Term
|
Definition
| the tendency of a language to follow certain patterns and adapt a less common form for a more common one. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The French spoken in Central France/Paris |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Dialect of French spoken in England |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A combination of two languages in the same word. For example: A french root word with an English suffix or prefix |
|
|
Term
| Latin Influence of the Third Period |
|
Definition
| These included the borowing from French (acknowledging French as Romance Language) but also included those terms from Latin that were directly borrowed in Literature. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a type of stylistic gilding characterized by the introduction of terms borrowed form Latin and occasionally elsewhere |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A standardised version of English, was based on the London/ East Midland dialect. |
|
|
Term
| What phonetic changes brought about the inflectional leveling in Middle English? |
|
Definition
| The change of the -m ending to the -n ending, which was then dropped all together. Finally, all vowel endings were eventually leveled into the indeterminite vowel -e |
|
|
Term
| What accounts for the -e in Modern English stone, the Old English form of which was stān in the nominative and accusative singular? |
|
Definition
| The -e was organic to the dative singular, and the dative and genitive plural and was extended by analogy to the nominative and accusative. |
|
|
Term
| Generally what happened to inflectional endings of nouns in Middle English? |
|
Definition
| In general, they were greatly disturbed. They were simplified to the point where they were no longer capable of indicating case, gender, and some instances, even number. This occurred through the processes of leveling and analogy. |
|
|
Term
| What two methods of indicating the plural of nouns remained common in early Middle English? |
|
Definition
| The two main ways of creating the plural where the -s or -es ending, and the -n (like in oxen). |
|
|
Term
| Which form of adjectives became the form for all cases by the close of the Middle English period? |
|
Definition
| The nominative singular was the form for all of the singular adjectives. The nominative plural became the standard for all plural adjectives. |
|
|
Term
| What happened to the demonstratives of sē, sēo, Þæt, Þēs, Þēos, Þis in Middle English? |
|
Definition
| They were reduced to the nominative singular Þis, and the nominative plural. |
|
|
Term
| Why were the losses not so great in the personal pronouns? What distinction did the personal pronouns lose? |
|
Definition
| The losses were not so great because they kept most of their distinctions, with only the dative and the accusative cases combining. However, they did lose the dual distinction. |
|
|
Term
| What is the origin of the th- forms of the personal pronoun in the third person plural? |
|
Definition
| It is guessed that it is a reinforcement of the s in the demonstratives. However, the development is decidedly Scandinavian in origin. |
|
|
Term
| What were the principal changes in the verb during the Middle English period? |
|
Definition
| There were the typical levelling seen in the other categories of words. However, the largest change was the losses suffered by the strong conjugation |
|
|
Term
| Name five strong verbs that were becoming weak during the thirteenth century. |
|
Definition
| ache, step, row, claw, and climb |
|
|
Term
| Name five strong past participles that have remained in use after the verb became weak. |
|
Definition
| beaten, cloven, graven, hewn, and laden |
|
|
Term
| How many of the Old English strong verbs remain in the language today? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What effect did the decay of inflections have upon grammatical gender in Middle English? |
|
Definition
| It led to it's eventual elimination. With the inflections gone, it was easier to use the natural gender of a noun. However, it is important to note that natural gender was in use before the weakening of grammatical gender. |
|
|
Term
| To what extent did the Norman Conquest affect the grammar of English? |
|
Definition
| It's impact was great, but indirect. The grammar did not change because of contact with French, so much as the lack of a codified language in use in literary and scholarly works put in place the conditions which would allow these changes to take place. |
|
|
Term
| In the borrowing of French words into English, how is the period before 1250 distinguished from the period after? |
|
Definition
| The period before is distinguished by having a much smaller number of borrowings which are primarily limited those which would have come about through the contact with French speaking nobility. The period after 1250, the words include those which someone accustomed to speaking French would carry over with them. |
|
|
Term
| Into what general classes do borrowings of French vocabulary fall? |
|
Definition
| The borrowings include governmental, administrative, ecclesiastical, law, military, fashion, meals, social life, art, learning, and medicine classes. |
|
|
Term
| What accounts for the difference in pronunciation between words introduced into English after the Norman Conquest and the corresponding words in Modern French? |
|
Definition
| The various sound changes that have occurred in both languages since the borrowings took place. |
|
|
Term
| Why are the French words borrowed during the fifteenth century of a bookish quality? |
|
Definition
| Because almost all of the literature of Middle English was based on French originals, and many writers could not resist the temptation to carry the French words over. |
|
|
Term
| What is the period of the greatest borrowing of French words? Altogether about how many French words were adopted during the Middle English period? |
|
Definition
| The borrowing of French words is at it’s greatest between 1250 and 1400. Altogether, slightly over 10,000 French words were borrowed into the language. |
|
|
Term
| What principle is illustrated by the pairs: ox/beef, sheep/mutton, Swine/pork, and calf/veal? |
|
Definition
| They are pairs of French and English words that meant roughly the same thing, but were both kept in the language by differentiating the meaning. In this case, one of the pairs indicates the animal, and the other indicates the meat. |
|
|
Term
| What generally happened to the Old English prefixes and suffixes in Middle English? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| Despite the changes in the English language brought about by the Norman Conquest, in what ways was the language still English? |
|
Definition
| The grammar remained primarily English, similarly, the basic vocabulary remained English. |
|
|
Term
| What was the main source of Latin borrowings during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries? |
|
Definition
| The main source was the French that was being borrowed at the time. Calling it the Third Period of Latin influence acknowledges the ultimate source of French. However, literature was the main source of direct Latin borrowings during the fourteenth and fifteenth century |
|
|
Term
| In which Middle English writers is aureate diction most evident? |
|
Definition
| It is most evident in the works of the Scots Chaucerians: James I, Henryson, and Dunbar |
|
|
Term
| What tendency may be observed in the following sets of synonyms: rise—mount—ascend, ask—question—interrogate, goodness—virtue—probity? |
|
Definition
| They are synonyms at three levels, popular, literary, and learned. In these specific instances, the pattern also runs English, French, and Latin. |
|
|
Term
| What kind of contact did English have with speakers of Flemish, Dutch, and Low German during the late Middle Ages? |
|
Definition
| They had continuous gradual contact through trade and the like. |
|
|
Term
| What are the five principal dialects of Middle English? |
|
Definition
| Northern, east Midland, West Midland, and Southern, and Kentish. |
|
|
Term
| Which dialect of Middle English became the basis for Standard English? What causes contributed to the establishment of this dialect? |
|
Definition
| Which dialect of Middle English became the basis for Standard English? What causes contributed to the establishment of this dialect? |
|
|
Term
| Why did the speech of London have special importance during the late middle Ages? |
|
Definition
| The speech of London was important because it was the basis for Standard English but also it was the language spoken in the capital of London, the seat of commerce and government, and perhaps most importantly publishing. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Head Master of the Merchant taylor’s school. He was a fervent defender of English as a scholarly language, was able to standardize a great number of current spellings |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Wrote An Orthographie and other book sattempting to create a standardized English spelling. He was not successful. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| wrote Book at Large, for the Amendment of Orthographie for English Speech, also attempted to create a standardized spelling for English- he was unsuccessful |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a classical scholar who was against the borrowing of Latin and foreign terms into the English vocabulary |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| translated the works of Greek and Roman thinkers into English, a proponent of borrowing words from foreign language to enrich the vocabulary |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| writer who introduced a large number of new terms to the English language |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| wrote The Fairy Queen, proponent of Chaucerisms |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| First attempt at something like a dictionary. It contained only the “hard words” |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| published the first dictionary. Attempted to compile all the words in the language |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| used to describe Latin and foreign borrowings during the renaissance |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| and terms that come from Italy and Spain, (over the sea) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| revivals and new formations of words that suggested an older period of English. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| All the vowels that could be raised were raised and those that could nto be raised were became diphthongs. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the use of an apostrophe in possessives under the assumption that it is a contraction of his |
|
|
Term
| What new forces began to affect the English language in the Modern English period? |
|
Definition
| The invention of the printing press, which offered the ability to make large quantities of books that were exactly alike in a short period of time. It proved a powerful force for promoting a standard language. The importance of education increased during the Modern Period. Because more people were learning to read, the importance of the printing press was greater than it might have otherwise been. The ease of travel and communication. The increase in specialized knowledge. Finally there was an increase in self-consciousness about language. Or people understanding that the way they speak can often be interpreted as saying something about them, and changing the way they speak in accordance with this information. |
|
|
Term
| What problems did the modern European languages face in the sixteenth century? |
|
Definition
1) recognition in the fields where Latin had for centuries been supreme
2) the establishment of a more uniform orthography
3) the enrichment of the vocabulary so that it would be adequate to meet the demands that would be made upon it in its wider use. |
|
|
Term
| Why did English have to be defended as a language of scholarship? How did the scholarly recognition of English come about? |
|
Definition
| Many thought that English (and most other vulgar languages) lacked the vocabulary, resources, and polish of Latin. Popular demand ensured that during the Renaissance the works of the Greek and roman thinkers were translated into English. Also, the writers of the Renaissance found Latin vocabulary lacking, but also, felt they could not write in Latin better than those who had come before them, and saw little point in trying. Finally, book in English sold better than those in Latin. |
|
|
Term
| Who were among the defenders of borrowing foreign words? |
|
Definition
| Dryden, Elyot, Bullokar, Mulcaster |
|
|
Term
| What was the general attitude toward inkhorn terms by the end of Elizabeth’s reign? |
|
Definition
| The major objection had spent and now most people protested to overuse of the practice as opposed to the practice altogether. |
|
|
Term
| What were some of the ways in which Latin words changed their form as they entered the English language? |
|
Definition
| They would lose their endings, or their endings would be changed in order to make them more in accordance with usual English forms. For example the –us ending would be changes to –ous or the –tas endings would be changes to –ty. |
|
|
Term
| Why were some words in Renaissance English rejected while others survived? |
|
Definition
| It is difficult to say, but some where to learned sounding. IN other instances, the word was not needed. |
|
|
Term
| What classes of strange words did sixteenth-century purists object to? |
|
Definition
| They objected to inkhorn terms, oversea language, and Chaucerisms |
|
|
Term
| When was the first English dictionary published? What was the main purpose of English dictionaries throughout the seventeenth century? |
|
Definition
| The first complete English dictionary was written by Bailey in 1721, but the first dictionary of hard words was written by Cawdrey in 1604. In the seventeenth century they only attempted to include and define the harder words, those from Latin or some foreign language. |
|
|
Term
| Why is vowel length important in discussing sound changes in the history of the English language? |
|
Definition
| They determine the course which these vowels pursued in their subsequent development. Long vowels underwent extensive alteration, but short vowels in accented syllables remained relatively stable. |
|
|
Term
| Why is the Great Vowel Shift responsible for the anomalous use of the vowel symbols in English spelling? |
|
Definition
| The spelling of the words had been standardized before the shift had occurred and therefore did not change with the sound shift. |
|
|
Term
| How does the spelling of unstressed syllables in English fail to represent accurately the pronunciation? |
|
Definition
| It can be represented by sundry letters, but the sound is primarily the same. For example: ago, upon, opinion. |
|
|
Term
| What nouns with the old weak plural – n can be found in Shakespeare? |
|
Definition
| Fon, fleen, eyen, shoon, and kine. |
|
|
Term
| Why do Modern English nouns have an apostrophe in the possessive? |
|
Definition
| A believe that it is a contraction his |
|
|
Term
| When did the group possessive become common in England? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| How did Shakespeare’s usage in adjectives differ from current usage? |
|
Definition
He would use the double comparative or superlative (i.e. more +the –er ending on the adjective)
Similarly the use of the –er and 0est endings were more prevalent in general |
|
|
Term
| What distinctions, at different periods, were made by the forms thou, thy, thee? When did the forms fall out of general use? |
|
Definition
| These forms were used amongst those with whom one was familiar, children , or those of an inferior rank. The fell out of general use the sixteenth century, |
|
|
Term
| How consistently were the nominative ye and objective you distinguished during the Renaissance? |
|
Definition
| A few writers made an effort to distinguish them, but on a whole they were rarely well distinguished. |
|
|
Term
| What is the origin of the form its? |
|
Definition
| When grammatical gender eventually fell out of favor, there was a need for a possessive for a neuter possessive pronoun. The neuter pronoun it had formed from the Old Englsh hit, and by analogy of the possessive -‘s it’s was born/ |
|
|
Term
| What forms for the third person singular of the verb does one find in Shakespeare? What happened to these forms during the seventeenth century? |
|
Definition
| One finds the –s and the –eth forms. The –s forms becomes the norm during the seventeenth century. |
|
|
Term
| How would cultivated speakers of Elizabethan times have regarded Shakespeare’s use of the double negative in “Thou hast spoken no word all this time—nor understood none neither”? |
|
Definition
| It is simply a stronger negative. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| an advocate for the ascertainment of language. Wished to make the language permanent and fixed. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| developer of the first dictionary |
|
|
Term
| What did eighteenth-century writers mean by ascertainment of the English language? What means did they have in mind? |
|
Definition
| When they used the word ascertainment they meant the standardization and regulation of the English language. |
|
|
Term
| What kinds of “corruptions” in the English language did Swift object to? Do you find them objectionable? Can you think of similar objections made by commentators today? |
|
Definition
1. The shortening of polysyllabic words.
2. The tendency to contract certain verbs
3. The use of new terms |
|
|
Term
| What had been accomplished in Italy and France during the seventeenth century to serve as an inspiration for those in England who were concerned with the English language? |
|
Definition
| They had established Academies to codify ad regulate the language. |
|
|
Term
| Who were among the supporters of an English Academy? When did the movement reach its culmination? |
|
Definition
| Dryden, Defoe, Swift, and Addison. It reaches its culmination in 1712. |
|
|
Term
| Why did an English Academy fail to materialize? What served as substitutes for an academy in England? |
|
Definition
| The English academy failed to materialize because of the death of the queen. Publishing serves as a substitute for an academy in England. Particularly the work of Johnson and the early grammarians. |
|
|
Term
| What did Johnson hope for his Dictionary to accomplish? |
|
Definition
| He hoped to refine the language to grammatical purity, and to clear it from colloquial barbarisms, licentious idioms, and irregular combinations. |
|
|
Term
| What were the aims of the eighteenth-century prescriptive grammarians? |
|
Definition
1) to codify the principles of the language and reduce it to rule
2) to settle disputed points and decide cases of divided uses
3) to point out common errors or what were supposed to be errors, and this correct and improve the language |
|
|
Term
| How would you characterize the difference in attitude between Robert Lowth’s Short Introduction to English Grammar (1762) and Joseph Priestley’s Rudiments of English Grammar (1761)? Which was more influential? |
|
Definition
| Lowth was more apt to make absolute rulings. He would chose one proper way and decide all the others were wrong, whereas Priestly was more likely to offer several equally acceptable usages. Lowth’s approach was more influential. |
|
|
Term
| How did prescriptive grammarians such as Lowth arrive at their rules? |
|
Definition
| They used reason, etymology, and the example of Latin and Greek |
|
|
Term
| What were some of the weaknesses of the early grammarians? |
|
Definition
| rarely recognized the importance of usage. They did not consider the processes of literary change. |
|
|
