Origin of the English Language

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The origins of the English language have been explored by many scholars, and the evolution from English’s roots to today’s modern tongue has been heavily documented.

Contradictory Beginnings

The English language originated from the Germanic peoples of Western Europe. These tribes came into contact with the Roman civilization around 100 AD, and the Angle, Saxon and Jute tribes were subsequently brought as mercenaries and independent bands into British territory. They were dubbed “Anglo-Saxons.”

A proto-language is a common ancestor of younger languages, and for the Germanic tribes this early form of English was the Indo-European proto-language. This proto-language was traditionally held to be born 5,000 years ago, on the Russian Steppes north of the Caspian Sea.

Recent research suggests, however, that the Indo-European languages actually stemmed from the Anatolian region of Turkey 9,000 years ago. Linguists deduced this by using a technique called phylogenetics, a field of study usually reserved for comparing DNA between organisms.

The Rise of Old English

After the Anglo-Saxon migration, the indigenous Latin and British tongues began to be displaced by the Germanic tongues, which also began to absorb elements of the former languages.

Latin would be reintroduced to England by Roman church missionaries, and play a heavy role in the development of Old English.

The Spread of Middle English

In the centuries after the Norman Conquest of 1066, high ranking nobles spoke one of the French-based Anglo-Norman languages, relegating English to the tongues of the common people.

Because of this association with royalty and the upper classes, many French and Norman words were borrowed and incorporated into the English language, often with more formal connotations than the rest of the English vocabulary.

The Anglo-Norman language eventually declined after 1200, letting the English language become more respectable and prompting the appearance of English literature. Geoffrey Chaucer is the most famous writer from this period, with “The Canterbury Tales” being his most prominent work.

The Evolution into Modern English

In the 15^th century, the introduction of printing led to a standardization of sound and spelling conventions in the English language. The first English dictionary was published in 1604, signaling this trend.

Due to increased literacy and ease of travel, many foreign words were adopted into the English language, such as from German, Italian, Latin and Greek. Also during this period, English began to see a divide into British English and American English.

As the world moved on to the 17^th century, the English language became even more standardized, due to the introduction of Samuel Johnson’s definitive Dictionary of the English Language, which standardized both spelling and word usage.

English also saw a rapid increase in vocabulary, as the Industrial Revolution and the developments of new technology required a need for new words. The adoption of foreign words continued as English spread across borders.

With its high level of standardization, rapid adoption of new words, and widespread use, the language has gone far beyond its simple origins, and the English language is now the most dominant in the modern world.