Middle English External History
History of the English Language
The single most important event on the history of the
English language is the Norman Conquest in 1066.
B. In 1066 King Edward (the Confessor) died childless.
Edward's chief advisor (earl of West Saxon), Godwin,
had a son named Harold. Harold succeeded his father
Godwin and virtually ruled England the last 12 years
of Edward's reign. Upon Edward's death, Harold was
elected King.
. William, the duke of Normandy, was
2nd cousin to Edward, and Edward
had promised him the throne upon
Edward's death. Once William learns
of Harold's succession to the throne,
William begins a very detailed and
careful plan to win the crown.
1. First, William secured
cooperation from his vassals by
promising good rewards.
2. He made peace with his enemies
on the continent.
3. He appealed to the Pope to
sanction his plan and received the
blessing of the Church.
4. The end result was a massive number
of people with questionable (greedy &
ambitious) motives coming to the aid of
William. By the time William invades
England, he has a formidable army.
5. When William landed (Sept. 1066 at
Pevensy in the south of England), he was
unopposed.
Harold was busy in northern England
trying to ward off an invasion by the
king of Norway, who also wanted the
throne.
When Harold finally marshals his army, he
didn't have the numbers that William did.
However, the day of the big battle, Harold
managed a valiant fight and actually held
William off. According to history, military
might had nothing to do with William's
victory. Instead, Harold was killed, and in
the confusion without a leader, the English
troops fell apart. Thus, William was able to
triumph at Hastings.
However, William had to burn and
loot southeast England before the
people gave in, and on Christmas
Day 1066, William was crowned king.
D. William's reign virtually wipes out
all of the old English nobility. In its
place, a new nobility---of Norman
descents.
E. With Norman nobility in place, nearly
all great estates and important positions
were held by Normans or other
foriegners.
F. The governing class in both church
and state, then, was foreign, and their
influence great.
Norman Invasion (1066)
Norman Conquest of England (1066) signals
the shift from Old English to Middle English.
Perhaps the most significant event in the
historical development of the English
Language. Without it, the English language
would retaine more of its Germanic
characteristics (more inflections, Germanic
vocabulary, word formation/compounding).
As a result the English becomes heavily
influenced by French
Norman Invasion (Consequences)
As a result of the Norman Conquest, our
language becomes a linguistic hybrid of two
different I-E language families: Germanic and
Italic (French). This creates several
significant shifts:
an enormous infusion of French words
(borrowing);
shifts in sounds (especially vowel sounds);
increased loss of inflections (shift from
synthetic to analytic).
History Behind the Norman
Conquest
Normans (Northmen)— Like the Scandinavians
who raided England are Vikings who settled
in Normandy in 9th - 10th centuries.
Rollo (first Duke of Normandy) establishes
treaty with French King (Charles the Simple)
in 912 giving them official possession of the
land in what is present day Normandy.
Scandinavians (Vikings)
Scandinavian (Viking) adaptability-- Like the
Scandinavians who invade Anglo-Saxon
England, the Normans assimilate into French
culture (convert to Christianity) and adopt the
French language as their own (with some
alterations).
Compare to the assimilation of the Vikings in
England after the establishment of the
Danelaw.
The Situation in England
Aethered the Unready: Appropriately named
English King; driven out of England by the
Danes in 1002 and settles in Normandy (his
wife is the sister of the Duke of Normandy).
His son, Edward the Confessor, grows up in
Normandy and is essentially more French
than English.
Ascends to the English throne in 1042 and
brings his French Norman associates with
him. Reigns from 1042-1066; a French
atmosphere pervades the English court.
Situation in England
Edward dies in 1066 (childless).
English nobility elects Harold, Earl of
West Saxon, as King that same year.
Battle of Hastings (1066)-- Harold is
killed; the English are routed and the
French Normans under the leadership
of William take over the country.
Consequences
English nobility is wiped out, either killed or
placed in exile.
Norman nobility take their place. Foreign
troops brought in for support.
French becomes the official language of the
English court (politics and government).
Norman clerics take over all of the English
churches.
French is the language of literature and
entertainment.
Consequences
For approximately 200 years (1066-1272),
French becomes the official language used
in the court, in the churches, and among the
upper classes in England.
The number of French speaking Normans
was relatively small compared to the overall
English population, but they held all major
positions of power.
Consequences
English is regarded as an uncultivated, inferior
language or "vulgar tongue," socially inferior.
While Normans were not "hostile" toward English
(did not try to eradicate it), they regarded it as the
language of the masses.
Some intermixing or intermarriages evident during
this era, but assimilation means learning French.
General attitude of indifference toward English by
the Normans.
English ceases to function as the official language
of England, although it continues to thrive among
the lower classes.
Consequences
Middle-Class Merchants (made up of French
Normans and Englishmen) bridge the linguistic
divide between the French nobility and the lower
classes.
Possibility of a French-English pidgin or Creole. A
pidgin is a simplified language used for
communication between speakers of different
languages for business, economic, or trading
purposes between speakers of European and
African or Asian languages.
Insufficient evidence to prove this. French and
English held in tension as two distinct languages.
