Foreign Influences on Old English

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Reading of Chapter four in the textbook titled " Foreign Influences on Old English,” the followings are the terms that came across as interesting and necessary for the understanding of the extent of foreign influence on the old English language:

• Continental borrowing: This is the first period of Latin borrowing that happened through the Germanic contact with the Romans before their invasion and settlement in Britain. It is also described as the Latin influence of the Zero period (Baugh & Cable, 2001).

• Palatal Diphthongization: This is the change in the pronunciation of diphthongs. By this sound-change, an “ae” and e in early Old English was changed to a diphthong (“ea” and “ie” respectively) when preceded by certain palatal consonants “c, g, sc” (Baugh & Cable, 2001).

• Celtic transmission: Celtic transmission refers to the transmission of Latin words into Old English through the association of Celts with the English. The Celts had adopted a considerable number of Latin words but very few words were adopted by the Anglo-Saxons who did not share a harmonious relationship with the Celts. (Baugh & Cable, 2001).

• Modus vivendi: The literal meaning of the term modus vivendi is "manner of living". However, it is used to describe a working arrangement that disputing parties can live with, at least until a more permanent solution can be found (Cornog, 1994). While discussing the amalgamation of the Scandinavians with the old English, Baugh & Cable introduce the term "modus vivendi" to describe the policy followed by the English kings to reestablish their power in Danelaw.

Questions/issues:

While studying the history behind the Latin and the Scandinavian influence on the Old English language, I wondered the following:

• Why d...

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Works Cited

Assimilation. (n.d.) . In Cambridge Dictionaries Online. Retrieved from http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/assimilation_1?q=assimilation

Baugh, A.C., & Cable, T. (2001). A history of the English language (5th ed.). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.

Cornog, M. W. (1993). Merriam-Webster's vocabulary builder. Merriam-Webster.

Cornog, M.W. (1994). Merriam-Webster's Vocabulary Builder. U.S: Merriam-Webster.

Labial. (n.d.) . In Cambridge Dictionaries Online. Retrieved from http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/labial_1?q=labial

Plowman, P. Middle English Literature: 1066–1500. Palgrave Machmilan, p.34-72.

Retrieved from http://www.palgrave.com/pdfs/0333672267.pdf

Page, R. L. (1952). The English Language. Caribbean Quarterly, Vol. 2, No. 2 (1951/1952), p. 4- 11. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40652501 .

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