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History of the English Language

Welcome

This course aims to provide you with an understanding of how the English language has changed over the last 1500 years, from the first arrivals of Germanic tribes in Britain up to the present day. An adequate understanding of the structure of English and its changing nature over the last millennium is a crucial tool in developing a sophisticated approach both to producing and to interpreting written and spoken language

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Course Objectives

  • The origins of English and its relationship to other languages
  • The basic structure of English (grammatical forms, phonology, vocabulary)
  • How these structural elements change over time
  • The effects of outside forces (e.g. invasion, immigration, assimilation, technology, etc.) on the language
  • The difference between “standard” and “nonstandard” varieties of English