The history of the English language — Transcript

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1. 0:00have you ever wondered why English is so
2. 0:02full of strange spellings borrowed words
3. 0:04and odd grammar rules in this video
4. 0:07we'll explore the fascinating history of
5. 0:09the English language from its ancient
6. 0:11roots to its modern-day form stick
7. 0:15around to discover how English evolved
8. 0:17and became the global language it is
9. 0:20today the history of the English
10. 0:22language Old English 450 1150 ad our
11. 0:27journey begins in the 5th Century a d a
12. 0:30time of great migrations and upheaval
13. 0:34the Roman Empire had recently withdrawn
14. 0:36from Britain leaving the land open to
15. 0:39new influences and settlers it was
16. 0:42during this period that the Anglo-Saxons
17. 0:45a collection of tribes from what are now
18. 0:47Germany Denmark and the Netherlands
19. 0:50began to make their way across the North
20. 0:52Sea to the British Isles the
21. 0:55Anglo-Saxons were not a single unified
22. 0:58group but rather a mix of peoples
23. 1:01including the angles Saxons and jutes
24. 1:05each brought with them their own
25. 1:07dialects which would eventually blend
26. 1:09and evolve to form what we now call Old
27. 1:13English as these tribes settled in
28. 1:16different parts of Britain they
29. 1:17established small kingdoms and began to
30. 1:20cultivate the land Building Villages and
31. 1:23fortifications their language heavily
32. 1:26influenced by their Germanic Roots
33. 1:29started to take hold replacing the Latin
34. 1:32that had been prevalent under Roman rule
35. 1:35and the Celtic languages spoken by the
36. 1:37native Britains here's a glimpse of what
37. 1:40Old English looked like
38. 2:07if it looks completely foreign that's
39. 2:08because it is this language spoken from
40. 2:11around 450 to 1150 ad was filled with
41. 2:15complex grammar and vocabulary but the
42. 2:18story of Old English doesn't end there
43. 2:21in the 8th and 9th centuries Viking
44. 2:24invasions brought Old Norse into the mix
45. 2:27words like Sky egg and window entered
46. 2:31the English lexicon in the 8th and 9th
47. 2:34centuries the British Isles faced a new
48. 2:37wave of Invaders the Vikings these
49. 2:40formidable seafarers from Scandinavia
50. 2:43arrived in their iconic long ships sleek
51. 2:46and Swift vessels capable of traversing
52. 2:49both Open Seas and narrow Rivers the
53. 2:52Vikings were not just Raiders they were
54. 2:55also settlers Traders and explorers
55. 2:59leaving a lasting impact on the regions
56. 3:02they touched with the Viking invasions
57. 3:04came Old Norse the language of these
58. 3:07norsen this powerful linguistic
59. 3:09influence began to interweave with the
60. 3:12existing Old English creating a rich
61. 3:14tapestry of language that would shape
62. 3:16the future of English many Old Norse
63. 3:19words entered the English lexicon
64. 3:22enriching it and reflecting the cultural
65. 3:24exchanges of the time words like Sky
66. 3:27originally ski in Old Norse replaced the
67. 3:31Old English word hopon the word egg from
68. 3:35the old Norse egg took over from the old
69. 3:38English egg even everyday terms like
70. 3:41window derived from the old Norse vinda
71. 3:45literally wind ey found their place in
72. 3:48the English language Middle English 1150
73. 3:521500 ad the Middle English period
74. 3:55beginning around 1150 ad this era was
75. 3:58profoundly shaped by the Norman conquest
76. 4:01of
77. 4:021066 a pivotal event that drastically
78. 4:05altered the course of the English
79. 4:06language when William the Conqueror Duke
80. 4:09of Normandy defeated King Harold at the
81. 4:12Battle of Hastings he and his Norman
82. 4:15followers brought with them the old
83. 4:17Norman language a variety of old French
84. 4:20the Normans established themselves as
85. 4:22the ruling class in England and old
86. 4:25Norman quickly became the language of
87. 4:27the Court law admin Administration and
88. 4:30the elite Latin remained the language of
89. 4:33the church and scholarly works but the
90. 4:35Common People continued to speak English
91. 4:38over time these linguistic streams began
92. 4:41to merge the influence of old Norman on
93. 4:44English was profound thousands of French
94. 4:47words entered the English vocabulary
95. 4:50particularly in areas related to
96. 4:51governance law art literature religion
97. 4:55and other aspects of high culture words
98. 4:58such as Court Justice jury government
99. 5:02councel Parliament Castle Duke Baron
100. 5:06clergy and sermon all have Norman Roots
101. 5:11grammatically Middle English saw
102. 5:13significant changes as well the complex
103. 5:17inflectional system of Old English began
104. 5:20to simplify many grammatical gender
105. 5:23distinctions and case endings were lost
106. 5:26leading to a more fixed word order and
107. 5:28the increased use of prepositions and
108. 5:31auxiliary verbs to convey meaning this
109. 5:35period also witnessed the creation of
110. 5:38remarkable literary works one of the
111. 5:41most famous is Jeffrey Cher's the
112. 5:43canterberry tales written in the late
113. 5:4614th century Cher's use of the East
114. 5:49Midland dialect of Middle English helped
115. 5:52to standardize and promote this form of
116. 5:55the language his Vivid characters and
117. 5:58engaging storytelling not only provide
118. 6:00insight into medieval life but also
119. 6:03showcase the richness and flexibility of
120. 6:06Middle English Middle English was not
121. 6:09uniform however Regional dialects varied
122. 6:12significantly with notable differences
123. 6:15in vocabulary pronunciation and grammar
124. 6:18across England this linguistic diversity
125. 6:22is evident in various surviving texts
126. 6:24from different parts of the country
127. 6:27early modern English 1500 1700 ad the
128. 6:31transition to early modern English began
129. 6:34around 1500 ad a period marked by
130. 6:37significant cultural and technological
131. 6:40changes that profoundly shaped the
132. 6:42English language two major factors that
133. 6:45contributed to this transformation were
134. 6:47the renaissance and the invention of the
135. 6:49printing press one of the most
136. 6:52influential cultural movements was the
137. 6:54Renaissance which began in Italy in the
138. 6:5714th century and spread ACR across
139. 6:59Europe this era brought a renewed
140. 7:02interest in the classical knowledge of
141. 7:04ancient Greece and Rome alongside
142. 7:06advancements in science art and
143. 7:10literature Scholars and intellectuals
144. 7:12sought to ReDiscover and reinterpret
145. 7:14ancient texts leading to an influx of
146. 7:17Latin and Greek words into English terms
147. 7:20like encyclopedia philosophy drama and
148. 7:23Theory were borrowed directly from these
149. 7:26Classical Languages enriching the
150. 7:29English
151. 7:30lexicon another pivotal development was
152. 7:33the invention of the printing press by
153. 7:35Johannes Gutenberg in the midth century
154. 7:38and its introduction to England by
155. 7:40William kton in
156. 7:421476 the printing press revolutionized
157. 7:45the production of books making
158. 7:48literature more accessible and
159. 7:50affordable it also played a crucial role
160. 7:53in standardizing English this period saw
161. 7:56the gradual standardization of spelling
162. 7:58and grammar moving towards the forms we
163. 8:01recognize today a significant linguistic
164. 8:04phenomenon during this time was the
165. 8:06Great Vowel Shift a major change in the
166. 8:09pronunciation of the English language
167. 8:11that occurred primarily between 1400 and
168. 8:151700 the Great Vowel Shift involved a
169. 8:18systematic change in the pronunciation
170. 8:21of long vowels for example the Middle
171. 8:24English pronunciation of bite was closer
172. 8:26to beet and meat was pronounced ounc
173. 8:29like mate also the silent letters a good
174. 8:33example of this change is in the word
175. 8:35knife in Middle English it was
176. 8:37pronounced neif this shift in vowel
177. 8:40sounds altered the way English words
178. 8:42were spoken and contributed to the
179. 8:44differences between middle and early
180. 8:47modern English The Works of William
181. 8:49Shakespeare often considered the
182. 8:51greatest writer in the English language
183. 8:54exemplify the richness and flexibility
184. 8:57of early modern English shakes shp's
185. 8:59plays and sonnets not only contributed a
186. 9:02wealth of vocabulary many of his coined
187. 9:05words are still in use today but also
188. 9:08demonstrated the expressive power of
189. 9:10English his Works reflect the dynamic
190. 9:13nature of the language incorporating
191. 9:15elements of both its medieval past and
192. 9:18its modern potential the King James
193. 9:21Bible published in 1611 also had a
194. 9:24profound impact on the English language
195. 9:27its translation was intended to be
196. 9:29accessible to the general public and its
197. 9:32widespread use helped to further
198. 9:34standardize
199. 9:35English the phrasing and vocabulary of
200. 9:38the King James Bible have left a lasting
201. 9:41Legacy with many of its Expressions
202. 9:43still in common use during this period
203. 9:47English began to spread Beyond England's
204. 9:49Shores carried by explorers Traders and
205. 9:53colonists as the British Empire expanded
206. 9:56English encountered and absorbed
207. 9:59influences from many other languages and
208. 10:01cultures laying the groundwork for its
209. 10:04future Global dominance the early modern
210. 10:08English period was one of remarkable
211. 10:10growth and
212. 10:11transformation influenced by the
213. 10:14Renaissance propelled by the Advent of
214. 10:16the printing press and shaped by the
215. 10:19Great Vowel Shift English evolved into a
216. 10:22more standardized and widely accessible
217. 10:25language this era set the stage for the
218. 10:28English English languages role as a
219. 10:31major world language leading into the
220. 10:33Modern Age with a rich Legacy of
221. 10:36literature and an expanded vocabulary
222. 10:39contemporary English Today English is a
223. 10:41global lingua franka spoken by over 1.5
224. 10:45billion people
225. 10:46worldwide it continues to evolve with
226. 10:49influences from technology social media
227. 10:52and Global
228. 10:53Communication the digital age has
229. 10:55accelerated the creation and
230. 10:57dissemination of new world words and
231. 11:00phrases making English a highly Dynamic
232. 11:03and adaptive language in summary the
233. 11:06history of the English language reflects
234. 11:09a series of invasions cultural shifts
235. 11:12and technological advancements that have
236. 11:15shaped it into the rich and diverse
237. 11:17language we know today
238. 11:20[Music]