OLD ENGLISH VS ANGLOSAXON ENGLISH AND MIDDLE ENGLISH VS MODERN ENGLISH

OLD ENGLISH VS ANGLOSAXON ENGLISH AND MIDDLE ENGLISH VS MODERN ENGLISH

“Viewed freely, the English language is the accretion and growth of every dialect, race, and range of time, and is both the free and compacted composition of all. Walt Whitman”. - The English language is classified into Old English, Middle English and modern English. English is also known as the third world native language, most widely spoken after Mandarin, Chinese and Spanish. There is a significant fact that is known to many of us that English has become the official language of many other countries where it is not considered the native language. There are some differences between Old English, Middle English and Modern English.

Old English and Anglosaxon English were spoken in a different period of time also influenced by many languages. Old English was the language spoken during 5th to mid 12th century; Anglosaxon English was spoken during mid 11th to late 15th century. Old English was influenced by Latin, Norse and Celtic; on the other hand Anglosaxon English was developed from late old English in the second half of 11th century.

Old English and Anglosaxon English had multiple variations and origins. Old English was not a monolithic language; it had multiple variations spoken by independent kingdoms in contrast to Anglosaxon English that started to be standardized because of the printer that was discovered in England in the year 1470. Old English developed and originated from North Sea Germanic; Anglosaxon English developed from Wessex.

Middle English as well known as Anglosaxon English and Modern English are different since the Great Vowel Shift occurred between 1450 and 1750 AD. In Middle English “e” sounded like the modern “a” sound while Modern English ended up with related pairs of words in which the vowel is pronounced differently in each word. After the Great Vowel Change occurred came the classical period of the Renaissance, then the Romantic period and finally the Industrial Revolution in Britain when Modern English received its name.

English has become what is called as the official native language and in most countries around the world. English is still being created by the addition of new words, grammatical structures, and ways of thinking since Industrial Revolution; Modern English at present tends to have a more diverse vocabulary in comparison with the initial version of modern English. As you can see English has an interesting history that cannot be pulled aside.

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