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The British Isles were invaded by the Angles, Saxons and Jutes. Before this the Island had a population of 500.000 people with different languages and traditions. Because of the invasion the English language was defined and the languages spoken before were nearly obliterated. The new language is what we call Old English, and it is very different from the English of today.
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Because the Nomans (from France) invaded England, French also has had an influence on English. The king, his noble, and the elite spoke French, but the commons still spoke Old English. The priests spoke Latin, which has also influenced the English language. Words which have to do with religion come from Latin.
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The bible was translated into English which added a lot of word to the English vocabulary :-)
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The English language has developed into something we can recognize today.
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William Caxton introduced the printing press. Some of the spoken words were written down - and thereby remebered! Printing books also increased the focus on correct use of the language.
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Because of the ability to print books, the language adapted a lot of foreign words. People wanted to read about what was happening around the world.
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Shakespeare invented many words and idioms, which today are common in Modern English.
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As well as Shakespeare's works, King James Bible also introduced words and idioms to the language. (E.g. "An eye for en eye".)
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Until now there were no rules of spelling. A dictionary was a very good thing.
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A lot of new words became a part of the English vocabulary because of the imperialism, urbanization and industrialization.
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Even though Jane Austin's language is very similar to Modern English, some of the words she used has changed their meanings when we use them today.
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Because of US's important role in the world, English has become a global language. And it continues to influence languages all around the world, as well as other languages influence the English language.
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The Danish Vikings raided Britain (until 1066). They had a big influence on the language, especially on the colloquial words. E.g. knife, hat, you, bull, and so on...
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The establishment of the Danelaw had a great impact on the English language because the Danish Vikings lived here for about 200 years.