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English everywhere
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reading The evolution of English

A Read the following text carefully:

Where did English come from?

English belongs to the Indo-European family of languages. It is, therefore, related to most of the
languages spoken in an area stretching 1. . The language most closely resembling Modern English is
Frisian, which is spoken in the Dutch province of Friesland. Icelandic, on the other hand, has changed
little in more than 1,000 years. It is the living language most closely resembling Old English.

5 Forging the English language into its present form was dependent on the bringing together of several early
linguistic traditions over many centuries, dating from pre-Roman times in the British Isles. To this process
was added a measure of standardisation at a much later date.

The language of the ancient Britons was Celtic, and it survives in Modern Welsh, which is still the language
of Wales. When the Romans conquered England, they introduced a number of Latin words. 2. ,
10 the conquest lost impact, and Latin had to be reintroduced when the islands were converted to Christianity
in the 6th and 7th centuries.

The periods of development of the English language are called Old English (or Anglo-Saxon), Middle
English, and Modern English. Old English was spoken from about AD 449 to 1100. The first invasion by the
Jutes, Angles, and Saxons from the area of northern Germany and southern Denmark occurred in 449. Old
15 English was very inflected: it had a complicated system of grammatical changes to indicate case, number,
person, and tense. Because of the settlement patterns of the invading tribes, four Old English dialects
developed: Northumbrian, Mercian, West Saxon, and Kentish.

3. brought in Norman French and eventually placed the four Old English dialects on an even
footing. The centre of culture gradually shifted to London, and usages there slowly came to dominate.
20 Latin persisted for centuries as the language of the church and of learning.

Middle English lasted from about 1100 to 1450 and was less highly inflected than its predecessor. During
this period the Statute of Pleadings (1362) made English instead of French the official language of
Parliament and the courts.

After the dawn of the 16th century, the movement toward the development of Modern English prose was
25 swift. It was aided by the printing of certain literary works 4. . In 1525, William Tyndale
published his translation of the New Testament. The next 90 years were the golden age of English literature,
culminating in the plays of Shakespeare and in the publication of the King James Bible in 1611.
www.kids.britannica.com (adapted and abridged)

think up, 12.º ano – English everywhere

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B Four parts of sentences have been removed from the text. Choose the one (a-e) which fits
each gap (1-4). There is an extra one which you do not need to use.

a. The Norman Conquest of 1066

b. that helped standardise the language
c. After the Romans withdrew
d. from Iceland across Europe to India
e. In the beginning

C Say if the sentences are true (T) or false (F).

1. Frisian resembles Icelandic, which is very different from Old English.

2. Icelandic hasn’t changed much in over 1000 years.
3. English was standardised in the British Isles in pre-Roman times.
4. Celtic is still spoken in Wales.
5. Each of the invading tribes spoke its own dialect.
6. The development of Modern English started in the early 16th century.

D Say what / who the words refer to.

1. it (line 1)
2. this (line 6)
3. they (line 9)
4. its (line 21)
5. it (line 25)

E Find synonyms in the text for the following words:

1. shaping (paragraph 2)
2. an amount of something (paragraph 2)
3. under equal conditions and opportunities (paragraph 5)
4. moved (paragraph 5)
5. quick, fast (paragraph 7)
6. helped (paragraph 7)

F Answer the following questions about the text.

1. Which language was associated with erudite matters?

2. Which language was spoken in Parliament and the courts after 1362?
3. What was the golden age of English literature and how long did it last?
4. Which famous English playwright and poet is mentioned in the text?
5. Which book is mentioned in the text?

think up, 12.º ano – English everywhere