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私以为可以将pdf正文前的多篇文章也加入词条,以完善词典的内容,并更好的使用词典。; _& r: ]- w* v2 |
1、Where English comes from
. x* G3 c/ ]( U; L2 E. P- [The English language has existed for hundreds of years.
5 l" I7 u4 {8 W& fMany words came into English from various European languages.
! @# J: ?! e. N f4 B" `. m3 }For example, St. Augustine and other Latin-speaking7 m! A& Q" `1 o: b. e
missionaries to England used such words as bishop and' v# W. c5 \6 u
priest. Latin was the language of scholarship and religion.2 ~% Y, j4 f9 l: _) H' q
Wherever Latin scholars, missionaries, and government officials$ | C5 `/ D+ }
exerted important influence, Latin words became
8 f1 i, s( O j. f9 K2 H. ?known. When the Scandinavians invaded and settled in Britain,
6 ]) W1 \9 H- u( `' K7 }; Jsome words beginning with sk- were adopted into English.7 a; T5 b( b; V( o
For example, skill, skirt, and sky. The Scandinavians8 z$ W& l8 y. b0 d9 T4 h6 D
also contributed important pronouns such as their, them,
$ U& v2 }0 o# Wand they. Words of French origin include army, blue, chair,$ n+ S) `7 N( w9 X
dinner, government, jolly, mayor, paper, and towel. Balcony,
( A9 O! z. y; ~# E% k7 Gpiano, and pizza come from Italy; fiesta and siesta,3 k+ W( R% `' w% d0 O8 y5 \
from Spain; orchestra, from Greece; boomerang, from Australia;
. s( W* S! M, x2 T5 W) ]vodka, from Russia; and igloo, from the Eskimos.
; d6 q; ?7 n9 S English is always growing and changing. Words constantly- V. E- C( H* e+ Q6 H
are being added and falling into disuse. Many words that$ j3 I% D3 `# X0 `9 ?1 J$ O6 Q: D+ z
you hear, speak, and read today were not part of the language: i5 u5 V) A& @8 r) ]0 U, R
your grandparents used. Look in a dictionary published
; V/ a/ W4 J, E. E2 W, |at that time and you will not find such words as astronaut,
! a- g+ A/ j6 k0 j' n+ Uculture shock, miniskirt, rolamite, and microfiche.
7 o9 x9 D. \! ^) B" N; R* g( z" CEvery time new inventions, scientific discoveries, art forms,* \ K4 m% I4 ^5 F9 k7 O: E, a
or fashions appear that do not have names to identify them,
4 q4 E! R5 w5 _new words must be invented or old words given new applications,
7 W! ` P' `' mor taken from other languages.+ h7 N- O5 o6 z, r3 h5 C
When words are not used, they become obsolete. Obsolete
, [/ }3 Q5 {% x0 c) N( u- Iwords are included in the dictionary because they are- r! v) S2 N' I2 g' A! j9 B
part of our history and our culture. You will want to know0 T( R) d( }. M' ~# B8 v* J
what they mean when you read them in old books or hear
* _" m# u; z# g% K, Z; Othem used in plays written a long time ago. Before the automobile
' H* T8 F- v& G, [was a common form of transportation, people traveled# I; k- \! ^9 m: l8 T2 s, t7 R6 O
in buggies drawn by horses. Now when you hear or5 W {) w: U1 w: L! V) F( i
see the word buggy you are inclined to think of something/ B7 p. E9 _; E0 \% ^ b
old-fashioned or insect-ridden.
, `) u }9 N9 r! Y* C Many words have changed their meanings. For example,
- H+ P3 `3 \, k B% j: m* l6 {0 ]sly and crafty people were once described as "pretty." At8 Q$ w' O \+ v
one time, when people wanted to picture someone as stupid/ E% I) W A- P% }" S/ M
and ignorant they referred to that person as "nice." Today,
$ J' g' e. R" _% Tif someone tells us we are "nice" and "pretty," we feel flattered,
Q) ~% q* F( A" N. u& Cnot insulted.4 L% C* K7 H' s( @6 {
These are only a few of the ways in which language% j0 V7 g! W0 I. u$ L
changes and grows. By knowing how words become part of
$ \' G: D: J' w# {8 B9 fa language, you discover important clues to social, political,
2 V0 v& U) w7 u+ r: X6 B$ J/ @3 ]and cultural changes that take place in the history of a
, b S6 t. X4 Icountry using that language." x# R* o7 M) I1 N2 M
The story of how English originated is a fascinating one.7 C' o9 T, p( o. |+ D2 }2 a4 D
+ H1 ?. s) x$ a! q* T* v8 R$ THow English began
8 V+ e* E5 y3 z0 H: s6 S$ a xEnglish comes from a common ancestral language believed3 W) n$ d( Z) R! V7 b
to have existed a very long time ago. It has been called! b* e# `, V( t( [2 [6 |
Indo-European. About 4,500 years ago, the people who
/ S$ f$ {: `4 Bspoke varying forms of this language split into groups that
: i$ V" y$ ?" J/ w1 y8 G* `drifted into Europe and parts of Asia. Different speech communities. K8 ]' T+ y1 x+ v, g' s
developed within these widespread groups eventually# \: E. A8 u# o( B% r/ @
giving rise to several languages including Latin, from
" O% ~5 d: R$ D6 ]! ?. k7 gwhich many of the languages spoken in Europe today developed.
- n5 O$ [: z- F% m5 n# j) KOne group of Indo-European languages is known as9 X% N. ~7 U/ D1 G* q
Germanic, and this is the primary parent language of English
2 n0 [& f# J& I7 O# }8 F# Cand German.
" W7 x7 E9 k$ @- X Warrior-adventurers, who spoke Germanic, invaded what3 }9 T/ F$ b& I L2 S4 k+ e
is now Great Britain about A.D. 450. The invaders—called
5 ]$ o: E, I# v; r, Y+ x6 iAngles, Saxons, and Jutes—all spoke similar dialects. The
. k5 c) r `% b$ z" @/ Kpeople they conquered, known as Britons, spoke Celtic. The
3 G& [7 v9 F- ]: y$ K/ k+ jCeltic language included Latin words because conquering1 i2 o$ |9 _" `
Roman troops occupied Britain from A.D. 43 until the 400's.0 |$ H2 V$ K) K" f! O
The troops had to return home to defend Rome against invading
- w' Z9 {! s- v% o1 y. A- Varmies. The Germanic tribes conquered Britain after1 r+ }* e% i" C9 {
the Romans left.
) Q$ `% A) t; T9 D) \ As the invading tribes took over and settled in Britain, the( o* U: @4 B% \% L2 {; A! u
Celtic languages gradually retreated. Since the Celtic people. |/ F O# x" G& ~+ ~
were forced to communicate with their rulers, the history of
$ [( n/ @% u+ i! x% Mthe English language begins with the take-over of Britain by
# L8 K) b/ v) V. H2 ythe Germanic tribes. As a result, Celtic made only a small
5 ]8 r1 a4 o- g8 r( Xcontribution to the English vocabulary with words such as4 @8 d9 i. O0 |$ j' m! R
crag and bin. However, many place names were adopted
8 Z8 F7 m/ f5 e1 e1 y7 o. \7 Gfrom the Celtic. Among them are Avon, Kent, London,
( ?6 X7 N" R! `) ]0 d% a: IOuse, and Thames. Small groups of people living in Ireland,
5 k( D9 Z U/ h4 C- O5 iWales, and the Scottish Highlands still speak varieties of Celtic) o* r& Q, _# s4 y# l1 f& f
such as Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, and recently- i7 {9 v" R( u6 Z
revived Irish.
+ V0 E# I* q) G4 i! W, }' L( @* `! b
Old English
0 k* s- j7 k% A a0 iThe Angles and Saxons occupied a large part of Britain. The2 p/ n) j* c( ~( t* L, r. B2 W
name of one of the former tribes eventually became the( u; P4 |, S5 H3 c# B1 P
name of the land they occupied, England. The Anglo-Saxon
# R* A% v5 U% W. Vlanguage, now usually called Old English, became firmly established
$ c. w4 O& v: L+ Pin Britain in the period from the A.D. 500's to 1066.2 P/ K5 B/ O9 Z& p* E0 k
Even as this happened, changes were taking place. Latinspeaking
$ [1 D% G( O! y7 K4 ?- {0 ~! |Roman and Celtic missionaries under St. Augustine,' h& {& h; L3 K. z
began spreading Christianity in Britain. The introduction of
0 Q# j' H% C" E% }9 `Christianity exerted a great impact on the English language./ E) ^4 M4 c" u Y# j! N
Religion brought with it many new ideas and customs. And
' N( ~9 i1 G$ t4 R5 PChristianity used Latin. In their attempt to identify and deal
9 p5 S! k; q! M" wwith all these new ideas and customs, the Anglo-Saxons did
/ L% d. A' F' T$ a/ x5 qnot hesitate to borrow from Latin the special vocabulary7 O% U& z U j9 i o
needed for the new religious life. Among the words taken2 H2 N3 ]* Q: W! R
from Church Latin which still survive are:
- t% M; ~* W8 \$ d4 }. I5 T% Y' U6 {( ?$ g, k
Latin Old English Modern English
' ?% z I/ W2 Mabbatis abbod abbot
& U: G) M, @5 G- W: x: Z9 e% l1 G$ Ucandela candel candle8 h3 y0 h$ \, S$ d3 P- X+ C1 C- C
altare altar altar; X# g$ F2 |" C/ W
amen amen amen
/ N9 E+ v. t( [ yapostolus apostol apostle
( b: q: _$ {5 v; \: c7 b6 J5 V/ Y: s' w5 L/ J
However, users of Old English did not borrow as heavily, f I/ R. t* p$ L# f8 q9 m8 g
from Latin and other languages in this period as they did7 h4 P* v a0 g# B+ f
later when there was greater communication with the Continent.3 {8 W1 P$ f7 p/ m+ P) R% d' P0 n/ P
Sometimes they changed the meanings of native" z; N$ F5 P; j
words. The word for Easter (eastron) originally was the
! A4 G! i( `* T& e+ Kname for the spring festival honoring the goddess of dawn.
4 ^. x9 `+ L% VCeol (Yule), the name of the festival held to celebrate the& h7 @4 v) Z8 \0 d
passing of the shortest day of the year, came to denote# R* ^/ h. f( \- D& M- }$ p7 I
Christmas.1 E2 h5 t# G- V+ r" B5 C
Native ingenuity was shown in creating new words by V$ t: x+ L h+ e2 r" c
combining two native words in much the same way as we* I# G3 C' r. Q- y
now combine words such as space and worthy to form
, _0 j, _* d3 ]! V0 j; u( m# f; Nspaceworthy. Old English words such as Icececraft (leechcraft),6 n) |7 P9 t0 Q/ R
meaning medicine, and handboc (handbook), meaning8 q, u3 z8 U; \! s9 j6 Z# t* g
manual, illustrate this practice.
) c: H+ {% O* E# e& a The growth of the Old English vocabulary during this
& s1 Q; k5 J; O8 d4 c. L) H( Jperiod of language history reflects the growth of English culture.2 u$ X& U T8 T+ x2 f o
Because of the Church's influence, scholarship was encouraged" D1 U0 o+ }$ a2 d9 A
and Britain began its rise as one of the intellectual' ^# U; W6 S3 Z
leaders of Europe.; s d3 }/ w. s# h% e% K
Toward the end of the 700's, hardy Vikings from Denmark,
* t9 R9 |$ n) ?$ _; JNorway, and Sweden began invading and settling in
! C4 r% B6 ~: s, g& Dmany parts of Britain. By the 1000's, a Danish king ruled2 ^$ K2 N$ U' D: x7 k% ^
Britain. As a result of the invasions from the Danish peninsula,& q3 i/ M2 O3 ]0 J* p1 r7 C
many Scandinavian words became part of English.
# _) v( D6 f% T% a. V( a" dThese did not identify new ideas and objects. They were everyday% F9 y' \( A7 p- A- }* N3 [- a
words for which the English already had terms and expressions.
% g, v6 [! I( |$ u Why did the Scandinavian words exist side by side with. t) e6 F' \- [, T
English words instead of replacing them? The Scandinavian/ i: B( U4 k- p Q2 r% k+ V2 }2 e
invaders were Germanic people like the Anglo-Saxons. Their
# K& w) d, d: L3 Jcultures were similar and their languages enough alike so
5 s: ~! j, f4 B1 Tthat they understood one another. Many words were exactly
9 j! { u3 y* {' @: \ G; s) ralike, such as father, husband, house, life, man, mother,
) {7 f" |% E" \summer, wife, and winter. Other words were so much alike( L/ k/ p2 x x. r3 ?0 s9 e* G
they were used interchangeably.5 q9 w% s( T& S5 c2 t6 d3 {, z
Although the Scandinavians and the English fought each
2 `0 B* W+ f2 I: W$ ~; d$ wother, many Scandinavians settled peacefully in Britain, married
. ~% _' O& G4 I" VEnglish women, and raised families. Often both languages
$ z% B5 `; d/ Y! ^; ~# d* N- Zwere spoken in the same household. Where different5 h0 x, A/ @# E* W0 b2 @
words existed for the same thing, the Old English word usually' i- H5 m% }0 o4 ^! U3 a
won out, but there were some exceptions. The results of I4 `( ~, d# \, @; t
this absorption of language through close contact is seen in6 ?$ j7 L0 u; d! X) ^9 D2 h
the histories of such words from Scandinavia as skirt, skill,
2 M$ i; O- M4 j) x1 N X$ h4 Pwindow, leg, gasp, birth, glitter, they, their, them, egg.
( C1 ]# {* g6 |* n Scholars believe that at least 900 words of Scandinavian
. t$ ~" z/ i1 Q! b" p7 ^4 Uorigin have survived in modern Standard English. Many
9 E! R6 [6 x* P9 \+ U% I7 G, l7 P! ?more are still in use in Great Britain. They are found in dialects
. g" s1 [" n- q+ b; N4 @5 Tspoken in regions heavily settled by the Swedes,: a$ f! ~ d) f6 h
Danes, and Norse in those early days.0 A7 x5 ]! t! S) Y
# S' r' V2 J5 p( V/ n9 y! I
Middle English
& }* g8 x$ F' h1 @Old English began to undergo a great change when the Normans, q6 }, H+ t% I8 F$ B+ Z {
invaded England from France in 1066. Until then, in8 l3 I8 o2 U9 {, X
spite of the Latin brought in by the introduction of Christianity,5 J3 @2 B. `9 q8 ^/ a
the influence on English was overwhelmingly Germanic., _5 J f6 F. h! r% H. i4 V9 S
The Normans began a process that brought many" D' b' f0 _) ?# d1 \
French words into the English language. They replaced the
8 F2 V- D$ M6 h2 R2 }6 wEnglish as rulers, chief landholders, and church officials and9 q1 M" S m/ d4 R D& ?6 K2 a! S
Norman-French became the language of the ruling class.% B+ y5 |2 R/ I9 i4 x& r: C/ Z ^
However, the common people continued to speak English.
n% j! _" S. M4 v" d3 V) n% q Norman-French and Old,English existed side by side until/ ~1 d5 ]% _ F
political and social changes began to favor the use of English
2 F1 Y& Y! a% ]- Z* |- k" Q( \8 \% Tby all classes. The Normans lost control of their territory in) J/ f$ K" k' l( \
France in the early 1200's. Confined to Britain, the Normans
9 _& L; P3 a. pbegan to learn English. Eventually, it replaced French as the
' R1 F! d4 f O7 W) i) |2 Hlanguage of the ruling class, the schools, and the courts. By6 G0 ]% N, ]1 y
the end of what is known as the Middle English period
+ [1 [4 O3 v; g; @3 O) z' `(1100-1500), English again had established itself as the major- r/ j _" l; M7 p r) ]; K
language in Britain.5 M. H0 Q' h7 m7 ]+ G5 m
During this period, English continued to borrow words
# q) h$ a; L( _4 a) c6 K, e1 yfrom French and from Latin. In the English we now speak,
6 z% b, k' V! E3 R4 [% {more than half of the words in common use come from5 u0 z6 d/ |) r# k# h" @* c$ X
these two sources. Many words from Old English and Anglo-
6 P. k) K: i! t/ @French that are roughly synonymous exist side by side today.
$ q. x" N6 s6 `- }" N5 B1 \; D- PFor example, dress and clothes, aid and help, royal
+ t8 ~0 C& ^. {0 G7 @, x4 kand kingly. In addition, trade between Britain and the Low
1 `2 |7 O) F/ F2 a6 t4 m- _* q: mCountries, especially Holland, accounts for the inclusion of
& ? D# g4 f. y+ A" c4 W1 Nperhaps as many as 2,500 words of Dutch origin in the English6 D2 V6 h; n3 P
language. Some examples are: boom (at the bottom of a6 A/ `2 h4 g b( p; Y
sail), deck, easel, etch, freight, furlough, and stoop (porch
5 j+ m' P) L, A# H& M3 h6 \or entrance).
0 w: A5 c5 h3 a, R Before the Norman invasion, a great change in English
9 c, p/ U. @* u5 P1 x- Iwas beginning to shift grammatical and pronunciation patterns.
) I! b3 B5 J8 S f! ]2 A ?6 rHowever, the coming of the Normans accelerated
r+ l/ T% ~- W* C' @$ Ethese changes. Everyday use, growth of dialects, and contact
! z. {' V6 v, x+ L1 jwith foreign languages caused inflections (word endings) to
: A$ T0 P0 B! V( Ulose their distinctive meanings and their usefulness. Instead5 ?7 b7 `2 H0 T- A
of depending on word endings to give exact meaning to a3 h4 a! o* s# w) A0 R! X+ P
sentence, as had been the case in Old English, word order
. r1 L9 Y5 {5 j4 x# c. P" mbecame the important indicator.
# y. z( ^5 a2 O6 d" Z In Old English, for example, To his J>eowum se feeder cwaeoK5 B' C2 _' V k8 j
meaning "The father said to his servants" or "To his servants
# P9 r i, [' Rthe father said," would have the same meaning no matter! l2 J. w( @8 g7 S7 {2 o
how the words were placed in the sentence. The -urn: f8 h5 ~ I0 b& E2 d: p
ending on beow(um) would always indicate who was being( A. w% h! P( N$ `2 g
spoken to. In modern English, if we shift word order to
( p# ^: _: Q. Q, imake the sentence read " His servants said to the father,"
# B+ y Z) l/ X% athe meaning would be quite different.
5 h( _! R. s8 U English still retains some inflections, including plurals and9 |! C1 l) H" @, P& f; h
the verb endings. But Middle English had far fewer inflections
% D# P) P: D2 l5 R" ythan Old English.% H1 r9 }, K# X6 o( u1 s! F
/ p+ q0 P u+ D6 D D/ zModern English5 \5 t, Q* x/ t
The Modern English period, starting about 1500, has been3 I& r+ ]8 k T) B2 v" n4 f
concerned for the most part with regulating and standardizing
5 j5 n5 ?- d N# }4 I, z9 M7 |7 qthe language. But attempts to fix English into a permanent" p0 l/ s2 X2 g6 a$ x
form failed. The way a language is used gives it life,
; J7 Y O& D: U0 Y0 P# V. ^and usage produces change.8 X! l) b6 ]" C: W
However, fixing a language and freezing its usages into a5 L, I/ S$ u$ g* I
form that tolerates no change is different from trying to
- A7 C( h1 e7 E' R7 K4 c; Kstandardize its spelling so that communication between inhabitants
; ]6 k9 _) q; p* ]+ Bof various regions of the country is easy and effective.
; ~; E. u- S4 D% P! w Several factors contributed to establishing Standard English
' {6 [7 N# @ K4 g4 Dspelling and some forms of usage and many of the traits that
* @- B/ P8 C+ R& Aexist in modern English. These factors included the introduction
$ }1 ^- y) w+ }of the printing press into England in 1477 by William1 o' B6 F b6 ]9 E3 _8 c- V- Z0 {
Caxton, the revival of interest in literature, and the growth of3 j" b2 O* C* a: [& p
popular education.
! r0 u7 u9 _" k4 D- n T- ]/ O C The need for standardization was recognized as early as
4 s& P! m) Q& Y1 |1 {1 ^the mid-1300's. From that time, the London dialect (East, z7 U: _" s( o) {/ {" G
Midland) was gradually adopted from the four main dialects
" o7 T5 N) v% D2 a( k- q0 Sin existence (Northern, East and West Midland, and Southern)
9 z U( z" j6 c$ V3 i6 cas the basis for Standard English. The choice was made1 l/ j: M4 ~0 E/ b+ k. m
because the London dialect was the language of contracts
# O0 Q4 C( D7 ^+ A5 Gand commerce and the speech of the ruling court. All official, O, k! T, Y9 w! d9 ]/ {; u
documents originating there were written in the London2 x- \6 A/ K+ v0 P; J7 m
dialect. Furthermore, the translation of the Book of Common
" V4 ?/ ?/ P1 z* A. oPrayer and the King James version of the Bible became tremendous3 p, I/ b+ O5 G- b" D" w
forces for elevated English.9 d& P H* U( G# R9 u( f, m7 |
Before Caxton, literary works were written for the most
' O. M/ b& Y$ e# ppart in the dialect of the author. Spoken dialects continued
# z- ?& c: i, T% cfor a long time and, indeed, still exist. But, by the end of the
p) H7 T- g% Y3 G& d1400's, the London dialect was becoming accepted literary
, f; X$ }( b# x7 S9 ]% w( ?( Susage.
: R: w3 a. q6 E; B By the early part of the 1600's, more than 20,000 different* N9 [8 D, a K( O1 v2 J. {
works were printed in England alone. Books were available
+ `: P) c+ h: Wto all who could read and afford them. The printed3 g5 E, B4 T% | P |8 Z
word helped to make spelling more uniform. Up until that
8 v$ R+ j- }$ X$ Y, q1 Z. J' L% q# htime spelling usually varied from region to region.
, ~2 n, x4 G. j, y4 H# e; e; t; N) A From the 1500's through the 1700's, many writers experimented3 q( v6 ~ s$ d* q( d% G1 p+ Z
with words. Over 10,000 new words entered the' B+ M- y: Q) b4 q
English language. Many of these were taken from Latin and
$ G6 v+ J( L3 L8 H$ U* l" N' B) ~Greek by scholars who wanted to replace the forms earlier
5 S& g+ r/ j, Z4 N$ G; t5 ?adopted from French. Translators and writers believed the( c5 O3 h: ^0 Y4 R
language was rough, unpolished, and incapable of doing
: w4 Z% y" O! ~* n% _what Latin and Greek had done, and what Italian could do.
0 {! C7 p. @( h# |They set about enlarging the vocabulary, chiefly by translating& h2 |- }5 B1 _9 {' l
words from Greek and Latin. More than twenty-five per
' K4 p* C9 P6 v R; \cent of modern English words come almost directly from4 j8 L! k2 B) |& F0 V% B* L
classical languages. Very often we have two words that go
" V( [6 @0 d8 R* s2 Hback to the same Latin original—one brought in by the Normans,
7 Z* q8 G% ~- M0 Gand one taken in directly. For example, words such as
! U! E7 e5 }% L hpaint and picture, certainty and certitude. The adoption of
& v8 O5 E! \! r( m0 c2 N, A9 sGreek and Latin forms became so abundant and so outrageous% ^+ [8 v$ q6 m) `
that many of these borrowings were dubbed "inkhorn
* g# Z3 N; r. j X/ a, Oterms" because of their bookishness. However, some of
6 ~$ m/ n7 I% Z* r$ d: Zthese terms were useful and necessary and they have survived
7 a; W5 e! v$ [! J4 Eto this day. Among them are conduct, dexterity, extinguish,
8 k8 o# w1 s, l [: ~. }! i* yscientific, and spurious.
/ ~' |! F2 w( l! a! D/ {( S! q
3 f3 W" Q& W, E0 e# ^) pAmerican and British English
. J$ R0 c# t3 U7 v$ {$ Q7 n% V$ aAfter the British colonized America, the English language* ?# x9 z1 ^$ {1 b7 e" ~
used by Americans began to change from that in the old
% v, g. l0 K% `country. The biggest factor in this change involved the need! U }2 H8 i: g# \+ N
to create or adopt words to identify unfamiliar objects. Animals,7 l1 G- A1 \* j& K
trees, food, and the physical features of the land were
9 Y( O8 W) l9 p: i- n9 ^different. The Americans took words from the Indians to6 G& \* N: C, ]. w# N; n
identify a raccoon, a tomahawk, a papoose, and a wigwam.( ?+ r& [) W8 y6 |0 \3 R
When there were no appropriate words, they did what their8 _0 V. ]( e3 @4 G
ancestors had done. They combined words and gave them4 o8 ^8 }3 K! J8 R4 R" v
new meanings. The combination of garter and snake produced+ p9 C9 E6 J# b k: V: N
a word to describe a crawling creature they had2 |$ L. H! H# g% D0 ^
never seen before. They named the sweet, edible root of a( _9 W3 q4 W7 y3 _9 P
vine belonging to the morning-glory family, sweet potato.( ^2 r# ?& b5 Z. K9 I
They adapted from the Narraganset Indians the name for the
( R2 s! K( M% y! H+ F# hfruit of a plant of the gourd family, the squash.
4 Y$ F0 I) l, V+ O9 G1 y" R The growth of American nationalism led to a desire for# \% m9 O( o. L/ E3 l6 r* c
cultural as well as political independence from the mother* |! y! C. D/ E2 s1 I
country. This, too, influenced American English, as in conscious( Q- T0 a. b% B' e! O* t% l2 n7 [5 g
attempts to reform spelling so that in time, musick1 Z' s: M0 W ?. [- M( N
became music, and labour became labor. New ideas in the7 W6 l7 c0 H$ b
arts and sciences and the coming to America of people from
4 q& j m4 o0 ymany different countries had a powerful effect on American
: P4 a( Q: ]. T/ [4 c9 O$ B: D2 a7 zEnglish.& V9 n) m2 h! f. N. L/ _
Changes have not been so extensive that we speak a new
/ b: Z; j0 e! H* q8 q* w" l hlanguage. Many Americans may not know that when an
) P" ]# |1 x+ Z) c- aEnglishman says fitment he means an alteration, and that; I# C ~6 w2 {/ z
the British goods wagon is the American freight car. But, for
- q( ?; Z' z: ]9 @8 ithe most part, Americans and Britons communicate easily
" s" s6 o: G m+ d" c# V. q0 abecause grammatical and phonetic patterns have not- o2 l/ C5 g( Q. ^( \% d5 h, i
changed, though many words or lexical content are different.% V0 a, v6 ^$ R
The gap between American and British English has3 d; Q" Q i; X# L
become smaller in recent times, especially with the great increases
5 L) k5 [5 O5 N/ W( K/ _* K, Yin the ease of transportation and communication.4 w8 t% X- S/ w
Neither the Americans nor the British have any qualms, ~6 `+ n( r& G: a- S6 d9 H
about appropriating words from other languages when they
: _2 H/ f3 o, _! l3 S' z# aexpress concepts better than native words can. The British
$ j4 J/ f, k5 L9 G @have taken American words such as telephone, jazz, and( n8 m- v6 {5 r& E$ z `
typewriter. Americans take words from many languages.9 f) o$ C; U2 v" D
English has also changed in other countries where it is+ z5 C1 U% s( Q2 \( g: o! t
used. Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, and others. s/ e" x: u( b" [
have adapted English to fit their own needs. Although all3 I# \# P* `0 R/ `
English-speaking people can generally understand each: S9 T8 ]) E& }% i" o6 h% U
other, each English-speaking country has developed distinctive
d) O) Q+ z( g: D; Y- Qways of using the language. For example, New Zealanders
. {: W6 K( G* z* q) |- Brefer to a section (a building lot in a city), Australians to2 x4 y8 `3 v5 m; p1 d) J; t1 w
a mob (a group of animals), and Canadians to a chesterfield
/ b+ [( J: x6 b6 }(an overstuffed sofa).
- ?8 L) J4 R4 D, S6 P* a% q As long as travel and trade exist between nations, as long
4 k" g" p2 [1 h7 t# J1 H& }0 |7 m! Uas large groups of people continue to settle in countries
3 o- j, j& ?/ `! U0 N' Aother than their native lands, and as long as the sciences
b& \7 x- m$ Y; Uand the arts progress, new ideas, new words, and new usages. g& J" b+ x' L; T4 B, |
of words will continue to keep language changing and L0 x' k/ W/ T0 i' E
growing. |
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