Lecture VI. The Norman Conquest of England (1066-1200). The development of the Literary Language

OE words Scandinavian words

dōm (judgement) dōmr

fisk (fish) fiskr

wind (wind) windr

dæჳ (day) daჳr

trēo (tree) trē

lytel (little) litell

ჳōd (good) ჳōdr

bīdan (wait) bīda

ჳrīpan (catch) grīpa

tīma (time) tīme

faran (go) fara

There were also many words in Scandinavian vocabulary that didn’t correspond to English. In this case the Scandinavian dialects influenced English. E.g., a considerable number of Scandinavian political terms and everyday words were borrowed into English. Among these words are: lagu “law”, wrang “wrong”, hūsbonda “husband”, callen “call”, tāken “take”, skye “sky”.

The similarity between OE and the language of the Scandinavian invaders makes it sometimes very difficult to decide whether a given word in Modern English is a native or a borrowed one. In certain cases, however, we have very reliable criteria by which we can recognize a borrowed word. Some of these tests depend on differences in the development of certain sounds in the North Teutonic and West Teutonic dialects.

E.g., the development of the sound “sk”: In OE it was palatalized to “sh” (spelt sc), while in the Scandinavian dialects it retained its sound “sk”. Consequently, while native words like ship, shall, fish have sh in MnE, words borrowed from the Scandinavians are still pronounced with sk: sky, skin, skill, scrape, scrub.

In the same way the retention (сохранение) of the hard pronunciation of k and g in such words as kid, get, give, egg is an indication of Scandinavian origin.

The third person plural personal pronoun was borrowed from Scandinavian into English. The Scandinavian pronoun þeir penetrated into English, superseded the OE pronoun hīe, and became they in MnE.

The same change took place in the genetive of the native pronoun hira (их). It was superseded by the genetive Scandinavian pronoun þeirra and became Modern English treir.

The dative þeim superseded the native him and became MnE them.

As it is known different peoples invaded England. First came the Celts in the 6th century B.C.; then the Romans in the 1st century A.D.; they were followed by the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th century; after them came the Scandinavians at the end of the 8th century. In the 11th century England was invaded by the Normans. This was the fifth and the last invasion of England.

The Norman Conquest of England began in 1066. The Normans were by origin a Scandinavian tribe (Norman < Norþman – Northman). In the 9^th century while the Scandinavians began inroads on England, the Normans (also Scandinavians by origin) began inroads on the North coast of France and occupied the territory on both shores of the Seine estuary. This territory was given the name “Normandy” after the Normans. The French king gave this land to the Normans.

The Normans lived among the French people, they spoke the French language, adopted French manners and customs, and way of life -underwent a strong influence of French culture.

In the middle of the 11th century, in spite of their Scandinavian origin, they were bearers of French culture and the French language.

In 1066 Edward the Confessor, the English king died. In 1040 the Witan, the royal council, chose him to be king. Edward only lived until 1066, when he died without an obvious heir. Edward had brought many Normans to his English court from France. These Normans were not liked by the more powerful Saxon nobles, particularly, by the most powerful family of Wessex, the Godwinsons. It was a Godwinson, Harold, whom the Witan chose to be the next king of England.

William, Duke of Normandy, was related to the English king. As far as Edward had no children, Duke of Normandy cherished the hope that he would succeed to the English throne. But, Harold, the Anglo-Saxon Earl (another relative of the English king) was chosen to be the king. William claimed that England belonged to him and he began preparations for a war to fight for the crown.

He assembled an army and landed in England and conquered the English troops near Hastings in 1066. The victory at Hastings was only the beginning of the Conquest. It took several years for William and his barons to subdue the whole of England. The Norman Duke became the king of England – William I, better known as William the Conqueror. He ruled England for 21 years (1066-1087). The Normans became masters of England. The ruling class of Anglo-Saxon nobility vanished almost completely. This nobility was replaced by Norman barons, who spoke French, namely its Norman dialect.

William confiscated the estates of the Anglo-Saxon nobility and distributed them among the Norman barons. All posts in the church were given to French people. The Anglo-Saxon Witan was replaced by the Creat Council (Cura Regis). Frenchmen arrived in England in great numbers. Among them were merchants, soldiers, teachers, and so on. This arrival of Frenchmen lasted for about two centuries.

During several centuries the ruling language in England was French. It was the language of the court, the government, the church. The English language was reduced to a lower social sphere. The peasants and townspeople spoke it. Under the rule of Frenchmen the English language changed greatly.

Effects on the language. French: (strictly, Norman French): English people learnt French in order to gain advantage from the aristocracy. English: the language of townspeople and peasants. The Normans had to communicate with the natives of the country and they gradually learnt to speak their language. So, the struggle between the two languages began. The struggle for supremacy lasted for three centuries. Latin: the international language of the Church and science. Only in the later half of the 14th century victory of English became evident. It began to be used in Parliament, in court, at schools.

Questions.

• Enumerate all the invasions of England, give the dates.
• What were the Normans by origin?
• What language did they speak? Why?
• Why was Edward known as “the Confessor”?
• What was the name of the next king of England?
• Who was the English throne challenged by?
• What was William’s claim to the throne?
• Why was William I called “the Conqueror”?
• For how many years did he rule England?
• How many languages were there in England at that time?
• What were the social functions of each of the languages?
• When did the victory of English become evident?

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