Middle English Language
Middle English is the historical phase of the English language that developed from Old English following the Norman Conquest of 1066. This period, which lasted until the late fifteenth century, was characterized by significant changes in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation due to the influence of Anglo-Norman French and other languages, such as Latin and Old Norse. The blending of these linguistic traditions gave rise to a rich vocabulary, with over ten thousand new words introduced from French.
Middle English was primarily an oral language, but it also saw the emergence of significant literary works, most notably Geoffrey Chaucer's *The Canterbury Tales*, which showcased the vernacular dialect of London and is considered one of the first major texts in English. During this era, the grammatical structure of the language shifted, with the loss of gender distinctions and a greater emphasis on word order.
The language was spoken in various regional dialects, including Northern, East Midland, and Southern, with the East Midland dialect eventually becoming the standard. The decline of Middle English was marked by the advent of printing in the 1470s and the Great Vowel Shift, which transformed pronunciation and paved the way for Early Modern English. Today, English is a global language, spoken by hundreds of millions as a first and second language, reflecting its deep historical roots and evolution through various cultural influences.
Middle English Language
The English language evolved over the course of several centuries and experienced many stages of development. Middle English followed the period known as Old English and was triggered by the Norman invasion of England by William the Conqueror in the eleventh century. Middle English was mainly an oral language; however, many prominent literary works appeared in this era, including Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales.
It was through the intermingling of Anglo-Norman French and Anglo-Saxon English, or Old English, that Middle English came to be. The Normans provided more than ten thousand words for the English language, such as crown, viscount, serf, charity, parliament, city, justice, accuse, jewel, poet, color, and literature.
The transition from Old English to Middle English was marked by several grammatical and structural changes. Grammatical genders disappeared and adjectives were reduced to two inflections: singular and plural. Word order became much more important, with a mostly standard form of subject-verb-object.
History and Classification
Middle English is derived from Germanic. The Germanic language group is Indo-European and has three subdivisions: North Germanic, West Germanic, and East Germanic. The English language is from the West Germanic branch. Dialects of Middle English formed regionally and included Northern, East Midland, West Midland, Southern, and Kentish.
William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy, invaded and conquered England in 1066, defeating King Harold of Wessex at the Battle of Hastings. Upon his crowning as King William I, he brutally squashed all opposition and moved against Harold's Anglo-Saxon supporters, distributing land in England to many of his Norman followers. The Normans were descended from Vikings who settled in northern France during the ninth century. They adopted French and moved away from their Germanic roots, but their language was Scandinavian influenced. After assuming control of England, the Normans' language, Anglo-Norman French, became the verbal language of court, administration, culture, and the upper classes. Although Latin remained the language used by the church and in official records and some literature, English was relegated to peasants and lower classes. Anglo-Norman French was considered synonymous with good breeding, education, and wealth, while English was viewed as a vulgar tongue.
Under Norman rule, the English language had no official status or regulation. Overall, a variety of influences shaped the English language beyond Anglo-Norman French: Celtic, Latin via the Romans, and Viking Old Norse. Middle English dates from 1066 through the late fifteenth century, when Chancery English became widespread. It has been estimated that 85 percent of Anglo-Saxon words were lost due to the Viking and Norman invasions.
In 1204, Normandy was seized by the King of France, leading many nobles with property both in England and on the continent to choose which would be more profitable to maintain. Distance from France and the French court led English nobles to rely more on their English properties, beginning a slow trend toward an English identity. The Hundred Years' War between France and England labeled French as the language of the enemy, leading to a more widespread acceptance of speaking and writing in English. The Black Death, a pestilence that wiped out between one-third and one-half of England's population, killed many of the country's Latin-speaking clergy and bolstered the prominence of surviving laboring and merchant classes. Their rise in social esteem led to a breakdown in the language barrier between upper and lower classes.
Geographic Distribution and Modern Usage
The Middle English language developed and was spoken in England, a country that in the twenty-first century is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Middle English is often referenced as the language of Geoffrey Chaucer, whose Canterbury Tales was written in the late fourteenth century in the Middle English dialect spoken in London and the surrounding region at the time. The Canterbury Tales is one of the first books written in the English language. Chaucer himself introduced many new English words, using derivatives of Old English rather than French in his writing whenever possible.
The prominence of the London East Midland dialect marked it as the standard for language. Beginning in the twelfth century, London was the largest city and capital of the Normans as well as the hub of government and culture. Other regional English dialects were considered lacking in social prestige, unintelligent, and rustic. The University of Oxford was founded in 1167 and Cambridge University in 1209, further spotlighting the role of London and its regional dialect in the expansion of English literacy.
Middle English is a transitional linguistic step before Early Modern and Modern English. English began to be used as an official language in England in 1362 with the Statute of Pleading—an act that marked the beginning of English used in common law—and King Edward III's first address to Parliament in English. By 1385, Middle English was used in schools. The end of Middle English is marked by the arrival of printing in England in the 1470s as well as what is known as the Great Vowel Shift, which changed the pronunciation of long vowels.
By the twenty-first century, more than three hundred million people speak English as their native tongue and another two hundred million speak it as their second language.
Bibliography
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