Language Change

Question 1

What countries did English come from

Answer 1

Holland and Germany

Question 2

What were the names of the tribes that brought English

Answer 2

Angles, Saxons, jutes and frisians

Question 3

How was Latin brought to Anglo- Saxon churches

Answer 3

Through teaching of Christianity

Question 4

What is the reason for many accents and dialect differences between northern and southern England

Answer 4

The division of land for the vikings

Question 5

What is Middle English

Answer 5

Between 1100-1500
Social and political change in language

Question 6

Features of Middle English

Answer 6

Verb construction different to SE (as nyght was come)
Lengthy syntax
Archaic letters
Spelling different to SE
<i> replaced by <y> grapheme
Archaism’s (wenden)</y></i>

Question 7

When did standardisation occur

Answer 7

15th century

Question 8

What increases people pride to use English

Answer 8

Increased power in trading nations and military successes

Question 9

Why was increasing availability in print media important

Answer 9

It made it important to have a standard English that could be understood by all regions (standardisation)

Question 10

Caxtons eggs

Answer 10

‘Egg’ in north
‘Eyren’ in south
Used dialect of the London educated class for his printing press to form the standard English

Question 11

Haugens 4 stage process of standardisation

Answer 11

Selection- variety selected
Codification- established as normal language
Elaboration- selected language is developed for a variety of purposes
Implementation- standardisation is implemented

Question 12

Prescriptive views that language should be preserved and fixed

Answer 12

Swifts proposals for a language academy
Johnson’s dictionary
Work of grammarians such as bishop lowth

Question 13

Jean Aitchison’s metaphors for peoples anxieties towards language change

Answer 13

Damp spoon- caused by laziness
Crumbling castle- needs preserving
Infectious disease- language forms are a virus we catch from others

Question 14

When was Early Modern English

Answer 14

1500-1650

Question 15

Does English still borrow words from other languages

Answer 15

English is more of a donor of new words rather than borrower

Question 16

Borrowed words

Answer 16

Scandinavia- give,take,hit,leg,sky
Close contact does not inevitably lead to borrowing

Question 17

Johnson’s dictionary

Answer 17

Johnson published a dictionary which became the work of reference for 150 years before the Oxford dictionary
Originally wanted to ‘fix’ language however became a descriptivist during writing

Question 18

Semantic change: what is neosemy

Answer 18

The process whereby a new meaning develops from an existing word e.g fond originally was silly but now is to like something

Question 19

What is amelioration

Answer 19

When a word takes on a more positive meaning over time e.g sick

Question 20

What is pejoration

Answer 20

When a word takes on a more negative meaning over time e.g awful

Question 21

What is weakening

Answer 21

When a word looses force over time e.g naughty

Question 22

What is broadening

Answer 22

When a word takes on a broader meaning over time e.g dog

Question 23

What is narrowing

Answer 23

When a word becomes more specific in meaning over time e.g wife

Question 24

Who was Noah Webster

Answer 24

Spelling reformist in America who wanted American English to be equal to British English

Question 25

What graphological changes have occurred over time

Answer 25

Before the 10th century the ‘u’ was used by ‘v’ Before the 15th century the ‘j’ was used by ‘i’ Before 1800 printers used two lower case forms of long ‘s’ and short ‘s’

Question 26

World English- why do some countries have their first language as English?

Answer 26

Happened In countries were there has been extensive settlement of speakers of English as a first language

Question 27

Countries that have English as a first language

Answer 27

America

Question 28

Countries that have English as a second language

Answer 28

India

Question 29

Why do some countries have English as a second language

Answer 29

This happened in countries where there has been substantial trade with first language English speakers

Question 30

Variations of English as a second language

Answer 30

High social level is spoken similar to SE In many countries this is becoming stigmatised as younger speakers claim the language for themselves and cut ties with the colonial roots of the language

Question 31

Lexis of English as second language

Answer 31

Likely to incorporate terms from indigenous languages to reflect culture (Indian English)

Question 32

Example of Indian English

Answer 32

Face- cut (shape) Chaste (good) Yaar (mate)

Question 33

Examples of World English

Answer 33

Peelhead= bald headed (Jamaican English) Bushmeat= game (west African English) Key- bunch= bunch of keys (Indian English) Basket- woman= coarsely behaved woman (Lanka English)

Question 34

What was the language before English (history)

Answer 34

Celtic language

Question 35

What is beowulf

Answer 35

A piece of old English high has helped to understand the old English

Question 36

Ends from old English

Answer 36

-hill -ham -end -ton -wick

Question 37

King James Bible

Answer 37

Responsible for many idioms Archaisms

Question 38

Punctuation in Middle English

Answer 38

Full stops not always expected Colons and semi colons became featured to separate clauses Capital letters were thought to be important

Question 39

Kachru’s three circles of English

Answer 39

Inner circle- UK, USA, AU, NZ (Norm providing variety) outer circle- India, Nigeria, Pakistan (Norm developing, own varieties become developed) Expanding circle- China, Russia, Japan (Norm dependent, used for practical purposes)

Question 40

Criticisms if kachrus three circles of English

Answer 40

The rise of the internet has blurred the distinction between English users Doesn’t address diversity Doesn’t take into account the grey areas between the circles

Question 41

Features of ELF

Answer 41

drop 3rd person present simple -s Omission or insertion of definite or indefinite articles ‘Isn’t it?’ ‘No?’ Tag questions Frequent verbs of high semantic generality ‘do’ ‘have’ Explicit statements ‘black colour’

Question 42

Schneider dynamic model of post colonial Englishes

Answer 42

Phase 1: foundation English is brought to a territory by a colonising power leading to an emerging bilingualism

Question 43

Phase 2 exonormative stabilisation

Answer 43

An ‘elite’ bilingualism spreads, led by the politically dominant power

Question 44

Phase 3 nativisation

Answer 44

Bilingual speakers forge a new variety of English as ties with settlers country of origin weaken

Question 45

Phase 4 endonormative stabilisation

Answer 45

A new linguistic norn is established and codified Singaporean basilect (shingling)- generalised ‘is it’ tag questions Consistent deletion

Question 46

Stage 5 differentiation

Answer 46

Varieties emerge leading to internal diversity