Early Modern English: The Standardization Of The English Language

953 Words2 Pages

TMA U214A
Asmaa Saadi AL Sammarraie
2140225

After selecting the English language to be standard, codification -Early Modern English (1500-1800)is the second step in standardization of language, it deal with grammar and vocabulary, grammatical rules and lexicon in grammar and dictionaries. That often happen when the language written for the first time, or when it developing as standard, or after a time of great and huge changing as after the demise of colonialism , which made language planning necessary .Wikipedia
English has been codified in dictionaries and grammar ( lexicographers ) in 17 and 18century,England had published some developed dictionaries, Samuel Johnson’s (Dictionary of the English Language 1755 )plant the …show more content…

(Seargeant, P. and Swann, J. English in the World :History ;Diversity ;Change,P. 96)
Switching authority to dictionaries done by the later part of 18 century. Dictionaries now held linguistic authority. The reasons why dictionaries were commissioned were not just about a word change, but who controls language, what social classes are included, and what groups are excluded. Such grammar books as Lily’s ]A Short Introduction of Grammar (1567)[ had the power to decide those issues. dictionaries become more influential and were able to reach more people,. Language is power, and dictionaries could carry that power by standardizing language.
Johnson’s approach put a new standard for the authority of dictionaries: an educational tradition that dictionaries would supply editorial comments and provide illustrative quotations that would increase knowledge. As lexicographers had published a variety of dictionaries in 18 century ,it was Johnson who created the authoritative dictionary that was used for at least 100 years and worked as a ground for other

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