pp french influence on the english language
TRANSCRIPT
Influence of French on the
English language
ENGLISH
Old English begins with the Germanic invasions in the 5th
century
Three German tribes invaded Britannia: the Saxons, the Angles
and the Jutes. They spoke Germanic dialects which were adopted by the local
population.
The languages of these tribes
evolved into the English Language
Anglo-Saxon words:
• Most of these words are short, consisting of no more than one or two syllables: Home, child, roof…• They are associated with informality
or colloquial language
There is an expression in Modern English: “Speaking Anglo-Saxon” which means “plain, blunt speaking”.
Another expression “Anglo-Saxon words “ is a euphemism for obscene four-letter words like shit, arse…
On the other hand, Latin or French words are associated with formality and status:
allegory, custody, history, poetry…
NORMAN FRENCH
The Norman Conquest in 1066 meant a great change for the English language. The Normans spoke a French dialect, and many of their words were passed on into English.
This meant a change, not only in
vocabulary, but also in the grammar of the
English language.
There is still a street in Southampton called
French Street, a location where many French
merchants and Settlers established their business
and homes.
French Street
VOCABULARY
The names people used changed:Native pre-conquest names were
mainly West Germanic, Scandinavian and Celtic:
Godwine, Egbert, Alfred…After the conquest most of these
names had been replaced by : John, Peter, Simon, Stephen…
Humble jobs kept their Anglo-Saxon names: Baker
Miller
Shoemaker
More skilled jobs adopted French names:
Mason Painter Tailor
merchant…
While the animals in the field kept their English names: Sheep, cow,
calf, pig, deer…Once cooked and served their names became French: Mutton,
beef, veal, pork, bacon, venison…
Sheep Mutton
Cow or bull Beef
Calf (young cow) Veal
Pig Pork, bacon
Deer (ciervo) Venison
In many cases, French words replaced Old English words…
Leod became PeopleEam became uncle
In other cases a French word combined an English one to produce a new word:
Gentle + man = gentleman
Sometimes, both, English and French words survived…
Odour = smellPardon = ForgiveMansion = HouseHearty = Cordial
In some occasions, a third word was used from Latin, forming a triplet:
Old English French LatinASK QUESTION INTERROGATE
LAND COUNTRY TERRITORY
FAST FIRM SECURE
TALE STORY NARRATIVE
PRONUNCIATION
Norman French was harsher and more gutural than the softer Francien dialect of
Paris.The Normans used a hard “c”
sound instead of the softer Francien “ch”…
So that French CHARRIER became CARRY
CHAULDRON BECAME CAULDRON
The Normans, and therefore the English, retained the “s” in words like:
English ___ French (Paris) STATE état
FOREST forêt
BEAST bête
Spelling
Norman-French scribes wrote official and religious documents, this fact lead to confusion as they adapted the Old English spelling to the spelling of their native Norman French.
Cwen became Queen
Scip became Ship
Luve became Love
Bricge became Bridge
Grammar
The “–en” plural disappearedHousen houses
The –en plural only remains in words such as:
Children
Oxen (bueyes)
Brethren (hermandad)
One of the most important changes was the disappearance of the inflectional system.
Most inflections were replaced by the final sound “schwa”
Read the following words ending with /ə/
• palace /pæləs/• april /eprəl/• theatre /θiətə/• doctor /dɑktə/• dungeon /dəndʒən/• decision /dəsɪʒən/• tortoise /tɔrtəs/
THE END