The French Influence on Middle English
The French Influence on Middle English

Author: Nadja Litschko

Publisher: GRIN Verlag

Published: 2004-04-12

Total Pages: 20

ISBN-13: 3638266974

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Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 2 (B), http://www.uni-jena.de/ (Anglistics/ American Studies), course: PS Introduction to Chaucer's Middle English, language: English, abstract: The English language has undergone tremendous changes over the years of its development from Old English to the Modern English as it is known today. During that time, especially during the Middle English period, several other languages exerted a significant influence and were therefore partly responsible for the changes brought to English over the years. These languages were Latin, French and Old Norse. This paper will focus on the influence of the French language on Middle English, brought on by the Norman Conquest through William the Conqueror. First there will be an explanation of the historical events, which preceded the developments in the England. Afterwards the focus of this paper will rest on the effect of the French language on the Middle English vocabulary, spelling and phonology. This will be explained on the example of an extract of Geoffrey Chaucer's The Nun's Priest Tale. During the course of this paper it will be proved that the French language was one of the main influences, which affected the English language during the Middle Ages.

The French of Medieval England
The French of Medieval England

Author: Thelma S. Fenster

Publisher: Boydell & Brewer

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 362

ISBN-13: 1843844591

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Recent research has emphasised the importance of insular French in medieval English culture alongside English and Latin; for a period of some four hundred years, French (variously labelled the French of England, Anglo-Norman, Anglo-French, and Insular French) rivalled these two languages. The essays here focus on linguistic adaptation and translation in this new multilingual England, where John Gower wrote in Latin while his contemporary Chaucer could break new ground in English.

The French Influence on Middle English Morphology
The French Influence on Middle English Morphology

Author: Christiane Dalton-Puffer

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2011-05-02

Total Pages: 301

ISBN-13: 3110822113

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The future of English linguistics as envisaged by the editors of Topics in English Linguistics lies in empirical studies which integrate work in English linguistics into general and theoretical linguistics on the one hand, and comparative linguistics on the other. The TiEL series features volumes that present interesting new data and analyses, and above all fresh approaches that contribute to the overall aim of the series, which is to further outstanding research in English linguistics.

An Introduction to Middle English
An Introduction to Middle English

Author: E.E. Wardale

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-04-06

Total Pages: 98

ISBN-13: 1317217268

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First published in 1937, this book supplies a history of the living growth of the English language from Old English to the medieval period. It offers an in-depth study of the growth of vocabulary through literature and social interaction, bringing out the fact that it is chiefly words that foreign influence has affected — leaving sentence structure almost unaltered. Isolative and combinative changes in phonology, the accidence of nouns and plurals, pronouns and adverbs, and verbs are also examined in detail, along with a general overview of the features Middle English and a brief outline of each dialect’s most striking characteristics.

Living Death in Medieval French and English Literature
Living Death in Medieval French and English Literature

Author: Jane Gilbert

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2011-02-17

Total Pages: 293

ISBN-13: 1139495550

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Medieval literature contains many figures caught at the interface between life and death - the dead return to place demands on the living, while the living foresee, organize or desire their own deaths. Jane Gilbert's original study examines the ways in which certain medieval literary texts, both English and French, use these 'living dead' to think about existential, ethical and political issues. In doing so, she shows powerful connections between works otherwise seen as quite disparate, including Chaucer's Book of the Duchess and Legend of Good Women, the Chanson de Roland and the poems of Francois Villon. Written for researchers and advanced students of medieval French and English literature, this book provides original, provocative interpretations of canonical medieval texts in the light of influential modern theories, especially Lacanian psychoanalysis, presented in an accessible and lively way.

William the Conqueror
William the Conqueror

Author: David Charles Douglas

Publisher: Univ of California Press

Published: 1964

Total Pages: 492

ISBN-13:

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Both a study of Anglo-Norman history based upon long and detailed research and also the biography of a man whose personal career was spectacular.

The Oxford Guide to Etymology
The Oxford Guide to Etymology

Author: Philip Durkin

Publisher: OUP Oxford

Published: 2011-07-07

Total Pages: 752

ISBN-13: 0191618780

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This practical introduction to word history investigates every aspect of where words come from and how they change. Philip Durkin, chief etymologist of the Oxford English Dictionary, shows how different types of evidence can shed light on the myriad ways in which words change in form and meaning. He considers how such changes can be part of wider linguistic processes, or be influenced by a complex mixture of social and cultural factors. He illustrates every point with a wide range of fascinating examples. Dr Durkin investigates folk etymology and other changes which words undergo in everyday use. He shows how language families are established, how words in different languages can have a common ancester, and the ways in which the latter can be distinguished from words introduced through language contact. He examines the etymologies of the names of people and places. His focus is on English but he draws many examples from languages such as French, German, and Latin which cast light on the pre-histories of English words. The Oxford Guide to Etymology is reliable, readable, instructive, and enjoyable. Everyone interested in the history of words will value this account of an endlessly fascinating subject.

The Oxford History of English
The Oxford History of English

Author: Lynda Mugglestone

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2012-11-29

Total Pages: 613

ISBN-13: 0199660166

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This text traces the language from its obscure Indo-European roots to its 21st-century position as the world's first language. It describes the history of English within the British Isles, its changing roles in different places, and its rise to global pre-eminence.

Female Authorship, Patronage, and Translation in Late Medieval France
Female Authorship, Patronage, and Translation in Late Medieval France

Author: Anneliese Pollock Renck

Publisher: Brepols Publishers

Published: 2018

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9782503569215

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This study sheds light on the development of female authorship in the sixteenth century, through a close analysis of the female patronage and manuscript production leading up to the Renaissance in late medieval France. Under what conditions did women in late medieval France learn to read and write? What models of female erudition and authorship were available to them in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries? These questions, often difficult to answer in the extant historical record, are approached here via a number of perspectives, namely, the patronage and book ownership of women between the late medieval and early modern periods, and their involvement in the translation of works from Latin to French.