History Of English Flashcards
(40 cards)
When did the Germanic tribes arrive in Britain?
5th century AD
What were the Germanic tribes?
The angles, the saxons, the jutes and the frisians
What sea did the Germanic tribes cross?
The North sea
Where did the Germanic tribes come from?
Denmark and Northern Germany
What happened to the original inhabitants of Britain?
They were pushed went and north to Wales, Scotland, and Ireland
Where did the word English come from?
The Angles came from “Englaland” and their language was called Englisc
When did old English start and end?
Started in 5th century AD, year 450 and ended in 1100 AD
What were the four dialects of Old English?
Northumbria, Merician, West Saxon, and Kentish
Half of the … in English today have Old English roots.
Most commonly used words
What is the most famous literary work that’s written in Old English?
Beowulf, by unknown author, more than 3000 lines
What sounds disappeared from English?
Eth (ð) sounds like “the”
Thorn (þ) sounds like “thing”
Wynn (ƿ) double u (w) sound
Yogh (ȝ) scottish “loch,” nowadays it’s silent like in daughter
Ash (æ) still exists in Icelandic and Danish, short a like in “cat.” And nowadays it’s used stylistically in “archaeology”
Ethel (œ) pronounced oi
How is old English different from today’s English?
There were no silent letters, so K was pronounced in knife and know
The sound خ and other sounds existed back then
When did middle English start and end?
Started 1100 and ended in 1500 (12-16 century)
When did Britain get invaded?
1066
Who invaded Britain in 1066? And what was the battle called?
William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy, battle of Hastings
Which language did the new invaders speak?
A kind of French
How was English affected under the rule of the new invaders?
French became the language of the royal court, the ruling and business classes which created a linguistic division where the upper class spoke French and the lower spoke English. So many French words were added to English/English was heavily influenced by French. French affected English spelling. Technical French words entered the language (Government, wealth, military, law …etc).
Who is the most famous poet in Middle English?
Chaucer
Who is Chaucer?
A great poet that used Middle English rather than French. He is the father of English.
What is the most famous literary work written in middle English?
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer.
English was about to disappear during the Middle English period, but it survived. What made English survive and not disappear?
Chaucer wrote in Middle English. English was revived through him.
The printing press was brought to Britain.
The Parliament was opened by a speech in English.
Who invented the printing press?
Johan Dutenburg
Who brought the printing press to Britain?
William Caxton
When was the printing press brought to Britain?
1476
