“Brief History of English”

Motivating Introduction

1. Assign the students to consult the dictionary for the origin of the following

words:

a. cheese f. chicken

b. camp g. carpenter

c. school h. sky

d. religion i. cat

e. beef j. altar

2. Give them an additional list in class (horse, coliseum, candle, mother, father,

menu, chef, captain, navy, military)

Lesson Proper

1. Introduce the following terms to the students:

a. Old English
b. Middle English

c. Modern English

d. Anglo-Saxons

e. Indo-European language

f. Celts

g. Dialect

h. Case

i. Standardization

j. Mutually intelligible language

Notes

 Old English usually refers to the period in the history of the English language

covering the years from 449 (or 450) to 1100 (or 1150). Around the year 450,

England was invaded by the Germanic tribes (the Angels, the Saxons, and

the Jutes). These Germanic tribes are regarded as “the founders of The
English nation” [Albert C. Baugh and Thomas Cable, A History of the English

Language (London: Routledge, 2002)]. The account of these invasions is

found in the Benedictine monk Bede’s work Ecclesiastical History of the

English People, which was completed in 731 (Baugh and Cable 2002). The

earliest records of the language date back to about 700.

 Middle English covers the period from 1100 (or 1150) to 1500. William of

Normandy, a French territory, conquered England in 1066. The French rule

brought change to the English language. The Anglo-Saxons chronicle existed

until 1154. By that time, the English language had taken on new futures

different from the ones of Old English.

“Brief History of English”

Motivating Introduction

1. Assign the students to consult the dictionary for the origin of the following

words:

a. cheese f. chicken
b. camp g. carpenter

c. school h. sky

d. religion i. cat

e. beef j. altar

2. Give them an additional list in class (horse, coliseum, candle, mother, father,

menu, chef, captain, navy, military)

Lesson Proper

1. Introduce the following terms to the students:

a. Old English

b. Middle English

c. Modern English

d. Anglo-Saxons

e. Indo-European language

f. Celts
g. Dialect

h. Case

i. Standardization

j. Mutually intelligible language

Notes

 Old English usually refers to the period in the history of the English language

covering the years from 449 (or 450) to 1100 (or 1150). Around the year 450,

England was invaded by the Germanic tribes (the Angels, the Saxons, and

the Jutes). These Germanic tribes are regarded as “the founders of The

English nation” [Albert C. Baugh and Thomas Cable, A History of the English

Language (London: Routledge, 2002)]. The account of these invasions is

found in the Benedictine monk Bede’s work Ecclesiastical History of the

English People, which was completed in 731 (Baugh and Cable 2002). The

earliest records of the language date back to about 700.

 Middle English covers the period from 1100 (or 1150) to 1500. William of

Normandy, a French territory, conquered England in 1066. The French rule

brought change to the English language. The Anglo-Saxons chronicle existed

until 1154. By that time, the English language had taken on new futures

different from the ones of Old English.

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