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* m4 i8 U3 n- A2 h/ P' J. f5 h1、Where English comes from
* l% u2 C7 K4 J* ?; EThe English language has existed for hundreds of years.% Q* [/ a n: g. ~/ ^
Many words came into English from various European languages.
, C, l% i9 r" e4 P8 C) ^) pFor example, St. Augustine and other Latin-speaking7 C4 ?1 N1 m$ L1 B9 v A
missionaries to England used such words as bishop and
; H. \. b; G8 g5 h9 v: ~- t' |2 ~priest. Latin was the language of scholarship and religion.5 q+ V, Q& s2 Z/ L; c4 k
Wherever Latin scholars, missionaries, and government officials1 _8 i# Z3 b4 b" T
exerted important influence, Latin words became
" [0 u" R$ i- R4 v/ tknown. When the Scandinavians invaded and settled in Britain,
7 |# ?, L3 Y E1 @% N: y# o8 B2 _! ^some words beginning with sk- were adopted into English.1 `. i. d& J" P7 P p3 }4 m9 l+ X) N/ m
For example, skill, skirt, and sky. The Scandinavians
$ }" n$ Z S X+ w7 M; t3 Z4 Xalso contributed important pronouns such as their, them,
- }3 f( \, a9 C0 H% K9 R" Uand they. Words of French origin include army, blue, chair,4 \# D, {/ J* k) v; K
dinner, government, jolly, mayor, paper, and towel. Balcony,
! I' ?& Q4 F! }# T, Q/ [7 Npiano, and pizza come from Italy; fiesta and siesta,
; ^( a- C5 P! n, A! I/ u0 qfrom Spain; orchestra, from Greece; boomerang, from Australia;, ]% [: c9 D, \* T. Q' e5 m
vodka, from Russia; and igloo, from the Eskimos./ U+ g/ K Q8 y
English is always growing and changing. Words constantly3 u2 w- d! @0 u6 K$ _8 H
are being added and falling into disuse. Many words that
8 r5 a% W# t/ a1 M9 Cyou hear, speak, and read today were not part of the language
! G$ b* ]2 _+ Z$ b4 Oyour grandparents used. Look in a dictionary published
6 r( [8 [ `2 l+ ^( Uat that time and you will not find such words as astronaut,; T8 L/ I& W8 V5 |1 B8 Q7 X5 h. i6 D
culture shock, miniskirt, rolamite, and microfiche.
/ d. }6 C }7 c! [Every time new inventions, scientific discoveries, art forms,) _: d% u, _2 Y2 h p
or fashions appear that do not have names to identify them,
2 @. Q8 W8 o2 f+ xnew words must be invented or old words given new applications,; e4 Y5 \+ L: H
or taken from other languages.
D- p# U! c" ?. y$ ? When words are not used, they become obsolete. Obsolete, R+ \# q6 D! z9 r1 x4 C
words are included in the dictionary because they are
0 L1 |: ^& Z% y2 u5 |' dpart of our history and our culture. You will want to know
5 I& v2 u$ @0 o6 v$ vwhat they mean when you read them in old books or hear
# B- [$ L0 N' w e' ethem used in plays written a long time ago. Before the automobile; O2 o6 k! y$ A: q! k, y
was a common form of transportation, people traveled
4 D, [6 x6 V2 t* m# O, Pin buggies drawn by horses. Now when you hear or
! T! ?( E& E/ I \) D6 dsee the word buggy you are inclined to think of something& n. N$ Q0 V) U7 V- q
old-fashioned or insect-ridden.
- }1 B: l" z* V# N$ O! P Many words have changed their meanings. For example,
% T% F5 }# }* {& f' ?sly and crafty people were once described as "pretty." At
8 Y) K$ ]5 \' f( a' U& Fone time, when people wanted to picture someone as stupid
3 v0 M9 d: G' j8 f% h6 ?and ignorant they referred to that person as "nice." Today,
% D$ z- d$ E% a1 v$ z! |if someone tells us we are "nice" and "pretty," we feel flattered,
- W; y: r# Y& E2 `8 h- Gnot insulted., ^- N2 [6 n* [# d8 G% P
These are only a few of the ways in which language
0 ^" t; t; s2 a) R+ K, c L9 Ochanges and grows. By knowing how words become part of! F) W b% t! V: U7 @* e" z
a language, you discover important clues to social, political,
. ~; g$ \) D$ b$ A& }# zand cultural changes that take place in the history of a
& x: U; R; F- R0 Pcountry using that language.
6 X2 r7 c# ?! o The story of how English originated is a fascinating one.4 F. G; }( W, v1 {$ a
9 c! p; r. _, ?; M9 ]
How English began
/ G$ r0 ^& \) C. E9 v" G* N3 oEnglish comes from a common ancestral language believed
( o* y! D4 _- e w2 j3 Rto have existed a very long time ago. It has been called! R) \2 n. G- R1 l" i9 k6 C# z
Indo-European. About 4,500 years ago, the people who7 p& e0 o5 L( H, w2 ~
spoke varying forms of this language split into groups that* ?3 Z: O, L8 D6 r* J2 r
drifted into Europe and parts of Asia. Different speech communities
$ d4 _& X, V) f" pdeveloped within these widespread groups eventually
( ~7 }$ X1 t3 o( t: z# @9 ~giving rise to several languages including Latin, from
2 j5 }* X8 U: Lwhich many of the languages spoken in Europe today developed.
8 a: Y8 P4 \$ {9 O: o: x, g2 BOne group of Indo-European languages is known as2 l& d" i/ ^$ F. {% J
Germanic, and this is the primary parent language of English f s _0 X% }; F. M2 l6 T
and German.
w, T# |' h: p4 k Warrior-adventurers, who spoke Germanic, invaded what
6 O4 @6 N) G( ?, Y$ jis now Great Britain about A.D. 450. The invaders—called! K$ p9 G# N v0 u& m
Angles, Saxons, and Jutes—all spoke similar dialects. The1 l, h6 X$ U1 s2 z" R& I+ m
people they conquered, known as Britons, spoke Celtic. The4 u. n# x0 Y( Z) T- w
Celtic language included Latin words because conquering% c X1 @% N; @! U# Q1 T* y
Roman troops occupied Britain from A.D. 43 until the 400's.
* u( P" I! l0 h' OThe troops had to return home to defend Rome against invading
& C0 g1 `' x1 ^armies. The Germanic tribes conquered Britain after
# }' Z. G* B+ ^5 W, \3 f% l2 B# y' Pthe Romans left.+ T# E0 M6 Z2 v4 [* t$ j
As the invading tribes took over and settled in Britain, the
% ~4 [8 F: }, F5 U+ L+ I7 eCeltic languages gradually retreated. Since the Celtic people) I2 ]; j- Q" F P
were forced to communicate with their rulers, the history of
+ w b( _8 J( d( v# h8 cthe English language begins with the take-over of Britain by# H; f! ^- V. u% \! F
the Germanic tribes. As a result, Celtic made only a small
; C+ U- w( ^. Mcontribution to the English vocabulary with words such as2 f& D G! @& c3 z( l
crag and bin. However, many place names were adopted# N. q! w8 Q( w1 U( J/ D
from the Celtic. Among them are Avon, Kent, London,
8 C' c7 f) d$ X# B UOuse, and Thames. Small groups of people living in Ireland,
4 D& k9 D5 ]! O( E3 b$ a, TWales, and the Scottish Highlands still speak varieties of Celtic
+ N, C0 c1 K9 B; H2 m+ Z2 Dsuch as Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, and recently8 a; J% e7 G2 O* k' z! { P
revived Irish.$ t4 Y% O4 e3 e9 K5 B, S6 h; C
- h( K- K" v6 \$ f/ zOld English
5 i F* |# W- vThe Angles and Saxons occupied a large part of Britain. The W' p' A5 `9 X- y( a) U% s
name of one of the former tribes eventually became the
. P* v6 N0 c2 X4 ]2 Q* Gname of the land they occupied, England. The Anglo-Saxon& E1 Z0 X$ F }. T7 F
language, now usually called Old English, became firmly established: ?9 T' { X6 E$ o0 G# ?
in Britain in the period from the A.D. 500's to 1066.% ?& r) a! o; E2 u3 X: s
Even as this happened, changes were taking place. Latinspeaking
( t- W, a& M4 ~* O0 RRoman and Celtic missionaries under St. Augustine,
: a+ G# i h( h7 j3 M: Z9 V: xbegan spreading Christianity in Britain. The introduction of) G' P; Y E7 T0 m' n; d
Christianity exerted a great impact on the English language.
: }" ^* e4 ~' ^; x1 KReligion brought with it many new ideas and customs. And9 M' w( X4 p# F2 k
Christianity used Latin. In their attempt to identify and deal) r1 e) k" J) z! ^. S& m: n G
with all these new ideas and customs, the Anglo-Saxons did
7 @. w! c1 W2 `not hesitate to borrow from Latin the special vocabulary
' }' M0 B; m( w# }/ f' b# X2 ^9 E, Tneeded for the new religious life. Among the words taken
' D. J* b9 {: Q4 {9 K9 f# e9 Rfrom Church Latin which still survive are:% }7 }1 e& o1 n, Y; h
3 p4 d$ y! n" A1 c6 X4 y) }Latin Old English Modern English# M: v5 T3 P, [' ?! f0 u
abbatis abbod abbot
0 z ?# _8 r, Ncandela candel candle
7 ~3 u: l8 k( w7 m! f& x2 x+ a" ialtare altar altar
1 e. t7 U3 f/ |( M4 U0 Gamen amen amen9 a1 ]0 z& ~ s' I3 d
apostolus apostol apostle: D) B5 d3 y& ^3 P
+ G# w1 l% H0 n# h+ z
However, users of Old English did not borrow as heavily M4 O7 @* J! ~( o1 P6 }4 ^! I
from Latin and other languages in this period as they did: }% h& L, H! |6 K: ~+ t
later when there was greater communication with the Continent.6 U3 A4 b/ f2 z( ]$ ~! N
Sometimes they changed the meanings of native
/ {" v0 A6 j/ \# kwords. The word for Easter (eastron) originally was the8 W' P. R- w1 F
name for the spring festival honoring the goddess of dawn.
) g8 \5 `3 k' _, aCeol (Yule), the name of the festival held to celebrate the2 n# S' O* D) r+ p J
passing of the shortest day of the year, came to denote
2 Z) S. ~8 E5 f8 }% j O( HChristmas.
W# I- X7 y2 o) c( x0 d) x6 k0 ]6 g3 O Native ingenuity was shown in creating new words by
: O- C, h7 K$ d9 `9 Y# N) Acombining two native words in much the same way as we
! Q i0 J, O4 @! o1 P/ N" Unow combine words such as space and worthy to form
Q$ ^: r0 @% H, d. ]spaceworthy. Old English words such as Icececraft (leechcraft),- M Q! }2 W, d+ i5 B# V2 g
meaning medicine, and handboc (handbook), meaning: u: ^% }$ L/ s
manual, illustrate this practice.# Z s$ h3 {; d4 p% ?2 B
The growth of the Old English vocabulary during this. I# h3 L( Q5 ?4 `) P
period of language history reflects the growth of English culture.
! m/ }: \& {' P! j" ^% xBecause of the Church's influence, scholarship was encouraged! i: Y* P C- N O3 z
and Britain began its rise as one of the intellectual) g" l( \" C+ W0 V* ~) f5 {; I" x
leaders of Europe.
2 P2 A) A$ t; r2 X+ K* ~/ I Toward the end of the 700's, hardy Vikings from Denmark,2 G8 L) Q* _9 r: [( l% G0 S
Norway, and Sweden began invading and settling in; Z( Y0 u! R, a" L4 L
many parts of Britain. By the 1000's, a Danish king ruled
7 k, Q0 p+ t8 x, I$ PBritain. As a result of the invasions from the Danish peninsula,
+ C4 I( n: x' E9 Dmany Scandinavian words became part of English.
7 _( Y x l! F# R. `. M/ nThese did not identify new ideas and objects. They were everyday2 E w9 w' [' J6 t' F
words for which the English already had terms and expressions.
5 B: Q+ a! O5 R+ p, T4 Q' M Why did the Scandinavian words exist side by side with
5 Y; g5 X0 J9 K$ F, }: e/ L4 xEnglish words instead of replacing them? The Scandinavian
* A; L) E- {/ m G! u7 winvaders were Germanic people like the Anglo-Saxons. Their
# A3 i) S2 F% Z$ b; R0 jcultures were similar and their languages enough alike so
9 @$ B4 @; x9 b5 vthat they understood one another. Many words were exactly
2 Q( e8 L- d+ H% Z, h7 Falike, such as father, husband, house, life, man, mother,9 K$ B5 o) X% l* c+ ~
summer, wife, and winter. Other words were so much alike
: m/ s1 c# `- \5 M2 `/ W H6 n& nthey were used interchangeably.
5 e7 z) j; ^ K Although the Scandinavians and the English fought each
, `' X1 ]5 h" d" L1 ~; K8 |other, many Scandinavians settled peacefully in Britain, married
7 V" `" S' K: Y% p" I, h! XEnglish women, and raised families. Often both languages
) g5 ^. `- K) rwere spoken in the same household. Where different; o$ B$ _9 N; a0 i
words existed for the same thing, the Old English word usually' Z5 t$ ]1 a! T: r2 y4 Z8 |; u
won out, but there were some exceptions. The results of! H8 @4 b7 J8 W0 n( E5 }
this absorption of language through close contact is seen in
" b' d) V) [+ b% j# y( r- E; \. ythe histories of such words from Scandinavia as skirt, skill,
# A) K. M. j Mwindow, leg, gasp, birth, glitter, they, their, them, egg.# {# S% l/ t: t( i
Scholars believe that at least 900 words of Scandinavian
2 u$ [% l6 I5 S3 y3 \0 W- l Sorigin have survived in modern Standard English. Many
. d6 i! y3 q# G9 o! c U$ gmore are still in use in Great Britain. They are found in dialects
) k: \! S( t. J- r- m# f$ Rspoken in regions heavily settled by the Swedes,
/ L: r- |7 x% o5 CDanes, and Norse in those early days.* k4 s( R$ L4 A0 l3 G$ f! M$ h. x
1 @1 H( V4 J" g% _& Y/ dMiddle English
9 ^* L% j2 O; BOld English began to undergo a great change when the Normans
. \+ ?5 D' u8 q' k5 H! b9 ginvaded England from France in 1066. Until then, in
" r' z5 \1 B$ Wspite of the Latin brought in by the introduction of Christianity,, w3 Y: ~" o% N1 q: N+ |% Z
the influence on English was overwhelmingly Germanic., \7 p- ^7 ?! U$ X1 x6 X. H
The Normans began a process that brought many
D& [/ I& n# Y/ ^French words into the English language. They replaced the
( T7 d I6 H$ Q e4 u- VEnglish as rulers, chief landholders, and church officials and$ O* o" n9 D8 U2 d* T5 e
Norman-French became the language of the ruling class./ D9 z& T( h$ F% O# [
However, the common people continued to speak English.
$ z+ [* f! P) s$ @$ P Norman-French and Old,English existed side by side until
6 }7 W0 d' k3 Kpolitical and social changes began to favor the use of English
* N6 e0 f6 X+ F$ f9 ?. Cby all classes. The Normans lost control of their territory in+ E$ x) w- a2 M4 }' [% z8 |
France in the early 1200's. Confined to Britain, the Normans' H k5 A* O; M5 Z0 c
began to learn English. Eventually, it replaced French as the
/ V7 G ~4 k" N2 Hlanguage of the ruling class, the schools, and the courts. By
. |& \6 O5 k! R+ R$ Bthe end of what is known as the Middle English period( j1 s) ^/ K2 E) K% n( ?
(1100-1500), English again had established itself as the major8 }/ W- o. \/ N! u; x
language in Britain.0 L4 ?3 c. o; g% a- B. } H
During this period, English continued to borrow words
( O! E: A3 m( zfrom French and from Latin. In the English we now speak,: |: U" a# r: C* P
more than half of the words in common use come from
) z! P5 K/ s/ ?' U0 f/ \these two sources. Many words from Old English and Anglo-
( i" F& x- \* OFrench that are roughly synonymous exist side by side today.
" b2 b4 |6 t( [+ u8 VFor example, dress and clothes, aid and help, royal4 L B5 J% l: H- }4 d
and kingly. In addition, trade between Britain and the Low$ h& U7 F1 b0 B5 X7 i# n& C
Countries, especially Holland, accounts for the inclusion of
- @2 ?6 V# Q, u% {" W Y& bperhaps as many as 2,500 words of Dutch origin in the English6 y3 |/ l6 U' h4 J1 M3 \
language. Some examples are: boom (at the bottom of a
; u' V2 ?7 l5 H2 C5 _sail), deck, easel, etch, freight, furlough, and stoop (porch( a, @. M4 W$ D' F5 G7 q* w" R
or entrance).
9 H' P3 L h6 e( B* c Before the Norman invasion, a great change in English! s1 {1 G; K9 t6 \ x8 E
was beginning to shift grammatical and pronunciation patterns.
- ^& c) a: G2 GHowever, the coming of the Normans accelerated9 R c. Z. x* N/ O( S0 [
these changes. Everyday use, growth of dialects, and contact& E+ h8 \& j& s i4 G0 o
with foreign languages caused inflections (word endings) to6 w, s1 }& D# X$ U1 V
lose their distinctive meanings and their usefulness. Instead* L/ e- R% b( ]" ?
of depending on word endings to give exact meaning to a
7 G' t4 w, S. p$ rsentence, as had been the case in Old English, word order. ?& V- w: }0 y' D% @1 z
became the important indicator.7 f7 P0 X Z( z7 M6 _4 x
In Old English, for example, To his J>eowum se feeder cwaeoK5 r3 S3 Y2 q& e+ n1 d9 _9 o
meaning "The father said to his servants" or "To his servants+ V2 m1 a/ y- [ u! {% ?7 C& D
the father said," would have the same meaning no matter
, b# D7 y& d x% B5 P0 Ohow the words were placed in the sentence. The -urn
, k$ z- O' q! B0 k: {1 aending on beow(um) would always indicate who was being. B: `) `( _4 k* D; [5 d) k
spoken to. In modern English, if we shift word order to
, \. u" F/ H' rmake the sentence read " His servants said to the father,"5 r; W4 t! [, ?& S2 T' q
the meaning would be quite different." ]5 ]; y4 a9 [
English still retains some inflections, including plurals and3 i* ^; R$ H. }! T/ P$ J" h
the verb endings. But Middle English had far fewer inflections7 P5 a5 B; I3 i: E3 [7 i
than Old English.
1 e, o2 h' a) H1 X1 ~% u; ] s0 A( f1 k7 Z9 y
Modern English
& ^: s' U- M* e r1 P0 ] \3 _The Modern English period, starting about 1500, has been
$ A' o2 ^$ t; ^4 q9 Z+ ~; ?concerned for the most part with regulating and standardizing* _/ M' J. L/ \
the language. But attempts to fix English into a permanent# V4 |2 b0 M; ^: ^1 e
form failed. The way a language is used gives it life,
/ v+ }3 A) f7 C7 @( f4 @- {' U* jand usage produces change.2 N1 I" O2 G6 f) d9 v% M" ^
However, fixing a language and freezing its usages into a
* N2 p- ?: a% \1 Qform that tolerates no change is different from trying to
: C9 ~8 X2 O2 c) z- ostandardize its spelling so that communication between inhabitants
0 C* u1 N. _7 A) q5 Fof various regions of the country is easy and effective.
: W5 Y: T/ {3 ~5 O: y Several factors contributed to establishing Standard English
8 d1 w" E8 B( Qspelling and some forms of usage and many of the traits that
8 g; X ?( e0 B9 ]' Qexist in modern English. These factors included the introduction& b; u1 L7 R( I
of the printing press into England in 1477 by William
! r0 m9 j# [0 M) N* N6 MCaxton, the revival of interest in literature, and the growth of1 G+ K+ p: g& x
popular education.
( t/ `, a) r. q6 A The need for standardization was recognized as early as
5 C' Y& ^- K6 b6 ], h* Y) |' Ethe mid-1300's. From that time, the London dialect (East
- A% f |0 L3 [( uMidland) was gradually adopted from the four main dialects
: R8 Q4 X# n* r7 S2 U& c7 |# N9 Xin existence (Northern, East and West Midland, and Southern): R, Y6 P. w$ l
as the basis for Standard English. The choice was made
2 a; C! |, u, V7 gbecause the London dialect was the language of contracts' |* A6 J8 U0 N6 R9 i+ `
and commerce and the speech of the ruling court. All official
P% X, S+ z* vdocuments originating there were written in the London
& t' u+ `: ^/ Gdialect. Furthermore, the translation of the Book of Common
, d3 r2 G( F7 I; LPrayer and the King James version of the Bible became tremendous( D x; ]3 z) `3 M0 a T& u$ S
forces for elevated English.
8 j1 \% K5 m2 I6 ]3 n n Before Caxton, literary works were written for the most# v% w7 E2 }: g% Y) D; N
part in the dialect of the author. Spoken dialects continued6 d1 R3 n$ {1 n* s6 o; L
for a long time and, indeed, still exist. But, by the end of the
8 W9 R. i7 V% `; j y( O* A* E1400's, the London dialect was becoming accepted literary
) S9 F. L7 K3 n. a2 @usage.
$ v+ e# d* M6 |, H By the early part of the 1600's, more than 20,000 different
3 F+ E; o! }+ E8 T$ a8 ~" Cworks were printed in England alone. Books were available" p2 c+ ?( L- v
to all who could read and afford them. The printed/ F7 R! Q ^! Q+ d) a7 P' T
word helped to make spelling more uniform. Up until that
7 h. c6 _" P: e5 o$ ytime spelling usually varied from region to region.' [4 f( E$ l* J
From the 1500's through the 1700's, many writers experimented* [# n# C' i4 P" |: b; @
with words. Over 10,000 new words entered the
' h1 x7 u. w4 d7 vEnglish language. Many of these were taken from Latin and
1 w- d: z' R" r( ~% v+ Y. [Greek by scholars who wanted to replace the forms earlier$ h4 H4 G! N- Z; w+ z( @. [9 F
adopted from French. Translators and writers believed the
4 |. h) C, L/ V) rlanguage was rough, unpolished, and incapable of doing
) r0 R5 T; P! h) z: x6 [4 {what Latin and Greek had done, and what Italian could do.5 ~) j+ Z8 C8 [7 p/ V. O
They set about enlarging the vocabulary, chiefly by translating; |9 v ~! {# h8 p5 J6 V8 p
words from Greek and Latin. More than twenty-five per
+ F4 P7 s6 T+ ucent of modern English words come almost directly from: G$ W; z3 \8 L
classical languages. Very often we have two words that go" |* H: \, D7 @
back to the same Latin original—one brought in by the Normans,8 N; c5 j- U$ s u% F; t2 h/ r* t
and one taken in directly. For example, words such as( K1 v$ Y: W) ]) N/ o
paint and picture, certainty and certitude. The adoption of+ s* q: H- R+ w! m& g0 _) }
Greek and Latin forms became so abundant and so outrageous2 N% ^2 l7 X' I, Q0 w! i
that many of these borrowings were dubbed "inkhorn4 q# S1 [, i/ z
terms" because of their bookishness. However, some of+ I9 b9 ]4 |1 Y& o& Y1 ^0 ]
these terms were useful and necessary and they have survived" ~, j1 j k7 u
to this day. Among them are conduct, dexterity, extinguish,
# G: C. \, {) w7 }+ v. i) R' Iscientific, and spurious.
; D$ `/ ^: o/ Z# ~8 K) \' G0 s, L N* i9 e; M4 y' W1 ^( h" g4 C
American and British English
9 j! C6 J2 d5 RAfter the British colonized America, the English language
0 i$ P) j* S! d( P6 D% V2 xused by Americans began to change from that in the old
/ Y4 p. Z4 C4 E! w ~7 {; o* S2 X2 ycountry. The biggest factor in this change involved the need
/ ?- ]6 e5 g1 c* n1 Oto create or adopt words to identify unfamiliar objects. Animals,: R1 o; ]1 G* Z, H8 U+ s
trees, food, and the physical features of the land were
1 U0 S% o9 {* k$ s; idifferent. The Americans took words from the Indians to0 b6 V% q# t7 X( s9 M4 A
identify a raccoon, a tomahawk, a papoose, and a wigwam., b X' J5 M2 P" P- G
When there were no appropriate words, they did what their* O# E9 R1 t( ` {% b* ]
ancestors had done. They combined words and gave them+ Z, K( y8 \' G5 ]* q- i1 V
new meanings. The combination of garter and snake produced
& r2 W& S8 y( Ta word to describe a crawling creature they had
+ Z. F; S1 q& U$ P& z) W6 `+ mnever seen before. They named the sweet, edible root of a
/ N% A3 a' z" _0 U( Xvine belonging to the morning-glory family, sweet potato.( D' y. k( q9 v) \) f8 |
They adapted from the Narraganset Indians the name for the
% s( J3 V7 S5 ~1 z/ C1 @" F; Cfruit of a plant of the gourd family, the squash.7 _. K# l% b7 s- I% O6 f
The growth of American nationalism led to a desire for
. T. {! ?) o1 H5 L3 R# [cultural as well as political independence from the mother
! q! \* M7 @8 ^, d+ p" f: I' `5 ucountry. This, too, influenced American English, as in conscious/ A1 u: a# H$ ~ ^. ^
attempts to reform spelling so that in time, musick/ M6 Z7 Z6 S+ A
became music, and labour became labor. New ideas in the
4 `0 O- N' ?2 H! \2 u0 D) Farts and sciences and the coming to America of people from
6 ]+ \: I$ K9 j2 S. d& Gmany different countries had a powerful effect on American( Z/ D# a( s- N0 s, ]9 g1 M
English.
, F( j: Y8 ]2 [. q" V7 _2 l Changes have not been so extensive that we speak a new) L' k8 s& r/ m# R' K
language. Many Americans may not know that when an& A: ?& \ \, `
Englishman says fitment he means an alteration, and that
7 D t# w! t& V) Kthe British goods wagon is the American freight car. But, for
( Y- o, t4 _2 ? f Y& Vthe most part, Americans and Britons communicate easily
; ^4 ^: d" F% z; H' R( Ebecause grammatical and phonetic patterns have not( W2 G$ A0 W0 }2 C
changed, though many words or lexical content are different.
8 f: T G" I. J* Q2 O8 K The gap between American and British English has
( c `* g V% h8 l! \become smaller in recent times, especially with the great increases
. m# ^3 [, G" ^3 O, uin the ease of transportation and communication.; d; O1 G P3 P `1 ^
Neither the Americans nor the British have any qualms/ W, f1 f2 k# r. g
about appropriating words from other languages when they
2 D; p( B5 R4 Sexpress concepts better than native words can. The British
- [. H3 _' ?' A5 Phave taken American words such as telephone, jazz, and$ c* M# D! E+ q% s- p
typewriter. Americans take words from many languages.: ?& s; M* B! Z% {- c- c
English has also changed in other countries where it is
6 ?" Y8 Q8 s$ D$ l9 G! u0 xused. Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, and others
/ G; q1 s. g* ~/ ~) ]' ~have adapted English to fit their own needs. Although all
5 u- E% b6 M2 n' }English-speaking people can generally understand each# G+ i1 i' h; l- `5 ^6 {! j/ a1 ^
other, each English-speaking country has developed distinctive
. V6 _$ x; c8 n3 Jways of using the language. For example, New Zealanders; p- ]9 I- y/ t* F/ ~$ b
refer to a section (a building lot in a city), Australians to% C- e- p. g2 u$ G! L3 v, A
a mob (a group of animals), and Canadians to a chesterfield
+ U, B% g |1 x1 x; n(an overstuffed sofa)./ E+ ]# W) ?) V% x/ x1 B$ }* _8 w
As long as travel and trade exist between nations, as long
2 F; ]! `2 j- `6 b! L5 Fas large groups of people continue to settle in countries
$ b! K0 S6 Z5 q# v4 h8 |" X; tother than their native lands, and as long as the sciences
, _' F; F8 h y0 j, \7 G3 Qand the arts progress, new ideas, new words, and new usages
- K( O+ a' Y; Y+ ~$ [3 nof words will continue to keep language changing and7 P4 P O# f# o' J' u2 X! W( @
growing. |
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