The history of english

History of English Language

  • Original Language
    56 BCE

    Original Language

    The spoken language in England was a mixture of Latin and various Celtic languages
  • Romans arrived to Britain
    55 BCE

    Romans arrived to Britain

    The Romans arrived to Britain and brought Latin to Britain which was part of the Roman Empire for over 400 years. Words: win(wine), candel (candle), belt (belt), weall (wall).
  • Arrival of Germanic Tribes to British Isles
    450

    Arrival of Germanic Tribes to British Isles

    Saxons, Angles, and Jutes arrived to the British Isles and pushed out most of the original Celtic-speaking inhabitants into Scottland, Wales , and Cornwall.
  • Old English Creation
    500

    Old English Creation

    Period: 450-1100 AD
    It was an event occurred through the years, the creation of the Old English came up due to the combination of the different Germanic tribes' dialects (Saxon, Angles, and Jutes)
  • St. Augustine's Arrival & Introduction of Christianity
    597

    St. Augustine's Arrival & Introduction of Christianity

    This event brough even more Latin words into the English language.
  • Vikings Invasion
    Jun 30, 878

    Vikings Invasion

    Danes & Norsemen invaded the country and English got many Norse words, such as: sky, egg, cake, skin, leg, window (wind eye), husband, fellow, skill, anger, flat, odd, ugly, get, give, take, raise, call, die, they, their, them. Norse language was Germanic as well.
  • Beowulf
    Jun 30, 1000

    Beowulf

    The oldest known Old English poem, it is notable for its lenght of 3,183 lines. Experts say "Beowulf" was written in Britain more than one thoursand years ago, and its author is unknown.
  • Invasion & Conquer to England
    Jun 30, 1066

    Invasion & Conquer to England

    William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy, invaded and conquered England becoming King. The they spoke 3 languages:
    - Old French
    - Latin
    - Vulgar Tongue
  • Middle English
    Jun 30, 1200

    Middle English

    Period: 1000 - 1500 AD
    It is the rebirth of Old English plus the Frech words took from the the nobles.
    Most of the embedded words are words of power, such as:
    crown, castle, court, parliament, army, mansion, gown, beauty, banquet, art, poet, romance, duke, servant, peasant, traitor, and governor.
  • Invension of the Printing Press
    Jun 30, 1450

    Invension of the Printing Press

    Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press in Germany
  • First Printing Press in England
    Jun 30, 1476

    First Printing Press in England

    William Caxton established the first printing press at Westminster Abbey, England.
  • The Canterbury Tales
    Jun 30, 1478

    The Canterbury Tales

    It is a collection of 24 stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer. It tells the stories of 30 people who travelled as pilgrims to Canterbury, England. The images contained give the reader an idea of how the life was like in the 14th century.
  • Modern English
    Jan 1, 1500

    Modern English

    Period: 1500 - Present
    Modern English was developed after the invension and settlement of the first printing press.
    This period has 3 big developments:
    - Renaissance
    - Industrial Revolution
    - British Colonialism
  • The Great Vowel Shift
    Jun 30, 1500

    The Great Vowel Shift

    Period: 1500 - 1800 AD
    This change in the English language pronouciation ocurred during the 15th and the 18th centuries.
    A vowel that used ot be pronounced in one place in the mouth would be pronounced in different places, higher up in the mouth.
  • Renaissance

    Renaissance

    Most of the words from Greek and Latin entered English
    - The age of Shakespeare
    - The Elizabeth Era
  • Industrial Revolution

    Industrial Revolution

    New words had to be invented or existing ones modified to cope with the rapid changes in technology since inventors designed various products and machinery.
  • British Colonialism

    British Colonialism

    English language continued to change as the British Empire moved across the world ' USA; Australia, New Zeland, India, Asia, and Africa.
    They sent people to settle and live in their conquered places and as settlers interacted with natives, new words were added to the English vocabulary, for example: kangaroo and boomerang
  • Current English Language

    Current English Language

    It has become the official language in many countries worldwide