The History of English - A Linguistic Introduction

Scott Shay

Wardja Press

2007

232 páginas

7h 44m

ISBN-13: 9780615168173

HWÆT ǷE GARDENA in gear-dagum
þeodcyninga þrym gefrunon
hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon
The text above is the beginning of the epic poem, Beowulf, one of the earliest works in English literature. Yes, the words above are English, Old English, to be exact. It is English as it was spoken in the first millennium of our era. As you can see, it is quite different from the English you speak today.
In The History of English: A Linguistic Introduction, you will learn about the history of English from prehistoric times, before the advent of writing, to its Germanic ancestry, the conquest of Britain, its flowering in the Middle Ages, and its status today as an international language. While learning about its history, you will be introduced to various topics in historical and theoretical linguistics. You will learn about aspects of the grammar of the various stages of the language, and you will be introduced to authentic texts from each period.
The History of English is for everyone interested in learning more about the history of the language and for those who would like a first introduction to the study of language, linguistics.
Scott Shay is a linguist and author of books on Germanic linguistics. He received a Master of Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley in Germanic linguistics.