The History of English
School Research Paper
Student:
Jakoubson Julia
Grade: 9 “A”
School №9
Teacher Gorbacheva M.V.
Kolomna 2003.
Contents
Pages
Introduction…………………………………………………………….3
I. Old English…………………………………………………………...3-17
a). Celtic Tribes…………………………………………………………3-4
b). The Romans…………………………………………………………4-10
c). Germanic Tribes…………………………………………………….10-15
d). The Norman French………………………………………………..15-16
II. Middle English……………………………………………………....16-19
III. Mordent English…………………………………………………...20-22
Conclusion……………………………………………………………....22-24
List of Literature………………………………………………………..26
Supplement……………………………………………………………...27
Introduction.
Why do people all over the world learn foreign languages? Perhaps because
the world is getting smaller, in a way: nations are more closely linked
with each other than ever before, companies operate world-wide, scientists
of different nationalities co-operate, and tourists travel practically
everywhere. The ability to communicate with people from other countries is
getting more and more important. And learning foreign languages broadens
your horizons, too!
Before learners of a foreign language are able to communicate, they have to
acquire many skills. They must learn to produce unfamiliar sounds. They
must build up a vocabulary. They must learn grammar rules and how to use
them. And, last but not least, they must develop listening, speaking,
reading and writing skills and learn how to react in a variety of
situations.
All people like to travel. Some travel around their own country, others
travel abroad. Some like to travel into the future, others prefer to travel
into the past. While I was working out my research paper and reading many
books on English history, I had an exciting trip into a remote past. It was
a fantastical journey our Imaginary Time Machine and a Magic Wand. The Time
Machine took me into the depth of the centuries, into the very early
history of Britain. I waved the Magic Wand and the words began to talk,
they disclosed to me their mysteries, I discovered secrets hidden in
familiar things. In other words, you will be a witness of making of
English.
I. Old English. (450-1100)
a). Celtic tribes.
Make a first turn of the Time Machine and you will find yourself on the
British Isles in the time of the ancient inhabitants, the Celts. The Celts
were natives of the British Isles long before the English. The Celts had
their language, which is still spoken by the people living in the part of
Britain known as Wales. And though many changes happened on the British
Isles, some Celtic words are still used in the English language.
Two thousand years ago there was an Iron Age Celtic culture throughout the
British Isles. It seems that the Celts, who had been arriving from Europe
from the eighth century BC onwards, intermingled with the peoples who were
already there. We know that religious sites that had been built long before
the arrival of the Celts continued to be used in the Celtic period.
For people in Britain today, the chief significance of the prehistoric
period (for which no written records exist) is its sense of mystery. This
sense finds its focus most easily in the astonishing monumental
architecture of this period, the remains of which exist throughout the
country. Wiltshire, in south-western England, has two spectacular examples:
Silbury Hill, the largest burial mound in Europe, and Stonehenge. Such
places have a special importance for anyone interested in the cultural and
religious practices of prehistoric Britain. We know very little about these
practices, but there are some organizations today (for example, the Order
of Bards, Ovates and Druids – a small group of eccentric intellectuals and
mystics) who base their beliefs on them.
The Celts preserved their language in some parts of Britain, but they did
not add many words to the English vocabulary. Those, that are in use now,
are mostly place-names: names of regions, towns, rivers. The Celts had a
number of similar words to name rivers, like: Exe, Esk, Usk. All of them
come from a word meaning water (uisge). Later this word was used to name a
strong alcoholic drink made from barley or rye. It was first called “water
of life”. The word changed its from and pronunciation, and today at
restaurants in the West one can see on the menu among other spirits whisky,
a Celtic word formerly meaning water.
b). The Romans.
One more turn of our Time Machine and it took me into the 1st century of
our era. At that time Romans came into Britain, they ruled the country for
400 years. So, you can guess that many Latin words came later into the
English language through Celts, because, as you know, Romans spoke Latin.
The Roman province of Britannia most of present-day England and Wales. The
Romans imposed their own way of life and culture, making use of the
existing Celtic aristocracy to govern and encouraging this ruling class to
adopt Roman dress and Roman language. The Romans never went to Ireland and
exerted an influence, without actually governing there, over only the
southern part of Scotland. It was during this time that a Celtic tribe
called the Scots migrated from Ireland to Scotland, where they became
allies of the Picts (another Celtic tribe) and opponents of the Romans.
This division of the Celts into those who experienced Roman rule (the
Britons in England and Wales) and those who did not (the Gaels in Ireland
and Scotland) may help to explain the development of two distinct branches
of the Celtic group of languages.
The remarkable thing about the Romans is that, despite their long
occupation of Britain, they left very little behind. To many other parts of
Europe they bequeathed a system of law and administration which forms the
basis of the modern system and a language which developed into the modern
Romance family of languages. In Britain, they left neither. Moreover, most
of their villas, baths and temples, their impressive network of roads, and
the cities they founded, including Londinium (London), were soon destroyed
or fell into disrepair. Almost the only lasting reminder of their presence
are place-names like Chester, Lancaster and Gloucester, which include
variants of the Roman word castra (a military camp).
Roman rule lasted for 4 centuries. There are many things in Britain today
to remind of the Romans: wells, roads, walls.
To defend their province the Romans stationed their legions in Britain.
Straight roads were built so that the legions might march quickly. Whenever
they were needed, to any part of the country. These roads were made of
several layers of stones, lime, mortar and gravel. They were made so well
that they lasted a long time and still exist today. Thomas Hardy dedicated
his poem to Roman roads. Here is the beginning.
THE ROMAN ROAD
The Roman road runs straight and bare
As the pale parting line in hair
Across the health. And thoughtful men
Contrast its days of now and then,
And delve, and measure, and compare,
Visioning on the vacant air
Helmed legionaries who proudly rear
The eagle as they pace again the Roman road…
One of the roads has a name – “KATLING STREET”. It is a great Roman road
extending east and west across Britain. Beginning at Dover, it ran through
Canterbury to London, thence through St.Albans, Dunstable, along the
boundary of Leicester and Warwick to Wroxeter on the Severn. The origin of
the name is not known and there are several other sections of the road so
called. In the late 9th century it became the boundary between English and
Danish territory.
To guard their province against the Picts and Scots who lived in the hills
of Scotland the Romans built a high wall, a military barrier seventy-three
miles long. It was called “Hadrian’s Wall” because it was built by command
of the Emperor Hadrian. Long stretches of “HADRIAN’S WALL” have remained to
this day.
In the capital of Britain you can see the fragments of the old London wall
built by the Romans.
What really happened in AD 61? In AD 61 the king of the Celtic tribe Iceni
died. Before he died he had named Roman Emperor Nero as his heir. He hoped
that this would put his family and kingdom under the Emperor’s protection.
But the result was the exact opposite of his hopes. His kingdom was
plundered by centurions, his private property was taken away, his widow
Boadicea was flogged, his daughters were deprived of any rights, his
relatives were turned into slaves. Boadicea’s tribe rose to rebellion.
Boadicea stood at the head of a numerous army. More than 70,000 Romans were
killed during the revolt. But the Britons had little chance against an
experienced, well-armed Roman army. The rising was crushed, Boadicea took
poison to avoid capture.
Her monument on the Thames Embankment opposite Big Ben remind people of her
harsh cry: ”Liberty of death” which has echoed down the ages.
Some of the English words relating to meals are of Latin origin, they were
borrowed from the Romans in ancient times. The Romans in the period of
their flourishing and expansion came into contact with the Germanic tribes,
or the Teutons, who later moved to Britain and formed there the English
