Main Periods in the History of the English Language

The historical events that took place on the British Isles have influenced the linguistic situation in the country greatly. The table below shows the interconnection between the history and the language situation:

Dates	Events	Population	Languages
Old English Period
7^th c. B.C.	Celtic Invasion	Celts	Celtic Dialects
7^th c. B.C. – 410 A.D.	Roman Invasion	Celts, Romans	Celtic Dialects, Latin
mid.5^th c. – late 6^th c.	Anglo-Saxon Invasion	Celts, Anglo-Saxons	Celtic Dialects, Old English Dialects!
	Introduction of Christianity	Celts, Anglo-Saxons	Celtic Dialects, Old English Dialects, Latin
after 8^th c.	Scandinavian Invasion	Celts, Anglo-Saxons, Scandinavians (Danes)	Celtic Dialects, Old English Dialects, Latin, Scandinavian Dialects
Middle English Period
	Norman Conquest	Celts, Anglo-Saxons, Scandinavians, Normans	Celtic Dialects, Middle English Dialects, Latin, French
late 14^th c.	English – official language of the country	the English	Middle English Dialects, London Dialect(standard)
New English Period
	Introduction of Printing (William Caxton)	The English	English(New English)
16^th – 17^th c.	Expansion of the British Empire	The English	English – national languagespreading overseas
Modern English Period
20^th c.	English – a global language

Thus, the main periods in the language evolution are (rough dates are given):

1. Old English Period – prewritten (450-700)

– written (700-1100)

During this period 1 million people spoke Old English Dialects (see short survey of this period in § 74-77, p. 50-51 in “История английского языка” by Т.А. Расторгуева (copies)).

2. Middle English Period – 1100-1500

During this period 4 million people spoke Middle English Dialects (see short survey of this period in § 78-81, p. 51-52 in “История английского языка” by Т.А. Расторгуева (copies)).

3. New English Period – 1500-1800

(see short survey of this period in § 82-85, p. 52-53 in “История английского языка” by Т.А. Расторгуева (copies)).

4. Modern English Period -? (1945)-present time

Nowadays 300 million people speak English as a mother tongue (see short survey of this period in § 86-87, p. 53-54 in “История английского языка” by Т.А. Расторгуева (copies)).

Дата добавления: 2014-01-03