Page 23 - 4952

Minkova, Robert Stockwell. – Berlin; New York: Mouton
de Gruyter, 2002. – P. 51-78.

TOPIC 4

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE:
HISTORICAL CONDITIONS AND LINGUISTIC

CHARACTERISTICS

1. The Old English Period (OE)
2. The Middle English Period (ME)

3. The Modern English Period (ModE)
3.1 Early Modern English

3.2 Late Modern English

Henry Swead: “OE was the period of full endings, ME was the

period of leveled endings and the NE is the period of no
endings!”

The history of the English language really started with the

arrival of three Germanic tribes who invaded Britain during the

5th century AD. These tribes, the Angles, the Saxons and the
Jutes, crossed the North Sea from what today is Denmark and

northern Germany. At that time the inhabitants of Britain spoke

a Celtic language. But most of the Celtic speakers were pushed
west and north by the invaders – mainly into what is now Wales,

Scotland and Ireland. The Angles came from Englaland and
their language was called Englisc – from which the words

England and English are derived. Germanic invaders entered
Britain on the east and south coasts in the 5th century.

21