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Jun 6, 700
Angles and Saxons
The Angles and Saxons had conquered and settled much of what was becoming England (early Engle-land). -
Jun 11, 1020
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
This national chronicle, or annual record of events, was originally compiled around 890 during the reign of King Alfred the Great. It was the first attempt to give a systematic year-by-year account of English history, and it was later maintained, and added to, by generations of anonymous scribes until the middle of the 1100s. -
Jun 11, 1031
The Book of Life
The purpose of a 'Book of Life' (or Liber Vitae), was to record the names of members and friends of monasteries or convents: the belief was that these names would also appear in the heavenly book opened on the Day of Judgement. -
Jun 6, 1066
The Norman Conquest
In 1066, William of Normandy invades England, ushering in a new social and linguistic era. But the change at the top takes a while to sink in, and manuscripts continue to be written in Old English as late as 1100.
French is rapidly established as the language of power and officialdom. William appoints French-speaking supporters to all the key positions of power, and this elite of barons, abbots and bishops retains close ties with its native Normandy. -
Period: Jan 1, 1150 to Jan 1, 1500
Middle English
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Jun 11, 1200
Resurgence of English
The 12th century witnesses a renewed interest in Latin, Greek, and Arabic, which in turn spawns numerous English translations. There is a widespread increase in literacy, while universities are established at Oxford and Cambridge. -
Jun 6, 1350
The Great Vowel Shift
The Great Vowel Shift was a major change in the pronunciation of the English language that took place in England between 1350 and 1700. The Great Vowel Shift was first studied by Otto Jespersen (1860–1943), a Danish linguist and Anglicist, who coined the term.
Because English spelling was becoming standardized in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Great Vowel Shift is responsible for many of the peculiarities of English spelling. -
Jun 6, 1362
English as the Language of the Law
French did not die out among English lawyers. Au contraire, it thrived. Unhappiness about this state of affairs led to what might be considered the first plain English law: the Statute of Pleading, enacted in 1362. The law, written in French. -
Jun 11, 1476
The Printing Press
The arrival of the printing press is a major step towards a standard writing system – and initiates an enormous boom in the production of printed resources in English.
Once luxury items, books are now more affordable, and the spread of literacy suddenly makes publishing a profitable business. Over 20,000 titles appear following the setting up of England’s first printing press by William Caxton in 1476. -
Jun 6, 1492
The Establishment of America
After Columbus' first voyage to the New World in 1492 other explorers and settlement followed into the Floridas and the American Southwest. -
Period: Jan 1, 1500 to
Early Modern English
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Jun 11, 1500
Renaissance
The English Renaissance and the Renaissance in Scotland date from the late 15th century to the early 17th century. In northern Europe the scholarly writings of Erasmus, the plays of Shakespeare, the poems of Edmund Spenser and the writings of Sir Philip Sidney may be considered Renaissance in character. -
Jun 6, 1525
The First Translations of the Bible into English
The King James Bible remains the most widely published text in the English language. The official language of the medieval Church was Latin - the language of the Roman Empire. In England, since the early 1400s, it was strictly forbidden to translate the Bible into English. Tyndale’s translation of the bible in 1525 had led to his execution. -
Shakespeare
Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories and these works remain regarded as some the best work produced in these genres even today. He then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest works in the English language. In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known as romances, and collaborated with other playwrights. -
The Colonisation of the New World
In the late 16th century, Walter Raleigh's expeditions lead to the first settlement in America, at Chesapeake Bay in 1607. In 1620, the Mayflower arrives in Cape Cod, and by 1640 around 25,000 people have settled there.
In 1604, Robert Cawdrey's 'A Table Alphabeticall', listing the meanings of over 2,500 'hard words', is published. It is the first English dictionary. -
King James Bible
The original 1611 A.D. text shows the language in closer association with its Latin roots. -
First Folio
Publication of the "First Folio" (Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies), a collection of 36 of the plays of Shakespeare, half of which have not previously been printed, compiled posthumously by actors John Heminges and Henry Condell and published by Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount in London. -
The Introduction of Printing
During the period from the invention of printing in Europe until 1700, most books were printed on wooden printing presses, using metal type. -
Period: to
Late Modern English
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A Dictionary of the English Language
Published on 15 April 1755 and written by Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language, sometimes published as Johnson's Dictionary, is among the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language. -
Industrial Revolution
The consequences of the ‘Industrial Revolution’ lead to major developments in the sciences and technology, spearheaded by a generation of British entrepreneurs and inventors.
There is a frantic need for words and terms to describe the latest developments and concepts in science and technology. The 'novel' becomes the literary genre of the age, exemplified by the works of Dickens, Scott and Twain. These books introduce a wider range of spoken and non-standard English into written expression. -
Noah Webster's A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language
Noah Webster created A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language based on the author's combined vision of logic and aesthetics. He changed the –ce in words like defence, offence, and pretence to –se; abandoned the second, silent "l" in verbs such as travel and cancel when forming the past tense; dropped the "u" from words such as humour and colour; and dropped the "k" from words such as publick and musick. -
Literature
This year was significant becuase of it's high modernism in English literature. The topics included are books, dramas, fiction and nonfiction from a range of authors. -
The Anglo Saxon invasions
With the Roman Empire fast falling apart, the British provinces are cut loose sometime in the early 5th century. Despite more than 400 years in charge, the Romans don't leave much of their Latin language behind, beyond the occasional place name. -
Beowulf
Beowulf is the longest epic poem in Old English, the
language spoken in Anglo-Saxon England before the
Norman Conquest. -
Period: to Jan 1, 1150
Old English