Acquaintance with the peculiarities of our educational-professional

program
The Department of English Philology at Ivan Franko National University in Lviv is quite large. As of
this year, we may be teaching up to a thousand students. They are being trained for BA and MA
degrees by over sixty teachers holding 51 teaching positions and offering classes at full-time, part-
time and retraining and further education studies.
The Department is one of the oldest in the field in this country. Over its history spanning more than
half a century it was graduated by thousands of students. It has also been home to the best and
brightest teachers in Ukraine who nurtured the highest standards of language mastery by their
students and developed diverse insights into research. Now our staff includes two professors and
over thirty associate professors. Younger teachers are working on their candidate theses and several
more experienced ones on habilitations.
English as the first major is being taught during the whole study course within complementing
aspects – several at a time for each group in varying configurations and changing priorities
depending on the stage of studies, each delivered by a specialist teacher. The aspects include an
introductory course and language tutor’s classes addressing the individual needs of each student,
diversely supplemented analytical lessons by reliable intermediate- to proficiency-level textbooks
with special companions for Ukrainian students, an in-depth study of normative grammar, reading
and discussion of selected works of fiction, mass media English, integrated writing skills. In the first
two years our students will attend immersive readings in English and American Literature conducted
each week in small groups of students. There will also be a three-year literature course with
lectures and seminars given by the Department of World Literature.
Our framework enables several teachers at a time to contribute to the molding of each student’s
language skills throughout the entire period of his studies. Their prime aim lies in an all-round
unfolding of each student’s language talents and learning potential.
Owing to the parallel training of practical skills in two foreign languages, broadly expanded by the
introduction of double specialization at the Faculty, you will have a unique chance to master a
second foreign language of your choice: German as well as Spanish or French. There are also
opportunities of studying other large and even smaller languages with English as a good launching
pad in this activity.
The Department also offers selective classes envisaged for the versatile personal interests of
students. They focus on specific aspects of language skills that stem from the richness of English.
Such classes are conducted in slightly larger groups and span communicative proficiency of
freshmen, multiple standards in imitative prosody, listening comprehension difficulties, subtleties of
grammar and usage, special tasks and formats of writing, discussion panels, lexical expansion in
standard English and its sub-languages, text immersion in various subjects and professional
domains as well as subject-oriented translation skills previously encouraged in the course of
practical English training. We have teachers who are accomplished interpreters and translators
themselves with experience of interpreting in public as well as published work in the sphere of both
artistic and specialist translation.
Language theory and linguistics is a challenge that all our students will be helped to meet in a most
enjoyable way. You will spend most precious moments listening to lectures on a wide selection of
theoretical subjects: introduction to philology and specialization (with the now rarely taught
essentials of the Gothic language), country and language studies, lexicology, history of English,
theory of grammar and stylistics. You will also cover teaching methodology and several related
optional courses (use of multimedia in teaching, CLIL, ESP, age-target teaching, etc.) crowned by the
memorable four-week teaching practice at the beginning of your 8th term. And theory and practice
of translation will be taught by the Department of Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies
that bears the name of Hryhoriy Kochur. Also, you will be actively involved in seminars, workshops
and projects in these subjects. And your skills in linguistics are to be further solidified by your
course-papers. They will be also enhanced by your own choice of theoretical selective courses and
by-subjects from the open-ended list of disciplines ranging from phonology, phraseology and
lexicography through external language history, study of medieval texts and the works of
Shakespeare to methods of linguistic research, communication theory, sociolinguistics,
psycholinguistics, discourse analysis and texts of postmodernist literature. You may also join our
English theatre or the students’ choir as well as numerous volunteer and institutional projects that
will contribute to your readiness for a real job.
A number of our teachers have been to international conferences or on study trips to English
speaking countries. And owing to the Erasmus program there are possibilities for student and
teacher mobility. We enjoy the benefits of international cooperation by numerous partnership
agreements stretching from a number of European countries to the U.S., Canada and China. We
have also developed some interesting tools for student research in philology, corpus linguistics or
electronic modelling (the latter in resemblance to the OED and HTE) as well as teaching resources
for classroom and distant learning and even inter-continental partnership sessions. And we have
plans to open up a one-month summer school for willing students at John Moores University in
Liverpool! There will also be other venues: Poland, Germany, Lithuania, Italy. And there is a
prospect of learning Chinese.
We are helpful and friendly to ALL students: those with a high creative potential and aspiring to
achieve more and more with each month and even week. Equally, we will help you to rediscover
your own self, if you were not the best student at school. You may have a talent for languages! We
want you to feel good and comfortable! We will be happy for you and feel proud of your
accomplishments. Importantly, our teaching is institutional. It takes place in mixed groups for all
aspects of English with a possibility of students inter-groups transfer for larger experience and
higher efficiency of studies.
When you graduate you will make a decent living of your major in English. As English is expanding in
the world teaching English at different levels to all kinds of students means a job at every corner in
Ukraine. And even beyond. You can also work as an interpreter or translator or be employed as a
language in the growing IT sector, or a language expert and editor at various offices or institutions.
Our graduates are working in industry, journalism, politics, tourism and entertainment. And should
you want to master a new profession, be it business, law or a branch of scholarship in the sciences
or humanities, think of the advantages in your new field from the command of English. And your
children will come to speak English from a young age.
Take a closer look at our MA Programs! They include exciting master classes by our best language
practitioners, solid obligatory subjects, specially designed study programs in a set of research
disciplines on the cutting edge of scholarship, methodology options that will teach you how to
teach, opportunities to unfold your translation talents through real-life tasks and activities. We
cannot but mention a most valuable experience that you will get during your two-month teaching
practice and a taste being a researcher while writing your MA thesis. We also offer enrolment for
postgraduate studies as well as possibilities to present completed candidate dissertations. This year,
our graduate and first postgraduate student from China Yongmin Wang is finishing up his thesis on
pragmatic-cognitive peculiarities of loans in typologically distant languages.
The roots of English Studies at Lviv University go back to the subscription to the New English
Dictionary by our scholarly library. Very few institutions in Eastern Europe can boast of a complete
set of this unique and still ongoing reference source for English which will celebrate its 90th
anniversary next year. The scholarly journal Inozemna Philologia (which was a quarterly for quite
some time) with most contributions on English Studies has been published here since 1964. The
English Department hosted the 7th International Conference on Middle English Studies attended by
experts from twelve countries in 2011. We also co-hosted three All-Ukrainian Students Olympiads in
English. An annual Anglistentag for English Studies scholars from Ukraine and elsewhere is to be
held here starting next year. We have had regular bilateral exchanges of groups of students with
Warsaw University and the Higher Professional School named after Stanisław Pigoń in Krosno,
Poland. We are also known internationally owing to lecturing visits of such renowned authorities as
 Jacek Fisiak (Poznań), Manfred Görlach (Heidelberg), who donated part of his personal library to
the Department, Dieter Kastovsky (Vienna), Fritz König (North Carolina), Barbara Kryk-Kastovsky
(Vienna), Gabriele Knappe (Bamberg), Liliana Sikorska (Poznań), Hans Sauer (Munich), Matti
Rissanen (Helsinki), Christiane Dalton-Puffer (Vienna), Grzegorz Kleparski (Rzeszów), Peter L.
Rudnytsky (Florida), Władysław Witalisz (Kraków), Yali Lee (Canada), John Underhill (France).

In Search of the first language

In the video, the idea of a common origin for all languages is explored. It mentions the biblical story
of the Tower of Babel and its connection to the diversity of languages. The video discusses the study
of language families, such as Indo-European, to trace back to a possible mother tongue. It highlights
the similarities between certain languages, like Arabic and Hebrew, as well as unexpected
connections between languages like Punjabi and English. The linguistic discoveries made by Sir
William Jones regarding the similarities between Sanskrit, Greek, and Latin are discussed. These
similarities led to the concept of language families. Linguists use systematic similarities in grammar,
sounds, inflections, and syntax to determine if languages belong to the same family. Using the
comparative method, linguists have established the Indo-European family of languages, which
includes about 100 languages. The linguistic evolution of the English language is discussed,
highlighting how it has changed over 1200 years. The video also mentions the Indo-European
language family, which is the most studied and researched language family in the world. Another
important language family mentioned is Sino-Tibetan, spoken by a quarter of the world's
population. The video showcases the efforts of linguists at the University of California, Berkeley,
who are working on mapping out the relationships between languages in the Sino-Tibetan family.
The complexity of language classification and the challenges faced in determining language families
are discussed. It highlights the limited number of sounds in human languages and the possibility of
accidental resemblance between languages. The video also mentions the efforts to preserve
endangered languages, such as the Salish language spoken by the Flathead Indian Reservation
community. It emphasizes the importance of language in carrying culture and history. Linguist Sarah
Thomason is working with a Native American tribe to create a written record of their language and
customs. The tribe hopes to preserve their language and prevent its loss. They are creating a Salish-
English dictionary and documenting traditional life for future generations. The video also highlights
the importance of preserving endangered languages, as many languages in the Americas have
already gone extinct. The linguist Greenberg discusses his research on language families in Africa
and the Americas. He identifies four language families in Africa and makes historical inferences
based on their classification. Greenberg then focuses on the complex language puzzle presented by
the Americas and proposes three language families, including a new super family called Ameranth.
However, his methodology and classification face criticism from other scientists. The linguistic
mystery of the Basque language is explored. The Basque language, called Iascara, is a language
isolate with no known relatives. Despite being surrounded by French and Spanish, the Basque
language remains unique and unrelated to any other language in the world. The video suggests that
the linguistic isolation may be due to the Basque people's historical independence and strong oral
tradition. Linguists study language change in Philadelphia over a 20-year period. They observe how
English words and pronunciation evolve over time. The research challenges previous theories about
who drives language change, showing that it is often the influential local people who lead the way.
The video highlights the importance of understanding these changes as they can affect
comprehension and potentially lead to language differentiation. Linguists are attempting to study a
language believed to have been spoken 15,000 years ago. This controversial effort is led by Vitaly
Shevoroshkin, who supports the Nostratic theory. The theory suggests that many of today's
language families descended from an ancient super family of languages. By comparing
reconstructed languages and finding precise sound correspondences, linguists aim to trace back to a
common ancestor language called Proto-Nostratic. The debate about the reconstruction of ancient
languages is explored. Linguists argue that reconstructing languages spoken thousands of years ago
is speculative. The video highlights the limitations imposed by language change and population
 shifts over time. However, researchers suggest that core words like pronouns can provide insights
into ancestral languages, although there is a limit to how much can be reconstructed. Linguists
explore the possibility of a common ancestral language spoken thousands of years ago. They
analyze language families and find similarities in words across different families, suggesting a shared
origin. While some linguists find this evidence compelling, others argue that isolated examples are
not enough to prove a common source. The video concludes that while it's interesting to think
about a time when everyone spoke the same language, it remains a belief and cannot be
scientifically proven.

Adventure of English (parts1, 2 or more)

1) The Common Tongue
The roots of the English language can be traced back to the 5th century when Germanic warrior tribes,
including Saxons, Angles, and Jutes, arrived in England. Initially invited as mercenaries to assist in stabilizing
the remnants of the Roman Empire, they soon became permanent settlers. In their chronicles, dated 499,
the invaders described the native Celts or Britons as "worthless," and the allure of the land's richness led to
their establishment. The ensuing conflict, chronicled by the Anglo-Saxon historian Bede, depicted the
suffering of the Britons at the hands of the Germanic tribes, often referred to as Barbarians.

The dramatic colonization of England became a defining characteristic of English, portraying its spread
across the centuries. Peaceful immigrants also contributed to the linguistic landscape, bringing their farming
practices and gradually establishing English in foreign territories. The arrival of various tribes, such as the
Saxon, Angles, and Jutes, speaking different dialects, added complexity to the linguistic tapestry, marked by
mutual intelligibility and occasional conflicts.

Despite the Britons' resistance, the struggle lasted over a hundred years. The rearguard action led by the
Britons, personified in the mythological hero Arthur, succeeded in preserving the Celtic language in Wales,
Cornwall, and parts of Scotland. However, English's dominance took time to solidify, as various dialects vied
for prominence in a land where Celtic and Latin influences lingered.

Frisian, spoken in the Netherlands' Friesland province, exhibits linguistic similarities to English. The author
emphasizes the importance of auditory and visual cues, citing examples from Frisian weather forecaster Piet
Paulusman. This highlights the challenge of comprehending a language solely through written text and
underscores the role of spoken language in connecting with ancestral roots.

Sir William Jones, in 1786, traced Gothic and Celtic origins to Sanskrit, identifying the common Proto-Indo-
European ancestry of languages in Europe and Asia. The Germanic tribes' invasion played a pivotal role in
shaping English, with the linguistic similarities between Sanskrit and various European languages, including
English, serving as evidence of their shared roots.

The decline of Celtic and Roman influences allowed English to emerge as the dominant language. Despite
the initial linguistic diversity and tribal conflicts, English gradually asserted itself. The Roman legacy, though
present in some borrowed words, had a minimal impact on English during the Germanic invasion. The
invaders' disdain for the conquered Celts and the Celts' establishment of separate territories contributed to
the limited incorporation of Celtic words into English.

English's seeming plan to claim vast linguistic territory is explored metaphorically. The author suggests that,
liberated from its old roots and influenced by expansive bodies of water, English sought to establish itself by
suppressing other languages. This fanciful notion adds a creative dimension to the language's evolution.

The Roman influence experienced a revival with the reintroduction of Christianity. Latin, along with the Old
English alphabet, was introduced by monks, contributing to the preservation and advancement of the
English language. The alphabet, evolving from half-uncial majuscule script, played a crucial role in shaping
the language's written form.
The Lindisfarne Gospels, executed with intricate designs and colors, and Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the
English Nation marked early achievements in written English literature. Despite the initial marginalization of
English in the margins of Latin texts, it gradually gained prominence.

The written language brought precision, secured against loss, and stimulated imagination. The alphabet, a
powerful tool, created a new world for English. The early manuscripts, using the Roman alphabet, laid the
foundations for the Old English alphabet, emphasizing the pivotal role of writing in preserving language.

Beowulf, an epic poem from the Old English period, is hailed as one of the language's greatest
achievements. The poem showcases English's capacity to create new words, demonstrating its poetic
prowess. The language's ability to evolve and compete with Latin, Greek, Arabic, and Chinese languages of
that time is highlighted, positioning English as a linguistic force in the Christian world.

In summary, the journey of the English language is a complex tapestry woven through historical events,
tribal conflicts, linguistic influences, and the resilience of its speakers. From the arrival of Germanic tribes to
the poetic heights of Beowulf, English has demonstrated adaptability, resilience, and an enduring legacy
that continues to shape global communication. The roots of Old English persist in our everyday language,
connecting us to a linguistic heritage that has spanned centuries.

2) The Great Escape

In 793, ominous signs over Northumbria, including lightning and fiery dragon sightings, preceded Viking
raids on Lindisfarne. Over nearly three centuries, Norwegians and Danes ravaged Scotland, Cumbria, and
England. The Danes, particularly formidable, looted and occupied the Midlands and east.

Being heathen, the Vikings excelled in battle and clung to their language, posing a threat to English. Amid
this, Bede laid the linguistic foundation with "The Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation." The Danes
disrupted this continuity, pillaging treasures and targeting manuscripts.

By the mid-ninth century, the Danes dominated. In 865, a powerful Danish army landed in East Anglia, and
in 878, they seemingly triumphed at Chippenham. Alfred, leader of the English army, sought refuge, but
the Danes now held sway.

Alfred, "The Great," safeguarded the English language. In one of his translations, "Englisc" appeared, and
he used English to unify and educate. Despite setbacks, Alfred's resilience and strategic brilliance preserved
the language.

The aftermath of the Battle of Ethandune saw Alfred, amidst a fragmented army, rallying around 4,000
men. They confronted the Danish army, strategically positioned at Ethandune. The ensuing battle, led by
Alfred, resulted in victory, reclaiming his crown and kingdom. Guthrum, the Danish leader, was baptized,
symbolizing the Christianization of the Danes. A white horse carved on a Wiltshire hillside commemorated
this triumph, marking Alfred's crucial role in preserving the English language.

Considering an alternate outcome where the Danes completely occupied the land, the linguistic landscape
could have shifted dramatically. The Danes' hostile attitude toward written language and their meager
records might have hindered the development of a language with English's unique characteristics.
However, post-Ethandune, English not only endured but thrived under Alfred's influence. Recognizing the
power of language, Alfred used English as a unifying force, fostering loyalty and pride. His strategic division
of the country into Danelaw and West Saxon areas, coupled with trade interactions, influenced the
linguistic landscape. Despite attempts to introduce other languages, English showcased resilience,
incorporating only a limited number of external words. Alfred's legacy laid the foundation for linguistic and
cultural cohesion, shaping the trajectory of English history.

As a youngster in the 1940s and 1950s, his speech retained a connection to Old English, with words like
"blud" for blood and "grun'" for ground, closer in sound to the language of the great warrior tribes that
founded English. Yet, leaving our Cumbrian patch for more polished locations made us feel like outsiders.
The passage of history had relegated our once powerful language to a local dialect, detached from the
evolving standard. This transformed tongue, rooted in Old English, survived, but its accent and context
were marginalized.

The encroachment of standardized English led to a gradual disappearance of these hybrid county dialects.
Efforts by dialect societies and local publishers aimed to preserve this linguistic history, but the shift to
cities and changing ways of life threatened their survival. Nonetheless, until recently, these dialects echoed
the sounds of those who brought them from the shores of Western Europe over a millennium ago.

English not only survived the Danish invasion but thrived, with Alfred as a key figure in its preservation. He
utilized the language as a unifying force, instilling pride and loyalty. The division of the country into
Danelaw and West Saxon areas, coupled with trade interactions, impacted the language. Despite attempts
to introduce new words, English displayed remarkable obstinacy, maintaining its roots. The Vikings, while
leaving a linguistic impact, also enriched the language with new words, especially in the north. The great
grammar shift, accelerated along the Danelaw, marked a departure from Old English structure, leading
English toward modernity.

This linguistic Tower of Babel, underpinned by English, manifested in everyday conversations. As children,
we embraced these rich dialects, relishing the distinctiveness of our language, as exemplified in
expressions like "AKTHE epe 'Deke's you gadji ower yonder wid't dukal an't baarry mort gaan t'beck" (Look
at that man over there with the dog and the attractive girl going down to the river). It was a delightful
linguistic mosaic that encapsulated the essence of our local heritage.

When we uttered "blud" for blood and "grun'" for ground, our speech resonated more with Old English
than BBC English. However, the prevailing sentiment in the 1940s and 1950s was not one of pride but of
feeling like "rude mechanicals" whenever we ventured beyond our Cumbrian enclave. The historical
passage had relegated our once-potent language of power and rule to local speech, distancing it from the
mainstream tongue that gauged its sophistication by its distance from what had become a dialect.

While the transformed tongue retained the foundation of Old English—common words, language keys,
grammar, and forceful expression of feelings—the accent and context that nurtured it were lost to the new
powers. The linguistic landscape shifted, pushing our dialect to the margins, akin to what had happened to
Celtic. Yet, in my youth, the dialect still thrived. A soldier from South Cumbria, Harold Manning, seamlessly
communicated with Icelanders by integrating Norse words from his home dialect into the Old Norse-
dominated language of Iceland during the Allies' occupation.

This Nordic influence, deeply embedded in the Old North and always building on Old English, forms the
core of the North-South linguistic divide, persisting even today. This division, often noted, distinguishes the
north from the rest of Britain and hints at the potential for regional governance for Northumbria as
England gradually relinquishes its colonial hold. In the ninth century, such a prospect would have been a
luxury. English had a slender chance, and without visionary strategies, it might have slipped away.

Expressions like "Aah's gaan yem" (I'm going home) reflect the amalgamation of Anglo-Saxon and Old
Norse elements. "Gaan" means to go, known to both Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, while "yem" for home has
Scandinavian roots. Words like "laik" (play), "axe" (ask), "nowt" (nothing), and "owt" (anything) showcase
the linguistic fusion. Dialects, once spoken by the majority in a Britain of proud geographical minorities, are
disappearing as urbanization erodes traditional ways of life.

Efforts by dialect societies and local publishers aim to preserve these linguistic treasures, bridging the gap
with a period when languages old and new were woven together. Until recently, our speech resembled that
of those who brought these languages from western European shorelands over a millennium ago. English
not only survived the Danish invasion but eventually thrived, emerging from the ruins of written culture
that Alfred surveyed.

Alfred, understanding the unifying power of language, employed English to bind together a disheartened
and fragile populace. Motivated by a stern sense of Christian duty, he sought to revive scholarship and
learning that had suffered greatly during a century of Danish raids, particularly on vulnerable targets like
 monasteries. The glorious days of Bede and the intellectual tradition he embodied had faded, necessitating
a revival.

During this period, there was a widespread belief that the world would end either a thousand years after
Christ's birth or death, marked by apocalyptic signs. Archbishop Wulfstan, in aligning the Danes with the
Apocalypse or even the Antichrist, utilized this narrative to address the sins and shortcomings of his fellow
countrymen. Serving two territorial masters, he seemingly excused the invaders with apocalyptic trappings
while urging his own people to repent.

Practically, Archbishop Wulfstan served both the English king, Æthelred, and the Danish king's court,
showcasing a flexibility that transcended changes in rulership. The nationality of rulers might shift, but the
language and those who wielded it remained, firmly rooted in the power bestowed upon them by Alfred.
The Danes would eventually be defeated, and once again, an Englishman would be sworn in as sovereign.
In the middle of the eleventh century, as the new ruler took his oath in English, he inherited Alfred's legacy,
characterized by a rich repertoire of written vernacular works in history, philosophy, law, and poetry—
unequaled anywhere in mainland Europe.

However, despite these victories, English would face its greatest threat with the arrival of other invaders in
Harold's time, posing a significant challenge to the language's survival.

Аcquaintance with an arbitrary germanic language

Germanic languages are one of the most widespread branches of the Indo-European language family.
According to various estimates, Germanic languages are spoken as a first (native) language by
approximately 450 to 560 million people. English, in particular, has gained widespread use and is used
as a second official language in former British colonies.

Among West Germanic languages are English, German, Dutch, Luxembourgish, Yiddish, Afrikaans, and
Frisian; the Scandinavian group includes Danish, Swedish (East Scandinavian languages), as well as
Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese (West Scandinavian languages).

Approximately 100 million people speak the German language: 80 million in Germany, 7.5 million in
Austria, over 4 million in Switzerland, and 300 thousand in Luxembourg. Additionally, German is spoken
as a native (or second) language in the territory of the former USSR (in Kazakhstan, Ukraine - around 1.8
million), Romania, Hungary, South America, and other countries.

The German language has evolved from Germanic dialects: Hermionian, Ingvaeonic, and Istvaeonic. A
distinctive feature of the German language, setting it apart from other modern European languages, is
significant territorial variation. This results in a multitude of dialects that differ to such an extent that
residents of different regions in Germany, even if they use literary German as a common intermediary
language, may struggle to understand and communicate with each other. All German dialects can be
categorized into two main groups: Upper German and Low German. The division is based on the extent
of the second consonant shift and diphthongization of long vowels. Upper German (Southern German)
dialects, such as Bavarian-Austrian, exhibit the second consonant shift in its fullest form. In contrast,
Low German (Northern German) dialects either lack the second consonant shift entirely or demonstrate
it to a lesser extent. The line dividing Upper and Low German dialects follows the so-called Benrath line,
extending from Aachen to Düsseldorf, then to Magdeburg-on-Elbe, and finally to Frankfurt-on-Oder.
Low German (Plattdeutsch) dialects include Lower Franconian, Low Saxon (Westphalian, Eastphalian), as
well as Mecklenburgian and Brandenburgian (East Low German). Middle German (Mitteldeutsch)
dialects encompass Middle Franconian (Ripuarian, Moselle Franconian), Rhenish Franconian (Hessian,
Palatinate), and East Middle German (Thuringian, Upper Saxon). South German dialects (Oberdeutsch)
consist of Austrian, Swiss, and Southern German dialects (Bavarian-Austrian), such as East Franconian,
South Franconian, Alemannic, Bavarian-Austrian, and others.

The literary German language has its roots in East Middle German dialects. Significant contributions to
the establishment of literary language norms were made by the church reformer Martin Luther,
philologists J.G. Schottel, J.C. Adelung, and poets G. von der Vogelweide, V. von der Hagen, as well as
literary figures Lessing, Schiller, and Goethe. German is one of the most authoritative international
languages used in science, radio broadcasting, and politics. It is the official language of Germany, and
Austria, one of the four official languages of Switzerland, and one of the three official languages of
Luxembourg.

In addition to the literary German language that functions within Germany, there are distinct Austrian
and Swiss variants of the German language (Schwytzerdütsch, Schwyzertütsch). Both of these variants
differ from the literary language of Germany in certain phonetic and lexical features. In Switzerland, four
languages are in use: German, French, Italian, and Romansh. All these languages have official status,
with three of them (excluding Romansh) being official languages (a language without "official" status
does not necessarily require official documentation translation). German is spoken by about 70% of the
population in Switzerland. Multilingualism at the state level operates in the form of bilingualism at the
everyday level (usually, each Swiss citizen knows at least two of the four official languages).

In addition to Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, the German language has a presence in some Eastern
European and American countries. German colonists established several "language islands" outside the
Eastern March (Austria) as early as the 12th-13th centuries. These "islands" include German
settlements in Transylvania (Romania), Ukrainian Transcarpathia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, and Tyrol (Italy).
In the 17th century, German settlements appeared in North America, with Pennsylvania being the most
significant territory. The language of Germans living in this region is known as Pennsylvania German (in
some sources, it is identified as a separate Germanic language spoken by about 750,000 people). In the
18th century, German colonists appeared in Russia at the invitation of Catherine II. Until 1941, there
existed an autonomous republic of Germans in the Volga region in the USSR, which was liquidated by
Stalin's order in the autumn of 1941. A portion of the German colonists (around 400,000) lived in the
southern part of Ukraine before the war.

The history of the German language is divided into three periods: Old Upper German, Middle Upper
German, and New Upper German. Although the temporal boundaries between these three periods are
the subject of scholarly discussions and do not always align in various studies (see Schmidt 1993: 27-
31), generally, Old Upper German denotes the period from the 8th to the 11th century (the beginning
of the written tradition); Middle Upper German spans from the 12th to the 15th century, and New
Upper German from the 16th century. Within the New Upper German period, Early New Upper German
is distinguished.

The phonological system of the German language includes 19 vowels (16 monophthongs and 3
diphthongs) and 21 consonants. The primary distinctive features of vowel phonemes are
length/shortness, openness/closeness, and labialization/non-labialization (for example, e vs. ö).

In the noun system, gender (masculine, feminine, neuter), number (singular and plural), and case (4
cases) are clearly distinguished. The category of definiteness/indefiniteness is expressed through a well-
developed system of articles. In the grammar of the German language, three types of noun inflection
(strong, weak, feminine), three types of adjective inflection (strong, weak, "mixed"), and four types of
plural formation are commonly distinguished.

The verb system is characterized primarily by the contrast between so-called strong and weak verbs, as
well as categories of person, number, tense, mood, and state. One of the most important grammatical
means is internal flexion (ablaut and umlaut), which expresses grammatical meanings such as number
in nouns and verbs, tense, person, mood, and state. Thus, the German language largely preserves
features of synthetic structure. A distinctive feature of German syntax is the presence of a so-called
frame construction that defines and fixes the precise placement of sentence elements in both direct
and inverse word order. Notably, the use of negation nicht (this particle is placed after the inflected part
of the verb, often at the very end of the sentence) is somewhat peculiar.
 Well-developed forms of word composition and word formation characterize the lexical system of the
German language. The French language had a significant influence on the lexical composition of the
German language. Borrowings from Latin, Italian, English, and Slavic languages are also present.

The Goths and the Gothic Language; Wulfila';s Bible

The Goths were a nomadic Germanic people who fought against Roman rule in the late 300s and early
400s A.D.. These people played a crucial role in the fall of the Roman Empire, which had controlled
much of Europe for centuries. The ascendancy of the Goths is said to have marked the beginning of the
medieval period in Europe.

By the 4th century AD, the Goths had split into two main groups: the Visigoths, or West Goths, and the
Ostrogoths, or East Goths. This division, evolved over time into distinct kingdoms with their own unique
trajectories and impacts on history.

The Ostrogoths lived in the area near the Black Sea, until their own territories were invaded by Huns
from farther east. It was only after the death of Attila the Hun in 453 AD that they gained independence
under their king, Theodoric the Great. Theodoric led his people to Italy, defeating the Rugii and
establishing the Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy. The kingdom lasted until the late 6th century when it was
conquered by the Byzantine emperor and the Ostrogoths largely faded from history.

The Visigoths were the first group to have substantial interaction with the Roman Empire. In 410 AD,
under the leadership of their king Alaric, the Visigoths sacked Rome, an event that sent shockwaves
throughout the Roman world. Following Alaric's death, the Visigoths aided the Romans in battling other
Germanic tribes, such as the Vandals. As a reward, they were granted lands in modern-day France. From
there, they formed the Visigothic Kingdom that would last until the Arab invasion in 711 AD.

Gothic, the language of the Goths, is the oldest preserved language of the Germanic language family. It
is the only preserved language of the so-called East Germanic branch of this family.

By the mid-sixth century the Gothic language was in decline because of the defeat suffered by the
Goths in their conflict with the Franks, but also because of the assimilation of the Goths by the more
numerous Roman populations. On the other hand, the disappearance of the Gothic language was also
caused by the Goths’ withdrawal from Italy and their geographical isolation from other Germanic
populations.

Signs of the existence of the Gothic language did however appear even later, in the 8th and 9th
centuries, in Spain and Portugal. According to the Frankish author, the use of this language spread as far
as the Crimean Peninsula under the name of Crimean Gothic.

The preserved texts in the Gothic language are remnants of a translation of the Bible, made by Wulfila,
the bishop of the Goths, in the 4th century. Wulfila was a Visigoth but, nevertheless, his Bible
translation was also used by the Ostrogoths and what remains is of Ostrogothic origin. It is likely that
other East Germanic tribes also used this translation. Several manuscripts from the 5th and 6th
centuries duplicate parts of his work, even though his original translation has not survived. The Codex
Argenteus, written in gold and silver on purple-red parchment, is the most significant of these. The only
documentation of the now-extinct Gothic language can be found in these written works in Gothic,
which also serve to preserve the Gothic alphabet.

The Gothic alphabet

The Gothic alphabet is a writing system for writing the Gothic language that was created in the fourth
century by Wulfia. It should not be confused with "Gothic script," which is a style of writing the Latin
alphabet. In fact, the Gothic Christian alphabet called the ‘apostle of the Goths’, for his translation of
the Bible into the Gothic language.
 Regarding the alphabet's genesis, there aren't many questions. With certain borrowings from the Latin
and Runic alphabets as well, the Gothic alphabet is thought to have originated from the Greek alphabet
(Greek uncial alphabet).

The majority of the letters are directly derived from the Greek alphabet, while a few are newly created
to properly represent Gothic phonology. There were 27 letters in the Gothic alphabet: 19 or 20 were
taken from Greek uncial writing, 5 or 6 were changed from Latin, and 2 were either created
independently or borrowed from runic script. Though there were significant variations in phonetic
values and letter order, the writing system usually matched Latin and Greek scripts.

The Gothic alphabet and its phonetic standard are given below:

The names of the letters are clearly related to the names of the Runic alphabet. As in the Greek
alphabet, letters were also used as numerals.

The Bible: Matthew

Chapter 8

Matthew 8:1

Dalaþ þan atgaggandin imma af fairgunja, laistidedun afar imma iumjons managos.

He came down from the mountain, a big multitude followed him.

Matthew 8:2

jah sai, manna þrutsfill habands durinnands inwait ina qiþands: frauja, jabai wileis, magt mik gahrainjan.

And, behold, a man who had leprosy ran there, welcomed him saying: Lord, if you want, you can clean
me

Matthew 8:3

jah ufrakjands handu attaitok imma qiþands: wiljau, wairþ hrains! jah suns hrain warþ þata þrutsfill is.

And raising up the hand, touched him and said: I want you to become clean! And immediately his
leprosy was cleansed.

Matthew 8:4

jah qaþ imma Iesus: saihv ei mann ni qiþais, ak gagg, þuk silban ataugei gudjin jah atbair giba þoei
anabauþ Moses du weitwodiþai im.

And Jesus said to him: see, don’t tell no man, but go, and show yourself to the priest, and bring the gift
that Moses commanded, for a testimony.

Matthew 8:5
afaruh þan þata innatgaggandin imma in Kafarnaum, duatiddja imma hundafaþs bidjands ina

And coming into the Capernaum, a centurion joined him, and begged him,

Matthew 8:6

jah qiþands: frauja, þiumagus meins ligiþ in garda usliþa, harduba balwiþs.

And saying: Lord, my servant lays in the house sick of the gout, being tortured strongly.

Matthew 8:7

jah qaþ du imma Iesus: ik qimands gahailja ina.

And Jesus said to him: I will come and heal him.

Matthew 8:8

jah andhafjands sa hundafaþs qaþ: frauja, ni im wairþs ei uf hrot mein inngaggais, ak þatainei qiþ
waurda jah gahailniþ sa þiumagus meins.

And answering, centurion said this: Lord, I am not worthy so that you go under my roof, but say only a
word, and it will heal my servant.

Matthew 8:9

jah auk ik manna im habands uf waldufnja meinamma gadrauhtins jah qiþa du þamma: gagg, jah
gaggiþ; jah anþaramma: qim, jah qimiþ; jah du skalka meinamma: tawei þata, jah taujiþ.

And because I am a man, having soldiers under my power, and I say to one of them: go, and he goes;
and to another: come, and he comes; and to my servant: do this, and he does.

Matthew 8:10

gahausjands þan Iesus sildaleikida jah qaþ du þaim afarlaistjandam: amen, qiþa izwis, ni in Israela
swalauda galaubein bigat.

Hearing that, Jesus marvelled and said to the ones who followed: Amen, I’m saying to you, I have not
found faith so big, not in Israel.

Matthew 8:11

aþþan qiþa izwis þatei managai fram urrunsa jah saggqa qimand, jah anakumbjand miþ Abrahama jah
Isaka jah Iakoba in þiudangardjai himine:

But I say to you, that a lot from the East and West will come, and will sit down with Abraham, and Isaac,
and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 8:12

iþ þai sunjus þiudangardjos uswairpanda in riqis þata hindumisto; jainar wairþiþ grets jah krusts
tunþiwe.

But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out in the rearmost darkness; there are the crying and the
crunching of teeth.

Matthew 8:13

jah qaþ Iesus þamma hundafada: gagg, jah swaswe galaubides wairþai þus. jah gahailnoda sa þiumagus
is in jainai hveilai.

And Jesus says to the centurion: go, and like you has believed, so will it be to you. And his servant was
healed in that one time.
Matthew 8:14

jah qimands Iesus in garda Paitraus, jah gasahv swaihron is ligandein in heitom.

And Jesus came to Peter’s house, and saw his wife’s mother, laying sick of a fever.

Matthew 8:15

jah attaitok handau izos jah aflailot ija so heito; jah urrais jah andbahtida imma.

And he touched the hand, and this fever left her; and she arose, and served him.

Matthew 8:16

at andanahtja þan waurþanamma, atberun du imma daimonarjans managans, jah uswarp þans ahmans
waurda jah allans þans ubil habandans gahailida,

At the time of evening coming, they brought to him a lot of possessed people, and he casted out these
spirits with his word, and healed all sick people,

Matthew 8:17

ei usfullnodedi þata gamelido þairh Esaïan praufetu qiþandan: sa unmahtins unsaros usnam jah
sauhtins usbar.

So that it was fulfilled which was written by Esaias the prophet, saying: casted out our illnesses and
bared our sicknesses.

Matthew 8:18

gasaihvands þan Iesus managans hiuhmans bi sik, haihait galeiþan siponjans hindar marein.

But when Jesus noticed crowd about him, he ordered to go to the other side.

Matthew 8:19

jah duatgaggands ains bokareis qaþ du imma: laisari, laistja þuk, þishvaduh þadei gaggis.

And a certain scribe came, and said to him: Master, I will follow you whenever you go.

Matthew 8:20

jah qaþ du imma Iesus: fauhons grobos aigun, jah fuglos himinis sitlans, iþ sunus mans ni habaiþ hvar
haubiþ sein anahnaiwjai.

And Jesus said to him: The foxes have holes, and the fowls of the air have tents, and the son of man
hath not where to lay his head.

Matthew 8:21

anþaruh þan siponje is qaþ du imma: frauja, uslaubei mis frumist galeiþan jah gafilhan attan meinana.

And one of his disciples said to him: Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

Matthew 8:22

iþ Iesus qaþ du imma: laistei afar mis jah let þans dauþans <ga>filhan seinans dauþans.

But Jesus said to him: Follow me, and leave the dead and bury your own dead.

Matthew 8:23

jah innatgaggandin imma in skip, afariddjedun imma siponjos is.

And when he entered into a ship, his disciples followed him into the ship.
Matthew 8:24

jah sai, wegs mikils warþ in marein, swaswe þata skip gahuliþ wairþan fram wegim; iþ is saislep.

And behold, there was a great earthquake in the sea, so that the ship was covered by the waves: and he
was asleep.

Matthew 8:25

jah duatgaggandans siponjos is urraisidedun ina qiþandans: frauja, nasei unsis, fraqistnam.

And they came to him, saying: Lord, save us, let us go.

Matthew 8:26

jah qaþ du im Iesus: hva faurhteiþ, leitil galaubjandans! þanuh urreisands gasok windam jah marein, jah
warþ wis mikil.

And Jesus says to them: What cowards you are, you of little faith? Then he arose and rebuked the winds
and the sea, and there was a great calm.

Matthew 8:27

iþ þai mans sildaleikidedun qiþandans: hvileiks ist sa, ei jah windos jah marei ufhausjand imma?

And the people marveled, saying: This is a vile man, for even the winds and the sea obey him!

Matthew 8:28

jah qimandin imma hindar marein in gauja Gairgaisaine, gamotidedun imma twai daimonarjos us
hlaiwasnom rinnandans, sleidjai filu, swaswe ni mahta manna usleiþan þairh þana wig jainana.

And when he was come beyond into the land of the gazelles, there went out to him two that were
possessed with demons, going out of the monuments, being very glad, so that there was no past by
that way.

Matthew 8:29

jah sai, hropidedun qiþandans: hva uns jah þus, Iesu, sunau gudis? qamt her faur mel balwjan unsis?

And behold, they cried out, saying, what have we to do with you Jesus, the Son of God? You came here
long ago to torture us?

Matthew 8:30

Wasuh þan fairra im hairda sweine managaize haldana.

And the longest of these was a herd of many swine that were fed.

Matthew 8:31

iþ þo skohsla bedun ina qiþandans: jabai uswairpis uns, uslaubei uns galeiþan in þo hairda sweine.

And the demons begged him, saying: If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.

Matthew 8:32

jah qaþ du im: gaggiþ! iþ eis usgaggandans galiþun in hairda sweine; jah sai, run gawaurhtedun sis alla
so hairda and driuson in marein jah gadauþnodedun in watnam.

And he said to them, "Go!" So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd
rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters

Matthew 8:33
 iþ þai haldandans gaþlauhun jah galeiþandans gataihun in baurg all bi þans daimonarjans.

The herdsmen fled, and going into the city, they told everything, especially what had happened to the
demon-possessed men

Matthew 8:34

jah sai, alla so baurgs usiddja wiþra Iesu, jah gasaihvandans ina bedun ei usliþi hindar markos ize.

And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their
region.

Chapter 9
Matthew 9:1

Jah atsteigands in skip ufarlaiþ jah qam in seinai baurg.

And descending into a ship, he crossed over, and came into his city.

Matthew 9:2

þanuh atberun du imma usliþan ana ligra ligandan. jah gasaihvands Iesus galaubein ize qaþ du þamma
usliþin: þrafstei þuk, barnilo! afletanda þus frawaurhteis þeinos.

Now, they brought to Him a gouty person laying on a bed. And Jesus, seeing their belief, said to the
gouty person: I admonish you, little child! Your sins are released.

Matthew 9:3

þaruh sumai þize bokarje qeþun in sis silbam: sa wajamereiþ.

As someone of the scribes said among themselves: This is a blaspheme.

Matthew 9:4

jah witands Iesus þos mitonins ize qaþ: duhve jus mitoþ ubila in hairtam izwaraim?

And Jesus knowing their thoughts, He said: Why do you think about evil in your hearts?

Matthew 9:5

hvaþar ist raihtis azetizo qiþan: afletanda þus frawaurhteis, þau qiþan: urreis jah gagg?

Which of the two is, you see, easier to say: “Your sins are released,” or to say: “Rise up and go”?

Matthew 9:6

Aþþan ei witeiþ þatei waldufni habaiþ sa sunus mans ana airþai afleitan frawaurhtins, þanuh qaþ du
þamma usliþin: urreisands nim þana ligr þeinana jah gagg in gard þeinana.

But so that you know that the Son of man possesses the power on earth to release your sins, then He
said to the gouty person: rise up, take up your bed and go to your house.

Matthew 9:7

jah urreisands galaiþ in gard seinana.

And he rose up and went to his house.

Matthew 9:8
gasaihvandeins þan manageins ohtedun sildaleikjandans jah mikilidedun guþ þana gibandan waldufni
swaleikata mannam.

When the crowd saw this, they admired and praised God, who gave such power to men.

Matthew 9:9

jah þairhleiþands Iesus jainþro gasahv mannan sitandan at motai, Maþþaiu haitanana, jah qaþ du imma:
laistei afar mis. jah usstandands iddja afar imma.

And when Jesus passed from there, He saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the customs, and He said
to him: Follow me. And he rose up and went after Him.

Matthew 9:10

jah warþ, biþe is anakumbida in garda, jah sai, managai motarjos jah frawaurhtai qimandans
miþanakumbidedun Iesua jah siponjam is.

And it turned into, after He sat at the table in the house, and behold, a lot of customs officers and sinful
people came and sat down with Jesus and His students.

Matthew 9:11

jah gaumjandans Fareisaieis qeþun du þaim siponjam is: duhve miþ motarjam jah frawaurhtaim matjiþ
sa laisareis izwar?

And it turned out, Pharisees said to His students: Why does your Master eat with customs officers and
sinful people?

Matthew 9:12

iþ Iesus gahausjands qaþ du im: ni þaurbun hailai lekeis, ak þai unhaili habandans.

But Jesus heard that, He said to them: not a healthy person need a doctor, but that who is ill/weak.

Matthew 9:13

Aþþan gaggaiþ, ganimiþ hva sijai: armahairtiþa wiljau jah ni hunsl; niþ~þan qam laþon uswaurhtans, ak
frawaurhtans.

But go, learn to be: want alms and not sacrifice; I don‘t come to invite the righteous, but sinners to
repentance.

Matthew 9:14

þanuh atiddjedun siponjos Iohannes qiþandans: duhve weis jah Fareisaieis fastam filu, iþ þai siponjos
þeinai ni fastand?

Then came out students of John, saying: why do we and the Phareisees fast regularly, but the students
of Yours don’t fast?

Matthew 9:15

jah qaþ du im Iesus: ibai magun sunjus bruþfadis qainon und þata hveilos þei miþ im ist bruþfaþs? iþ
atgagggand dagos, þan afnimada af im sa bruþfaþs, jah þan fastand.

And Jesus saud to them: Can the sons of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with
them? But the days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

Matthew 9:16

aþþan ni hvashun lagjiþ du plata fanan þarihis ana snagan fairnjana, unte afnimiþ fullon af þamma
snagin, jah wairsiza gataura wairþiþ.
But do not lay a piece of the raw plate on the old garment, because the fullness is taken away from the
garmet, and become a worse tear.

Matthew 9:17

Niþ~þan giutand wein niujata in balgins fairnjans, aiþþau distaurnand balgeis; biþeh þan jah wein
usgutniþ jah balgeis fraqistnand; ak giutand wein juggata in balgins niujans, jah bajoþum gabairgada.

And men do not pour new wine into old hose, otherwise the hoses will tear apart, and afterwards the
wine will spill, and the hoses will perish; and pour new wine into new hoses, and both will be
preserved.

Matthew 9:18

miþþanei is rodida þata du im, þaruh reiks ains qimands inwait ina, qiþands þatei dauhtar meina nu
gaswalt; akei qimands atlagei handu þeina ana ija, jah libaiþ.

when he was saying this to them, as there came up a certain ruler, bowed to him and said: "My
daughter is dead now; but come, lay Your hand on her, and she will live."

Matthew 9:19

jah urreisands Iesus iddja afar imma jah siponjos is.

And Jesus rose up, and followed him, and so did His students.

Matthew 9:20

jah sai, qino bloþarinnandei ·ib· wintruns duatgaggandei aftaro attaitok skauta wastjos is;

And, behold, a woman who had been suffering from bleeding for twelve years came up from behind
and touched the hem of His garment;

Matthew 9:21

qaþuh auk in sis: jabai þatainei atteka wastjai is, ganisa.

because she said within herself: " If I only touch His garment, I will recover."

Matthew 9:22

iþ Iesus gawandjands sik jah gasaihvands þo qaþ: þrafstei þuk dauhtar! galaubeins þeina ganasida þuk.
jah ganas so qino fram þizai hveilai jainai.

But Jesus turned and saw her and said, "Daughter, I admonish you! Your faith saved you. And the
woman recovered from that time."

Matthew 9:23

jah qimands Iesus in garda þis reikis jah gasaihvands swigljans [jah haurnjans haurnjandans] jah
managein auhjondein, qaþ du im:

and when Jesus arrived at the house of the ruler, he greeted the flute players [and the horn players
blowing the horn] and the crowd making noise, said to them:

Matthew 9:24

afleiþiþ, unte ni gaswalt so mawi, ak slepiþ. jah bihlohun ina.

"Go away, because the girl is not dead, but she is sleeping." And they laughed at Him.

Matthew 9:25
þanuh þan usdribana warþ so managei, atgaggands inn habaida handu izos, jah urrais so mawi.

When the people were cast out, He went in, held her by the hand, and the girl stood up!

Matthew 9:26

jah usiddja meriþa so and alla jaina airþa.

And the news about it spread throughout the land.

Matthew 9:27

jah hvarbondin Iesua jainþro, laistidedun afar imma twai blindans, hropjandans jah qiþandans: armai
uggkis, sunau Daweidis!

And when Jesus returned from there, two blind men followed him, shouting and saying: "Have mercy
on us, Son of David!"

Matthew 9:28

Qimandin þan in garda duatiddjedun imma þai blindans jah qaþ im Iesus: ga~u~laubjats þatei magjau
þata taujan? Qeþun du imma: jai, frauja!

And when he came home, blind men came to him and Jesus says to them: "Do you believe that I can do
this?" They said to Him: "Yes, Lord."

Matthew 9:29

þanuh attaitok augam ize qiþands: bi galaubeinai iggqarai wairþai iggqis.

Then He touched their eyes and said: "According to your faith may it be!"

Matthew 9:30

jah usluknodedun im augona, jah inagida ins Iesus qiþands: saihvats ei manna ni witi.

and their eyes were opened, and Jesus ordered them, saying, "See that no man knows of this!"

Matthew 9:31

iþ eis usgaggandans usmeridedun ina in allai airþai jainai.

But they went away, and spread the fame about Him throughout that country.

Matthew 9:32

þanuh biþe utusiddjedun eis, sai, atberun imma mannan baudana daimonari.

When they went out, behold, they brought to Him a mute man who was possessed with a devil.

Matthew 9:33

jah biþe usdribans warþ unhulþo, rodida sa dumba, jah sildaleikidedun manageins qiþandans: ni aiw
swa uskunþ was in Israela.

And when the devil was cast out, the mute spoke, and the people were amazed and said: "This has
never happened in Israel!"

Matthew 9:34

iþ Fareisaieis qeþun: in fauramaþlja unhulþono usdreibiþ unhulþons.

But the Pharisees said, He casts out demons by the power of the prince of demons.

Matthew 9:35
 jah bitauh Iesus baurgs allos jah haimos laisjands in gaqumþim ize, jah merjands aiwaggeljon
þiudangardjos jah hailjands allos sauhtins jah alla unhailja.

And Jesus went round all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Gospel
of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every illness.

Matthew 9:36

gasaihvands þan þos manageins infeinoda in ize, unte wesun afdauidai jah frawaurpanai swe lamba ni
habandona hairdeis.

But when he saw the people, he had compassion on them, because they were plagued and scattered,
like those sheep without a shepherd.

Matthew 9:37

þanuh qaþ du siponjam seinaim: asans raihtis managa, iþ waurstwjans fawai.

then he said to his students: "The harvest is indeed great, but the workers are few;

Matthew 9:38

bidjiþ nu fraujan asanais ei ussandjai waurstwjans in asan seina.

therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest, that

Great Vowel Shift

The Great Vowel Shift was a series of changes in the pronunciation of the English language that took
place primarily between 1400 and 1700, beginning in southern England and today having influenced
effectively all dialects of English. Through this vowel shift, the pronunciation of all Middle English long
vowels was changed. Some consonant sounds also changed, particularly those that became silent; the
term Great Vowel Shift is sometimes used to include these consonantal changes.

The standardization of English spelling began in the 15th and 16th centuries; the Great Vowel Shift is
the major reason English spellings now often deviate considerably from how they represent
pronunciations. The causes of the Great Vowel Shift are unknown: 68 and have been a source of intense
scholarly debate; as yet, there is no firm consensus. The greatest changes occurred during the 15th and
16th centuries, and their origins are at least partly phonetic.

 Population migration: This is the most accepted theory; some scholars have argued that the
rapid migration of peoples to the southeast of England from the east and central Midlands of
England following the Black Death produced a clash of dialects that made Londoners distinguish
their speech from the immigrants who came from other English cities by changing their vowel
system.
 French loan words: Others argue that the influx of French loanwords was a major factor in the
shift.
 Middle-class hypercorrection: Yet others assert that because of the increasing prestige of
French pronunciations among the middle classes (perhaps related to the English aristocracy's
switching from French to English around this time), a process of hypercorrection may have
started a shift that unintentionally resulted in vowel pronunciations that are inaccurate
imitations of French pronunciations.
 War with France: An opposing theory states that the wars with France and general anti-French
sentiments caused hypercorrection deliberately to make English sound less like French. The
Great Vowel Shift was first studied by Otto Jespersen (1860–1943), a Danish linguist and
Anglicist, who coined the term.
 The words had very different pronunciations in Middle English from those in Modern English.

 Long i in bite was pronounced as /iː/ so Middle English bite sounded similar to Modern English
beet /biːt/.
 Long e in meet was pronounced as /eː/ so Middle English meet sounded similar to Modern
English mate /meɪt/
 Long a in mate was pronounced as /aː/, with a vowel similar to the broad a of spa.
 Long o in boot was pronounced as /oː/, similar to modern oa in General American boat /oʊ/.

In addition, Middle English had:

 Long /ɛː/ in beat, like modern short e in bed but pronounced longer.
 Long /ɔː/ in boat.
 Long /uː/ in mouse, similar to Modern English moose.

Grimm's law
Grimm's law (also known as the First Germanic Sound Shift) is a set of sound laws describing the Proto-
Indo-European (PIE) stop consonants as they developed in Proto-Germanic in the 1st millennium BC.
First discovered by Rasmus Rask but systematically put forward by Jacob Grimm, it establishes a set of
regular correspondences between early Germanic stops and fricatives and stop consonants of certain
other centum Indo-European languages.

Grimm's law was the first discovered systematic sound change, creating historical phonology as a
historical linguistics discipline. Friedrich von Schlegel first noted the correspondence between Latin p
and Germanic f in 1806. In 1818, Rasmus Rask extended the correspondences to other Indo-European
languages like Sanskrit and Greek and to the full range of consonants involved. In 1822, Jacob Grimm
put forth the rule in his book Deutsche Grammatik and extended it to include standard German. He
noticed many words had consonants different from what his law predicted. These exceptions defied
linguists for several decades, until they eventually received explanation from Danish linguist Karl Verner
in the form of Verner's law.

Grimm's law consists of three parts, forming consecutive phases in the sense of a chain shift. The
phases are usually constructed as follows:

 Proto-Indo-European voiceless stops change into voiceless fricatives.

 Proto-Indo-European voiced stops become voiceless stops.
 Proto-Indo-European voiced aspirated stops become voiced stops or fricatives (as allophones).

This chain shift (in the order 3, 2,1) can be abstractly represented as:

 bʰ → b → p → f
 dʰ → d → t → θ
 gʰ → g → k → x
 gʷʰ → gʷ → kʷ → xʷ

Here each sound moves one position to the right to take on its new sound value. Within Proto-
Germanic, the sounds denoted by ⟨b⟩, ⟨d⟩, ⟨g⟩ and ⟨gw⟩ were stops in some environments and fricatives
in others, so bʰ → b indicates bʰ → b/β, and likewise for the others. The voiceless fricatives are
customarily spelled ⟨f⟩, ⟨þ⟩, ⟨h⟩ and ⟨hw⟩ in the context of Germanic.

The exact details of the shift are unknown, and it may have progressed in a variety of ways before
arriving at the final situation. The three stages listed above show the progression of a "pull chain", in
which each change leaves a "gap" in the phonological system that "pulls" other phonemes into it to fill
the gap. Alternatively, the shift may have occurred as a “push chain”, where the sounds changed in
reverse order, with each change "pushing" the next forward to avoid merging the phonemes.
 The steps could also have occurred somewhat differently. Another possible sequence of events could
have been:

 Voiceless stops are allophonically aspirated under most conditions.

 Voiced stops become unaspirated voiceless stops.
 All aspirated stops become fricatives.

This sequence would lead to the same result. This variety of Grimm's law is often suggested in the
context of Proto-Indo-European glottalic theory, which is followed by a minority of linguists. This
theoretical framework assumes that PIE "voiced stops" were actually voiceless to begin with, so that the
second phase did not actually exist as such, or was not actually devoicing but was losing some other
articulatory feature like glottalization or ejectiveness. This alternative sequence also accounts for
Verner's law phonetics (see below), which are easier to explain within the glottalic theory framework
when Grimm's law is formulated in this manner. Additionally, aspirated stops are known to have
changed to fricatives when transiting between Proto-Indo-European and Proto-Italic, so representing a
plausible potential change from Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Germanic.

Verner’s law
Verner’s law, linguistic explanation of the apparent exceptions to Grimm’s law (q.v.), which first
demonstrated the significant role that accent (stress) played in linguistic change in the Germanic
languages. It provided further evidence for the important claim of 19th-century linguists that phonetic
laws have no exceptions and proved to be a decisive influence in establishing the direction taken by the
Neogrammarian (q.v.) school of historical linguistics. This law, one of the greatest discoveries in
historical linguistics, was first presented in an article, “Eine Ausnahme der ersten Lautverschiebung”
(“An Exception to the First Sound Shift”), in the Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung in 1876,
by the Danish linguist Karl Verner.

Grimm’s law stated that the Indo-European p, t, and k sounds changed into f, th or d, and h in the
Germanic languages. Verner noticed that Grimm’s law was valid whenever the accent fell on the root
syllable of the Sanskrit cognate, but, when the accent fell on another syllable, the Germanic equivalents
became b, d, and g. This was also the case with s and r. Technically, this rule states that in the Germanic
branch of Indo-European, all non-initial voiceless fricatives (spirants) became voiced between voiced
sounds if they followed an unaccented syllable in Indo-European or Sanskrit. For example, Sanskrit
bhrātar, with the accent on the root syllable, corresponds to Gothic brōþar, but Sanskrit pitā, accented
on the final syllable, corresponds to Gothic fadar.