/black_01.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/black_01.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/black_01.shtmlhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheLancastrians/TheLancastrians.aspx


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As in most epidemics, the rich suffered less than the poor. The poor couldnot shut themselves up in their castles or retreat to a secluded manor. Themortality was accordingly greatest among the lower social orders, and theresult was a serious shortage of labor.171

The result was an increase in wages as a corrective measure in order to re-developEnglands labour force over the followinghundred years. The economic clout of thelabour class grew, which in turn bolstered the importance of the English vernacular as thespoken language of the elite.172Meanwhile, the momentum of written English would bemore readily seen with the advent of thefirst printing pressin 1476 and the spread ofBible literacybetween the 15thand 17thcenturies. Such socioeconomic ascent alsobrought opportunities for labourers to occupy more influential positions in urban centersacross England.173At the same time, the emergence of upward mobile Englishmenrendered the status of French-speaking nobility more vulnerable as a result.174

VI. Standardization and Diffusion of the Language: The Early Modern English Era

a. First Printing Press1476

The German Johannes Gutenberg developed and perfected a method of mechanicalprinting from movable type around 1450 and subsequently launched the first printingpress in Europe.175Printing machines began to appear in different cities throughoutEurope. In England, around 1476, William Caxton (1433-1491)a translator and apublisherestablished the first wooden printing press in Westminster.176Over the courseof his career as a printer, Caxton translated twenty-four books from French to Englishand published approximately one hundred written works in totalamong them is the firstbook printed in the English language,Dictes and Sayenges of the Phylosophers(1477).177

The impacts of Caxtons presswere greatly reflected in the thriving development ofEnglish literature at the time. Caxton himself was preoccupied by concerns regarding thestandardization of the written language. According to Nicholas Ostler (2005), in theperiod of [the languages] re-emergence in the 14thand 15thcenturies it was very difficultfor anyone to decide what sort of language should be dignified with the title of the bestEnglish.

178Caxton resolved the issue by opting for the spoken London dialect, theKings English,as classic English.179

171BAUGH, A. C. and CABLE, T., 2002, p. 130.172Ibid., pp. 130-131.173OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 407.174

Ibid., p. 467.175HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Gutenberg, Johannes, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia,Chicago, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 581. See also: LE GOFF, J. The Birth of Europe: 400-1500, Malden, Blackwell Publishing, 2005, pp. 177-178.176Encyclopdia Britannica Online, Wiliam Caxton, [online],[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/100766/William-Caxton](June 15, 2012).177Ibid.178OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 469. See also: HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002,

p. 658.179OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 471. See also: LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Anglaise (Langue), 2002, p. 375.
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This dialect, considered to be fully developed by the end of the 14thcentury, was thenatural choice for a national standard given the political and economic clout of theLondon area to which it was associated.180The growing availability of literature printedin this dialect not only contributed to increased literacy, but it also increased the usage

and dominance of the London dialect amongst all segments of the general population.

181

As the dialect began to spread domestically, its stability entailed the possibility of globalproliferationa shift which not only accelerated the decline of the French languagewithin England, but also contributed to the gradual disappearance of Latin on a Europeanscale.182

The level of language stability achieved at this point in history is commonly referred to asthe period of EARLY MODERN ENGLISH(c.1450-1700)183a stage sparked by the deathof Chaucer (1400),184the English poet renowned for his unique mastery of MiddleEnglish.185Literary authors and works of this stage, including Shakespeare and the KingJames Bible (seeBible Literacy), reflect the RENAISSANCEera in England between the

end of the 15

th

century and the early 17

th

century.

186

It was an age which followed aperiod of decline defined by the social and political context of the early 12thcentury. Thiscontext was particularly defined by the inability of the Holy Roman Empire and theRoman Catholic Church to establish a unified religious institutional structure acrossWestern European objective hindered by empowered city-states, national monarchicalstructures, and the growth of national languages (seeRise of Protestantism).187

With a revival in classical learning, the Renaissance led to innovations such as Caxtonsprinting press, which necessitated the efforts to standardize language. At the same time,the development of English was impacted by the specialized language needs of scholarsand intellectuals who were knowledgeable in foreign languages, especially Greek and

Classical Latin.188Therefore, the English language was impacted by a substantial wave

of borrowings from Latin, Greek, and Italian during this period.

b. Rise of Protestantism and the Pivotal Reign of Henry VIII16th

Century

In the aftermath of the War of the Roses (1455-1485), the English throne was won by theHouse of Tudor with its first monarch Henry VII (1485-1509) (SeeHundred YearsWar).189The subsequent reign of Henry VIII (1509-1547) was characterized by a breach

180History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online]181OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 472.182Ibid., p. 331.183

PINKER, S, 1994, p. 252.184HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 661.185HOROBIN, S. The Language of the Chaucer Tradition, Cambridge, D.S. Brewer, 2003, p. 2.186PINKER, S, 1994, p. 252.187HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Renaissance, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, pp. 1019-1020.188HEIBERG, D. (ed.), English language, 2002, p. 501.189Henry VII (Henry Tudor) was a distant claimant of the House of Lancaster, who gained the throne bydefeating the last Yorkist monarch Richard III (1483-1485). The House of Tudor (1485-1603) was formedthrough Henry VIIs marriage to the daughter of Edward IV (1461 -1470), Elizabeth of York, thus uniting


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with Rome that impacted the administration of religion in England.190This breach wasrooted in the kings attempt to obtain an annulment from the Pope in order to end hismarriage to Catherine of Aragon. The annulment was sought due to the couples inabilityto produce a male heir, and also because of Henrys desire to marry Anne Boleyn, a ladyof the court.191

Pope Clement VII (1478-1534) did not issue the annulment for various political andreligious reasons.192From 1527 onward, the pursuit for an annulment became known asthe Kings great matter,193which ultimately led to a series of policies removing papalauthority over the Catholic Church in England.194TheAct of Supremacy(1534)confirmed the king as the supreme head of the Anglican Church, which was in itselfdefined as a spiritual state department.195Church administration was thus removed fromRomes jurisdiction. Although such policies were unsuccessful in forcing the Pope toannul the marriage, he did consent to Thomas Cranmers consecration as the newarchbishop of Canterburythe spiritual head of the Church of England.196Cranmerannulled Henrys first marriage and officiated the subsequent marriage to Anne

Boleyn.

197

The breach with Rome gave way to an influx of different religious ideals known as theProtestant Reformation.198Protestantism arose in Europe during the 16thcentury as acritique of the doctrines and practices of medieval Roman Catholicism, particularly theabuses committed by actors throughout the Churchs hierarchy.

199Many of these abuseswere observed during theBlack Death:

the Lancaster and York houses (History of the Monarchy: The Tudors, The official website of The BritishMonarchy, [online],[www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheTudors/TheTudors.aspx](October 30, 2012).190HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Henry VIII, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Micropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 840.191Ibid. The authors further explain that the sole heir to result from this marriage was princess Mary,though the possibility of a female heir was avoided given all the dynastic and political uncertainties itwould bring (p. 841). Over the span of his life, Henry VIII had six wives his second marriage with AnneBoleyn bore the princess (later Queen) Elizabeth I and his third marriage to Jane Seymour bore hisimmediate successor Edward VI (p. 840).192The pope, then a prisoner of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, was reluctant to cross the emperorswishes to protect Catherine of Aragon (his aunt). A central aspect was the fact Clement VII had provided aspecial dispensation to cover Henry VIIIs infraction of an English rule that prohibited his marriage to

Catherine (the widow of his deceased brother). See: HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Henry VIII, 2002, p.841;HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Protestantism, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Macropdia, Chicago,Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 213.193

HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Henry VIII, 2002, p.841.194YUST, W. (ed.), English History, The Encyclopdia Brtiannica, 14thed., Chicago, EncyclopdiaBritannica, Inc., 1958, p. 510.195HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Henry VIII, 2002, p.840.196YUST, W. (ed.), English History, 1958, p. 511.197Ibid.198Ibid.199HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Protestantism, 2002, pp.206-207. See also: LECOMTE, Louis (ed.),Protestantisme,Encyclopdia Universalis, corpus 18, 5thed., Paris, Encyclopdia Universalis, 2002,

p. 1041.
http://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheTudors/TheTudors.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheTudors/TheTudors.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheTudors/TheTudors.aspxhttp://www.royal.gov.uk/HistoryoftheMonarchy/KingsandQueensofEngland/TheTudors/TheTudors.aspx


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The pestilences and plagues of the 14thcentury had bred an inordinate fearof death, which led to the exploitation of simple people by a church thatwas, in effect, offering salvation for sale.200

The populations angst fostered an emerging generation of thinkers who, though faithfulto Roman Catholicism, pursued the need for reformation. Protestantism historically refersto different schools of thought founded by the disciples of German monk Martin Luther(1483-1546), the Swiss reformer Huldrych Zwingli (1484-1531), and the Frenchtheologian John Calvin (1509-1564).201Not only did this movement address religiouspractices and church administration, but it also became a means through which nationalmonarchies could assert their independence from the papacys long-standing tradition ofpolitical interventionas seen in Henry VIIIs reign.202

In England, the establishment of Protestantism fluctuated from one monarch to another.Under Henrys successor Edward VI (1537-1553), Protestantism thrived before it became

stifled by Queen Mary Is reign (1553-1558), only to be revived again by QueenElizabeth I (1558-1603).203These fluctuations are well reflected in the different versionsof the Bible published during the 15thand 16thcenturies (seeBible Literacy).

Protestantism eventually became and is presently a dominant religion in England, north-western Europe, and English-speaking North America.204The historical link this faithshares with modern Western democracies is commonly explained through its ideologicalundertones. Protestantism has shades of liberal and neo-liberal thought which are oftenreferred to as the basis for the development of capitalism and Western-styledemocracy.205

The role of language was central to the rise of Protestantism. The movementaccompanied the invention of theprinting press,which was instrumental in promotingliteracy through revised versions of the Bible in the English vernacular.206The shifttowards the vernacular was, in turn, a means through which the Reformation could defineitself as being apart from the Latin linguistic bond207of the medieval church. AsProtestantism became further instilled in society, the shift reinforced the status of Englishas the national language in England.

c. Bible Literacy in the English Vernacular16th

and 17th

centuries

Following the administrative and religious effects of Henry VIIIs breach with Rome (seeRise of Protestantism), his powers continued to expand well into the 1530s with the

200HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Protestantism, 2002, p.208.201Ibid., pp. 206-207.202Ibid., pp. 207-208.203Ibid., p. 214.204Ibid., p. 236.205LECOMTE, Louis (ed.), Protestantisme, 2002, pp. 1041-1043.206Ibid., p. 1044.207HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Protestantism, 2002, p. 236.


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dissolution of monasteries in England as part of an on-going attack upon institutions ofwestern Roman Catholicism. These institutions were seen as sources of resistance againstthe king and his newly acquired authority as head of the Anglican Church.208

Furthermore, central to the rise of Protestantism in England were the initial attempts at

translating the Bible from Latin to Middle English during the mid-14

th

century bytheologian John Wycliffe. Not only were these versions of the Bible written in thevernacular, but they were also adapted for popular usage. Such adaptation made theWycliffes Bible (1382) a source of controversy given its use to oppose the hierarchy

of the medieval church.209

With the invention of theprinting presscame a growing demand for versions of the Biblein English. Another leading scholar of the Reformation, William Tyndale, undertooktranslations of the New Testament and the Old Testament in the first half of the 16thcentury, innovating a translation style which incorporated many Hebraisms in theprocess.210Several versions of the Bible subsequently appeared over the latter half of the

16

th

century which, in their respective manner, attempted to be more faithful to theoriginal texts while still attempting to instil the Protestant or Roman Catholic values ofthe author(s). In other words, each of these versions attempted to be authoritative in theirusage.211

The milestone version cited in many language history sources is the King James(authorized) Bible. The reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603) brought an establishedright to read the Bible in English, thus imposing a level of linguistic unity throughout thechurch.212King James I (1603-1625) built on this shift by ordering an official, revised,Protestant, English-language Bible in 1604which was fully published later in 1611.213For the following three centuries the King James Bible dominated as the sole religioustext of English-speaking Christians, representing a clarified reading and usage standardfor such an audience.214What made this recent translation arguably more authoritativethan others was the regulatory groundwork laid by Queen Elizabeth I.

208HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Henry VIII, 2002, p. 841.209HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Biblical Literature, The New Encyclopdia Britannica, 15thed., Macropdia,Chicago, Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., 2002, p. 913.210Ibid. Interestingly, the authors add that the Tyndales works were not immune to opposition fromecclesiastical heads, thus forcing publication outside of England. Many versions of the Bible, including

Tyndales translated versions, had to be printed in Switzerland or Germany due to such controversy.211There were the versions by Miles Cloverdale and Thomas Matthew (1535), theGreat Biblea revisededition ordered by King Henry VIII in 1539, the Geneva Biblepublished during Edward VIs reign which

proved more popular than the Great Bible, theBishops Biblewhich attempted to build on the Great Bible,and theDouai-Reims Biblewhich was a Roman Catholic counterpart to the Protestant versions (HEIBERG,D. (ed.), Biblical Literature, 2002, pp. 913-914).212HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Biblical Literature, 2002, p. 914.213OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 473.214Ibid. See also:BBC HistoryBritish History in Depth, BBC Online, [online],[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtml](December 22, 2011).
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtmlhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/british/index_embed.shtml


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VII. Establishment and Internationalization of the Late Modern English Standard

a. Samuel Johnsons Dictionary 1755

Throughout the 15thand 16thcenturies a number of factors led to the standardization and

spread of the English language which defined theEarly Modern Englishperiod. Thesefactors include the establishment of thefirst printing pressin Westminster as well as thegrowth ofBible literacybacked by theReformationin England. Further standardizationwas achieved through the publication of the first prescriptive grammars and

dictionaries215a movement that largely defined the LATE MODERN ENGLISHperiod

(c.1700-1900).216

In England, the first dictionaries in use were not entirely prescriptive in nature. Earlylanguage references were often vocabulary books that outlined the meanings of foreign-origin words that crept into the English language (mainly of Latin origin).217Over time,the literate public demanded a different type of reference tool that went beyond the

explanation of hard words and delved into the meanings of common English words.

218

The literate public, on a broader scale, called for an instrument of language authoritycomparable to prestigious literary institutions like theAcadmie franaiseand theAccademia della Crusca.219Samuel Johnsona journalist, translator, poet andbiographerdeveloped the first renowned prescriptive English language dictionaryguided by the objective of preserving the purity of the language inits everyday andliterary usage.220His dictionary outlined meanings in each developed entry and alsoincorporated pronunciation guidelines, etymologies and quotations from renownedwriters in order to illustrate the meanings.221Samuel Johnsons dictionary was thusconsidered a much needed instrument that forged a different path for Englishlexicography, while also representing the languages achieved maturity in society.222

The dictionary, as a milestone, paved the way for other language phenomena that definedthe Late Modern English period. Among them was the movement of the matured Englishlanguage to foreign lands (seeEnglish in North America)and the industrialization of the19thand 20thcenturies. Both centuries fuelled the expansion of the languages vocabularyto include emerging concepts in the natural sciences and technology.223Therepresentation of these concepts in the English language was often rooted in Greco-Latinsources.224

215History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].216Ibid.217

REDDICK, A. The Making of Johnsons Dictionary 1746-1773, New York, Cambridge UniversityPress, 1996, p. 13. As an example, the author describes the work of Robert CawdreyA Table Alphabeticall(1604) to illustrate the difference between prior language reference books and prescriptive dictionaries.218Ibid.219Ibid., p.14.220WELLS, R. A.Dictionaries and the Authoritarian Tradition, The Hague, Mouton & Co., 1973, p. 41.221REDDICK, A., 1996, p. 15.222HEIBERG, D. (ed.), Languages of the World, 2002, p. 662. 223HEIBERG, D. (ed.), English language, 2002, p.501.224History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].


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expanded state known as Great Britain.233The state came tobe known as the United

Kingdom when Ireland was incorporated in 1800.234Throughout this expansion process,

groups of individuals from Wales, Ireland, and Scotland participated in the establishmentof a British empire in North America.

From a language perspective, political integration entailed the use of English as the statelanguage in these acquired territories235though settlers from the Celtic regions stillspoke varieties of Gaelic, Irish, and Scottish well into the 18thand 19thcenturies.236

The first substantial waves of international settlement were led by trading companies thatwere granted commodity monopolies by the British government.237Several members ofthe East India Company, established in 1600, became part of the Virginia Company thatestablished Jamestown seven years later.238Subsequent sparsely-settled colonies emergedin Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, and the Bermuda Islands over the followingdecade.239Later, the Carolina colony was established in 1670240and by the early 18thcentury, another colony in Pennsylvania was established by Welsh, Swiss, Finnish,

Danish, and German settlers.

241

VIII. The Differentiation of English in North America and Contemporary English

a. American Revolutionary War: American and Canadian English18th

Century

Each British colony in North America developed independently due to the broad powersof self-government granted to them by the British government (seeEnglish in NorthAmerica).242Distinct cultural particularities developed among the colonies as a result oftheir respective regional traits and their level of interaction with Native peoples. Whenthe first settlers left for North America, a diverse mix of language varieties were stillbeing spoken across British landscapes. The varieties spoken by the ambitious ordissatisfied members of [the] lower and middle classes from southeastern England243became known as standard American speech. These transplanted varieties changed andbecame known as American due to borrowings from French, Spanish and Nativelanguages relative toamong other thingsthe particular trades of each region (i.e.fishing in New England, tobacco farming in Virginia).244

233Ibid.See also: OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 478.234GRADDOL, D., 1996, pp. 182-183.235Ibid.236

History of the English Language, Site for language management in Canada, [online].237GRADDOL, D., 1996, p. 181. For reasons supporting the creation of trading companies to carry outsettlement, see CHEYNEY, E. P., 1907, pp. 511-512.238CHEYNEY, E. P., 1907, pp. 513-514.239Ibid., p. 517.240OSTLER, Nicholas, 2005, p. 485.241ROMAINE, S., 2001, p. 164.242BEER, G. L. British Colonial Policy, 1754-1765, (1907) 22-1Political Science Quarterly2.243PINKER, S., 1994, pp. 248-249.244ROMAINE, S., 2001, p. 163.


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Around the mid-18thcentury, a period of consolidation occurred due to the fact that allthe British colonies positioned along the Atlantic coast were surrounded by French andSpanish colonies to the north, south and west.245The French presence in North Americawas the main political and commercial threat to the British colonies, despite the fact theirtotal population outnumbered the French by a fifteen-to-one ratio.246The autonomous

character of each British colony, however, became an obstacle during the planning ofcollective military action against the French and their allies.The Seven Years War(1756-1762) was the global culmination of aggressions between Britain and France, withbattles fought across North America, India, and Europe. Through the Treaty of Paris(1763), Britain acquired Canada (Quebec), modern-day Florida, the Spanish island ofMinorca, as well as India and the Caribbean islands.247

In the aftermath of the war, Britains colonial power expanded through government-directed campaigns and private expeditions, notably those of James Cook in Australiaand New Zealand (1768-1771).248Such expansion enabled the establishment of theEnglish language in the acquired lands.

However, the dynamic between the colonies and the British government was not withoutits tensions. Nationalist reactions against the British government, primarily rooted in theperceived unconstitutional character of its taxation policies, had already been formingprior to the Seven Years War.

249The English-speaking colonies south of the Great Lakessecured their political independence from Britain through the AMERICANREVOLUTIONARY WAR (1775-1783)a war in which Britain lost other earlier territorialgains to Spain, France, and the Netherlands.250Settlers in North America were thereforedriven to choose between the newly formed United States and Britain, in which anallegiance to the latter usually resulted

chronologie 2012 ee

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