Essay Example “A Brief History of the English Language”

English has gone through quite a journey. It started as a West Germanic language that came about through dialects, invasions, and borrowing from other languages. It began to form in the 5th century AD and continues to develop until this day as perhaps the most international language. The following paragraphs will explore the progression of English in its initial formation, Old English, Middle English, and Modern English.

The start of it all

The English language can be said to have started with an invasion. This is not surprising since the popularity of a language is often political. According to the Oxford International English Schools, “Three Germanic tribes, the Jutes, Saxons and Angles were seeking new lands to conquer, and crossed over from the North Sea. It must be noted that the English language we know and study through various English language courses today had yet to be created as the inhabitants of Britain spoke various dialects of the Celtic language. During the invasion, the native Britons were driven north and west into lands we now refer to as Scotland, Ireland, and Wales” (“A Brief History of the English Language”). The word “English” originated from the language of the Angles tribe, which spoke “Englisc.” There is little documentation on what the language sounded like before 5th century AD when the Angles came to Britain to invade.

Old English

Old English can be said to have started around 450 AD, when it became the predominant language of the Anglo-Saxons. The language was not static, however. Old English had a history about 700 years of usage, and can be divided into three periods:

1. Prehistoric Old English (450 AD to 650 AD): Since there is hardly any trace of it being written, the documentation of its features cannot be properly discussed. However, it is known that eventually all the three Germanic tribes that invaded Britain spoke it.
2. Early Old English (650 AD to 900 AD): In this time, the first Old English manuscripts were published. Famous authors of the time were Cædmon, Bede, Cynewulf, and Aldhelm.
3. Late Old English (900 AD to 1066 AD): Old English came to an abrupt end with the Norman conquest in 1066 AD. Though this sounds dreadful, it might have been for the best for the language, as it grew in usage as Middle English (Baugh, Albert C., and Thomas Cable).

Middle English

With the Norman conquest, much changed in the English language. The introduction of French elements into the language and the transformation of its grammar were the most significant. According to Oxford International English Schools, “It was during this period that the English language, and more specifically, English grammar, started evolving with particular attention to syntax. An interesting fact to note is that this period has been attributed with the loss of case endings that ultimately resulted in inflection markers being replaced by more complex features of the language” (“A Brief History of the English Language”). This time was also the period of Chaucer: “the father of English literature.” His Canterbury Tales became so popular that it made English properly compete with the dominant languages in the region at that time: French and Latin. Overall, Middle English was spoken from 1150 AD to about 1500 AD.

Modern English

Around 1500, a period of great transformation came to the language. According to EnglishClub.com, “Towards the end of Middle English, a sudden and distinct change in pronunciation (the Great Vowel Shift) started, with vowels being pronounced shorter and shorter. From the 16th century, the British had contact with many peoples from around the world.

This, and the Renaissance of Classical learning, meant that many new words and phrases entered the language” (“History of English”). With this added vocabulary and new ways of expression in English, the language became more flexible and potent. After many books of English were printed in London, the language became standardized—especially with the first English dictionary published in 1604 (“History of English”).
In summary, English came from being a West Germanic dialect to a powerful language in its own right through the literature of London, the addition of many loan words, and adaptations to its grammar and syntax. With Chaucer, English became about as popular as French and Latin after the Norman conquest of Britain. But it was not until the 1600s that the language became standardized.

Works Cited

“A Brief History of the English Language.” Oxford International English Schools, 15 Mar. 2019, www.oxfordinternationalenglish.com/a-brief-history-of-the-english-language/.

Baugh, Albert C., and Thomas Cable. A History of the English Language. Routledge, 2012.
“History of English.” EnglishClub, www.englishclub.com/history-of-english/.

What you should know about English language essay

If you need to write a language essay in English, the following information will help you end with a perfect paper:

Contemporary period

While writing an essay about English language, you can mention the first Dictionary of the English Language that was published under the editorship of S. Johnson. This became a kind of boundary that separated the New English dialect from Early Modern English. The spelling rules recorded by the author made it possible to develop a unified set of standards for teaching English in educational institutions in Great Britain.

The earlier version of the English dialect differed significantly from the one used today. The main difference is the number of lexical constructions used by speakers during communication. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the dialect was supplemented with new scientific terms characterizing the Great Industrial Revolution and technical progress in general.

No less significant was the influence of the incorporation of new regions into the British Empire. During its heyday, the state covered approximately 1/4 of the Earth’shabitable surface. Thanks to the mixture of European culture with Australian, Indian, and African traditions, the English dialect was enriched with new vocabulary.

At the end of the 20th century, English, whether the British or American dialect, was recognized as native for 400 million people. In total, 1.5 to 2 billion people on the planet currently speak English as a foreign language.

The last decades have been marked by intensive linguistic progress. Lexical rules have changed significantly due to the growth of IT technologies and the facilitation of communication between the populations of different regions.

Evolutionary changes in the alphabet

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There is no dialect or vernacular existing that could have developed without an alphabet, and English is no exception. In the course of its evolution, the language has gone through several stages of writing.

The Celts and Britons, who lived as part of the Roman Empire, spoke Latin and used the Latin alphabet to write letters. The Germanic tribes that settled the islands after the disappearance of Rome used runes. The runic script used 24 symbols. In the 5th century, the Britons adopted similar symbols, using them to keep their own records. The writing changed, which led to the appearance of Anglo-Saxon runes. Only after 2 centuries were they replaced with the letters of the classical Latin alphabet. Their writing could also differ between different regions of the islands.

The Anglo-Saxon version of the Latin alphabet was fully formed in the 9th century. It consisted of 24 elements: 20 Latin letters, 2 modified letters, and 2 runic borrowings. The letter symbols K, Q, and Z were not used at that time. In the 11th century, the alphabet consisted of 23 Latin letters and 4 runes.

In the 16th century, the alphabet was supplemented by the letters U and J. They were not yet independent elements and therefore were considered derivatives of V and I, which had a similar outline. At the same time, W became an independent letter; before that time, it was a ligature of double U.

As the language developed, the runes disappeared from the alphabet.

Types of English dialects

In terms of the number of speakers, English is third only to Chinese and Hindi. Its widespread use throughout the world can be explained by the colonization policy of Great Britain in the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as the economic dominance of the United States since the end of the 19th century.

Linguists distinguish 3 main groups of dialects:

• The British Isles, or Great Britain
• North America, including the United States and Canada
• Australasia, covering India, Australia, and New Zealand.

Dialects are associated not only with geographical locations but also with social groups. In Great Britain alone, 20 dialects of English are used.

History of English language summary

During its entire evolution, the English language has gone through several main stages, turning from a local dialect into a mass means of communication. People who speak English fluently can be found in any country in the world. In addition, it is constantly evolving; the lexical base is enriched, grammatical norms are supplemented, and the writing style evolves.

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