Literature 1: History of the English Language

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• Middelbare school
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• Leerjaar 5

Literature 1: 
The History of the 
English Language

Literature Test

At the end of this period:

    - A literature test about all the background information,

       the questions, and the assignments

    - Schoolexamen cijfer!

So read the background information, answer the questions in your reader, check your answers, and start studying in time. 

The History of the
English Language

1. Take a guess: English is part of which language family?

1. Germanic Languages
2. Romanic Languages
3. Slavic Languages
4. Uralic Languages

2. Take a guess: The tribes that invaded England between 400-1000, came from ...?

1. Belgium & The North of France
2. Finland & The North of Poland
3. Germany & The North of The Netherlands
4. Denmark & The North of Germany

3. True or False: Old English had just as many "naamvallen" as modern day German.

1. True
2. False

4. Take a guess: The French invaded Great Britain in what year?

1. 666
2. 1066
3. 1466
4. 1866

5. Take a guess: Which of the following words was not invented by Shakespeare?

1. justice
2. puppy
3. alligator
4. fashionable

The English Language:

Mix of languages led to: 
   - Old English: 450-1100
   - Middle English: 1100-1500
   - Early Modern English: 1500-1800
   - Late Modern English: 1800-now

Influences on the English Language:

Development: 

- Modern English = I steal, you steal, he steals, we steal
- Old English =  ic stele, þu stilst, hē stilð, we stelaþ

- Similar to the German "Naamvallen"
- English & German are part of the same Germanic language 
   family and have the same origin. 

Old English (450-1100)

- Up until 450: a mix of languages, mostly Celtic, some Latin
- Part of Roman empire 43 - 410 AD

- Angles, Saxons & Jutes invade England 
- Add lots of new words:
   eald (old), brodor (brother), hus (house)

Check the reader: 

- Read the introduction 
- Check the assignments

Literature 1: The History of the English Language
- Read the background information
- Answer the questions (use the internet)
- Check your answers (see Its Learning)