The History of English: An Introduction

A History of English: Language Contact and Changeprovides a chronological analysis of the linguistic, social and cultural development of the English language from before its establishment in Britain around the year 350 to the present. Each chapter represents a new stage in the development of the language from Old English through Middle English to Modern Global English, all illustrated with a rich and diverse selection of primary texts showing changes in language resulting from contact, conquest and domination, and the expansion of English around the world. A History of English goes beyond the usual focus on English in the UK and the US to include the wider global course of the language during and following the Early Modern English period. This perspective therefore also includes a historical review of English in its pidgin and creole varieties and as a Native and/or Second Language in the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, and Australasia. Designed to be user-friendly,A History of Englishcontains: Chapter introductions and conclusions to assist study Over 80 textual examples demonstrating linguistic change accompanied by translations and/or glosses where appropriate Study questions on the social, cultural and linguistic background of the chapter topics Further reading from key texts to extend or deepen the focus Just under a hundred supporting figures, tables and maps to support and illuminate the text A 16-page colour plate section of exemplary texts, relevant artefacts, or examples of language usage including Germanic runes, the opening page of Beowulf, the New England Primer, and the Treaty of Waitangi An extensive glossary of linguistically relevant terms An index for easy access to the topics covered in the book A companion website supports the textbook and features: Links to supporting websites which enhance and explain material introduced in the book An extended view of some of the aspects of language development as well as synopses of material dealt with in more than one chapter Further sample texts including examples from Chaucer, eighteenth-century pamphlet literature, and twenty-first century novels Additional exercises to help users expand their insights and apply background knowledge Sample answers to study questions in the textbook An interactive timeline of important historical events and developments and interactive maps for each period A History of Englishis essential reading for any student of the English Language.

Stephan Gramley is Studiendirektor at Bielefeld University, Germany, in the Department of Linguistics and Literary Studies.

List of illustrations	p. ix
List of texts	p. xiii
Preface	p. xvii
Acknowledgments	p. xxi
The origins of English (before 450)	p. 1
Chapter overview	p. 1
The origins of human language	p. 1
Language change	p. 5
Changes in Germanic before the invasions of Britain	p. 8
The world of the Germanic peoples	p. 11
The Germanic migrations	p. 14
Summary	p. 17
Study questions	p. 18
Further reading	p. 19
Old English: early Germanic Britain (450-700)	p. 20
Chapter overview	p. 20
The first peoples	p. 21
The Germanic incursions	p. 24
Introduction to Old English	p. 28
The Christianization of England	p. 33
Literature in the early Old English period	p. 36
Summary	p. 43
Study questions	p. 43
Further reading	p. 44
Old English: the Viking invasions and their consequences (700-1066/1100)	p. 45
Chapter overview	p. 45
The Viking invasions	p. 46
Linguistic influence of Old Norse	p. 51
Creolization	p. 56
Alfred's reforms and the West Saxon standard	p. 60
Monastic reform, linguistic developments, and literary genres	p. 61
Summary	p. 63
Study questions	p. 64
Further reading	p. 65
Middle English: the non-standard period (1066/1100-1350)	p. 66
Chapter overview	p. 66
Dynastic conflict and the Norman Conquest	p. 67
Linguistic features of Middle English in the non-standard period	p. 74
French influence on Middle English and the question of creolization	p. 89
English literature	p. 90
Dialectal diversity in early ME	p. 91
Summary	p. 93
Study questions	p. 94
Further reading	p. 94
Middle English: the emergence of Standard English (1350-1500)	p. 95
Chapter overview	p. 95
Political and social turmoil and demographic developments	p. 96
The expansion of domains	p. 99
Chancery English (Chancery Standard)	p. 105
Literature	p. 112
Variation	p. 118
Summary	p. 120
Study questions	p. 121
Further reading	p. 121
The Early Modern English period (1500-1700)	p. 123
Chapter overview	p. 123
The Early Modern English period	p. 124
Early Modern English	p. 128
Regulation and codification	p. 132
Religious and scientific prose and belles lettres	p. 142
Variation: South and North	p. 151
Summary	p. 153
Study questions	p. 154
Further reading	p. 154
The spread of English (since the late sixteenth century)	p. 155
Chapter overview	p. 155
Social-historical background	p. 156
Language policy	p. 160
The emergence of General English (GenE)	p. 161
Transplantation	p. 164
Linguistic correlates of European expansion	p. 166
Summary	p. 176
Study questions	p. 177
Further reading	p. 178
English in Great Britain and Ireland (since 1700)	p. 179
Chapter overview	p. 179
Social and historical developments in Britain and Ireland	p. 179
England and Wales	p. 182
Scotland	p. 199
Ireland	p. 202
Urban varieties	p. 206
Summary	p. 209
Study questions	p. 209
Further reading	p. 210
English pidgins, English Creoles, and English (since the early seventeenth century)	p. 211
Chapter overview	p. 211
European expansion and the slave trade	p. 212
Language contact	p. 215
Pidgins	p. 218
Creoles	p. 224
Theories of origins	p. 228
Summary	p. 240
Study questions	p. 241
Further reading	p. 242
English in North America (since the early seventeenth century)	p. 243
Chapter overview	p. 243
The beginnings of English in North America	p. 243
Colonial English	p. 246
Development of North American English after American independence	p. 251
Non-standard GenE	p. 258
Ethnic variety within AmE	p. 264
Summary	p. 274
Study questions	p. 274
Further reading	p. 275
English in the ENL communities of the Southern Hemisphere (since 1788)	p. 277
Chapter overview	p. 277
Social-historical background	p. 278
Southern Hemisphere English: grammar	p. 284
Southern Hemisphere English: pronunciation	p. 288
Southern Hemisphere English: vocabulary and pragmatics	p. 292
Regional and ethnic variation	p. 300
Summary	p. 303
Study questions	p. 303
Further reading	p. 304
English in the ESL countries of Africa and Asia (since 1795)	p. 305
Chapter overview	p. 305
English as a Second Language	p. 306
Language planning and policy	p. 315
Linguistic features of ESL	p. 317
Substrate influence	p. 324
Identitarian function of language	p. 332
Summary	p. 334
Study questions	p. 335
Further reading	p. 335
Global English (since 1945)	p. 337
Chapter overview	p. 337
The beginnings of Global English	p. 337
Media dominance	p. 339
Features of medialized language	p. 343
ENL, ESL, and ELF/EFL	p. 351
The identitarian role of the multiplicity of Englishes	p. 358
Summary	p. 361
Study questions	p. 361
Further reading	p. 362
The International Phonetic Alphabet	p. 363
Glossary	p. 364
Bibliography	p. 392
Index	p. 405
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The History of English: An Introduction

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