Background of the English Language

Old English (500-1100)

 Anglo-Saxon developed into English & also

developed into German. Hence English is a
Germanic language.
 Had full inflection system. (an inflection
shows how a word funtions in a sentence by
its form).

Middle English (1100-1500)

 Inflections weakening.
 Can actually read some of it without very
much training.

Modern (1500-present)

 No inflections. (With a few exceptions, such

as the personal pronoun - I, me, mine, we,
us, ours.)
 Modern syntax.

Background Sources for British Culture, Literature & Language:

 
 

Native tribes: Invaders:

Descendants from original Britons
 Scotch  Romans
 Irish  Angles
 Welch  Saxons
 Cornish  Jutes 
 Vikings 
 Normans

 
Celtic:

 Descendants of original Britons

o Scotch
 o Irish
o Welch
o Cornish
 Language was Cymraeg.
 Great dux bellorum (leader of wars) Artorius resisted the Germans
(Arthur).

Classic (Greco-Roman):

 Caesar invaded with Roman legions in 55 B.C.

 100 years later, Roman Emperor Claudius attacked Celts &
established Roman rule.
 400 years of relative order & stability followed.
 Latin & Greek literature imp. then brought back later

Germanic:

 Angles, Saxons, & Jutes came in 5th Century. A.D. (started in

A.D. 449).
 A.D. 410
o Rome had been sacked.
o Rome withdrew from Britain, beginning the Medieval Period.
 Middle Ages or Dark Ages are other terms for the era.
 Era ended 1000 years later in the 1400's-1500's.

5th century

 Rome left
 Germanic tribes (Angels, Saxons, Jutes) took over.
o Settled in East. Britain
o Took over England by 650
 Anglo-Saxon (Old English) forms the basis of English. The, is you,
mann, hus, sheep, ox, earth, plough, swine, dog, glee, etc.

The Vikings: (793-1050)

 These tribes were also Germanic.

 The invasion began as plundering, ended in conquest & settlement.
 878 King Alfred beat back the Vikings, preserving English.
The Norman Conquest 1066.

 Christmas Day
 William the Conquerer was coronated
 Religion, law, science, & literature were now in French & Latin, not
English, for 200 years.
 French overlords had to learn English to talk to their subjects.

100 Years War (1337-1454)

 Led to using English again.

 1356-1400 English appeared as official language in various places.

    Anglo-Saxon society was quite different from the culture that developed
in the high Middle Ages reflected in Chaucer. Following the Roman exit
from Britain, there was a breakdown of the rule of law. It was a very tribal
form of society in which much superstition abounded. They were pagans.
Pagan traditions were fused with Christian ones.  For instance, the spring
festival of Eostre became Easter. Christian concepts of fortune &
providence were similar to the Anglo Saxon concept of wyrd, or fate: the
control of a person's destiny beyond the reach of personal exertion.
Christianity brought intellectual advancement. Schools grew up as
monestaries spread; Latin taught. Led Anglo Saxons to produce & write
down their own literature. Anglo Saxon (Old English) the first important
vernacular written literature of Western Europe. (Vernacularlanguages
were the local language, as opposed to the Latin that was common across
the area covered by the western Roman Empire. )

Two classes recognized by Anglo-Saxon society:

 Earls
o ruling class based on kinship to the founder of a tribe.
 Churls
o bondsmen
o subject classes (slaves)
o A few got higher status becuase they or their ancestor had
been freed for service to the king.

King:

 Brave commander
  Revered leader in wartime
 Wise judge
 Generous gift-giver in peacetime.

The tribal social system:

 Based on loyalty & indebtedness

 Crimes against one's own kin were unforgivable.
o Punished by death

597 A.D.:
 

 Augustine:
o Converted King Ethelbert of Kent.
o Augustine became 1st archbishop of Canterbury.
o Brought back Latin.

Pagan traditions were fused with Christian ones.  For instance, the spring festival of
Eostre
became Easter.

Christian concepts of fortune & providence were similar to the A.S. concept of
wyrd, or fate:
the control of a person's destiny beyond the reach of personal exertion.

Christianity brought intellectual advancement. Schools grew up as monestaries

spread; Latin
taught. Led A.S. to produce & write down their own lit. Anglo Saxon (Old
English) was the first
important vernacular written literature of W. Europe. (Vernacular languages
were the local
language, as opposed to the Latin that was common across the area covered by the
western Roman
Empire. )
 
 

Bede:

 8th century historian & churchman

 Wrote the Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation.
870:

 Viking Danes began attacking

 Alfred the Great
o Emerged as most imp. Anglo Saxon king.
o Had history recorded yearly in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
o Encouraged translation of books.
o Ceded north & central portions of England to the Viking Danes
to save Britain.

1014: Danes conquered Britain

1042: Anglo Saxons returned to power

1066:

 The Normans/Frenchmen invaded under William the Conqueror.

 William imposed Norman law, government and language on Anglo-
Saxons.
 End of the Anglo-Saxon Era.

1066.  The Normans/Frenchmen invaded. William imposed Norman law,

government and
language on Anglo-Saxons.

    The foundation of Norman civilization (Feudal System) which was based
upon the holding of land. King owned all the land. He granted areas to his
lords who promised him their services. Lords gave portions to the knights
who pledged to assist them in battle. Serfs were the lowest on the social
scale. They paid goods and services to the lord in return for land they
farmed.

Social Scale:

 King
 Lords
 Nobles - Knights
 Serfs – Peasants & Clergy

Background of the English Language

Old English (500-1100)
  Anglo-Saxon developed into English & also
developed into German. Hence English is a
Germanic language.
 Had full inflection system. (an inflection
shows how a word funtions in a sentence by
its form).

Middle English (1100-1500)

 Inflections weakening.
 Can actually read some of it without very
much training.

Modern (1500-present)

 No inflections. (With a few exceptions, such

as the personal pronoun - I, me, mine, we,
us, ours.)
 Modern syntax.

Background Sources for British Culture, Literature & Language:

 
 

Native tribes: Invaders:

Descendants from original Britons
 Scotch  Romans
 Irish  Angles
 Welch  Saxons
 Cornish  Jutes 
 Vikings 
 Normans

 
Celtic:

 Descendants of original Britons

o Scotch
o Irish
o Welch
 o Cornish
 Language was Cymraeg.
 Great dux bellorum (leader of wars) Artorius resisted the Germans
(Arthur).

Classic (Greco-Roman):

 Caesar invaded with Roman legions in 55 B.C.

 100 years later, Roman Emperor Claudius attacked Celts &
established Roman rule.
 400 years of relative order & stability followed.
 Latin & Greek literature imp. then brought back later

Germanic:

 Angles, Saxons, & Jutes came in 5th Century. A.D. (started in

A.D. 449).
 A.D. 410
o Rome had been sacked.
o Rome withdrew from Britain, beginning the Medieval Period.
 Middle Ages or Dark Ages are other terms for the era.
 Era ended 1000 years later in the 1400's-1500's.

5th century

 Rome left
 Germanic tribes (Angels, Saxons, Jutes) took over.
o Settled in East. Britain
o Took over England by 650
 Anglo-Saxon (Old English) forms the basis of English. The, is you,
mann, hus, sheep, ox, earth, plough, swine, dog, glee, etc.

The Vikings: (793-1050)

 These tribes were also Germanic.

 The invasion began as plundering, ended in conquest & settlement.
 878 King Alfred beat back the Vikings, preserving English.

The Norman Conquest 1066.

  Christmas Day
 William the Conquerer was coronated
 Religion, law, science, & literature were now in French & Latin, not
English, for 200 years.
 French overlords had to learn English to talk to their subjects.

100 Years War (1337-1454)

 Led to using English again.

 1356-1400 English appeared as official language in various places.

    Anglo-Saxon society was quite different from the culture that developed
in the high Middle Ages reflected in Chaucer. Following the Roman exit
from Britain, there was a breakdown of the rule of law. It was a very tribal
form of society in which much superstition abounded. They were pagans.
Pagan traditions were fused with Christian ones.  For instance, the spring
festival of Eostre became Easter. Christian concepts of fortune &
providence were similar to the Anglo Saxon concept of wyrd, or fate: the
control of a person's destiny beyond the reach of personal exertion.
Christianity brought intellectual advancement. Schools grew up as
monestaries spread; Latin taught. Led Anglo Saxons to produce & write
down their own literature. Anglo Saxon (Old English) the first important
vernacular written literature of Western Europe. (Vernacularlanguages
were the local language, as opposed to the Latin that was common across
the area covered by the western Roman Empire. )

Two classes recognized by Anglo-Saxon society:

 Earls
o ruling class based on kinship to the founder of a tribe.
 Churls
o bondsmen
o subject classes (slaves)
o A few got higher status becuase they or their ancestor had
been freed for service to the king.

King:

 Brave commander
 Revered leader in wartime
 Wise judge
  Generous gift-giver in peacetime.

The tribal social system:

 Based on loyalty & indebtedness

 Crimes against one's own kin were unforgivable.
o Punished by death

597 A.D.:
 

 Augustine:
o Converted King Ethelbert of Kent.
o Augustine became 1st archbishop of Canterbury.
o Brought back Latin.

Pagan traditions were fused with Christian ones.  For instance, the spring festival of
Eostre
became Easter.

Christian concepts of fortune & providence were similar to the A.S. concept of
wyrd, or fate:
the control of a person's destiny beyond the reach of personal exertion.

Christianity brought intellectual advancement. Schools grew up as monestaries

spread; Latin
taught. Led A.S. to produce & write down their own lit. Anglo Saxon (Old
English) was the first
important vernacular written literature of W. Europe. (Vernacular languages
were the local
language, as opposed to the Latin that was common across the area covered by the
western Roman
Empire. )
 
 

Bede:

 8th century historian & churchman

 Wrote the Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation.

870:
  Viking Danes began attacking
 Alfred the Great
o Emerged as most imp. Anglo Saxon king.
o Had history recorded yearly in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
o Encouraged translation of books.
o Ceded north & central portions of England to the Viking Danes
to save Britain.

1014: Danes conquered Britain

1042: Anglo Saxons returned to power

1066:

 The Normans/Frenchmen invaded under William the Conqueror.

 William imposed Norman law, government and language on Anglo-
Saxons.
 End of the Anglo-Saxon Era.

1066.  The Normans/Frenchmen invaded. William imposed Norman law,

government and
language on Anglo-Saxons.

    The foundation of Norman civilization (Feudal System) which was based
upon the holding of land. King owned all the land. He granted areas to his
lords who promised him their services. Lords gave portions to the knights
who pledged to assist them in battle. Serfs were the lowest on the social
scale. They paid goods and services to the lord in return for land they
farmed.

Social Scale:

 King
 Lords
 Nobles - Knights
 Serfs – Peasants & Clergy