The Multilingual Origins of Standard English
The Multilingual Origins of Standard English

Author: Laura Wright

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2020-09-07

Total Pages: 437

ISBN-13: 3110687577

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Textbooks inform readers that the precursor of Standard English was supposedly an East or Central Midlands variety which became adopted in London; that monolingual fifteenth century English manuscripts fall into internally-cohesive Types; and that the fourth Type, dating after 1435 and labelled ‘Chancery Standard’, provided the mechanism by which this supposedly Midlands variety spread out from London. This set of explanations is challenged by taking a multilingual perspective, examining Anglo-Norman French, Medieval Latin and mixed-language contexts as well as monolingual English ones. By analysing local and legal documents, mercantile accounts, personal letters and journals, medical and religious prose, multiply-copied works, and the output of individual scribes, standardisation is shown to have been preceded by supralocalisation rather than imposed top-down as a single entity by governmental authority. Linguistic features examined include syntax, morphology, vocabulary, spelling, letter-graphs, abbreviations and suspensions, social context and discourse norms, pragmatics, registers, text-types, communities of practice social networks, and the multilingual backdrop, which was influenced by shifting socioeconomic trends.

English as a Global Language
English as a Global Language

Author: David Crystal

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2012-03-29

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 1107611806

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Written in a detailed and fascinating manner, this book is ideal for general readers interested in the English language.

Oxford English Dictionary
Oxford English Dictionary

Author: John A. Simpson

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2002-04-18

Total Pages:

ISBN-13: 9780195218893

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Oxford English Dictionary is the internationally recognized authority on the evolution of the English language from 1150 to the present day. The Dictionary defines over 500,000 words, making it an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, pronunciation, and history of the English language. This new upgrade version of The Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition on CD-ROM offers unparalleled access to the world's most important reference work for the English language. The text of this version has been augmented with the inclusion of the Oxford English Dictionary Additions Series (Volumes 1-3), published in 1993 and 1997, the Bibliography to the Second Edition, and other ancillary material. System requirements: PC with minimum 200 MHz Pentium-class processor; 32 MB RAM (64 MB recommended); 16-speed CD-ROM drive (32-speed recommended); Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 200, or XP (Local administrator rights are required to install and open the OED for the first time on a PC running Windows NT 4 and to install and run the OED on Windows 2000 and XP); 1.1 GB hard disk space to run the OED from the CD-ROM and 1.7 GB to install the CD-ROM to the hard disk: SVGA monitor: 800 x 600 pixels: 16-bit (64k, high color) setting recommended. Please note: for the upgrade, installation requires the use of the OED CD-ROM v2.0.

From Old English to Standard English
From Old English to Standard English

Author: Dennis Freeborn

Publisher: University of Ottawa Press

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 502

ISBN-13: 0776604694

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"This practical and informative course book is a fascinating, visual volume which leads the student through the development of the language from Old English, through Middle and Early Modern English to the establishment of Standard English in the eighteenth century." "At the core of this substantially expanded second edition lies a series of nearly 200 historical texts, of which more than half are reproduced in facsimile, and which illustrate the progressive changes in the language. The book is firmly based upon linguistic description, with commentaries which form a series of case studies demonstrating the evidence for language change at every level - handwriting, spelling, punctuation, vocabulary, grammar and meaning." "Such a wealth of texts, as well as the structured activities and the various case studies, allow the volume to be used not only as a stimulating course text, guiding students through the analysis of data, but also as a comprehensive resource book and invaluable reference tool for teachers and students at all levels."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Twentieth-Century English
Twentieth-Century English

Author: Christian Mair

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2006-10-26

Total Pages: 26

ISBN-13: 1139459627

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Standard English has evolved and developed in many ways over the past hundred years. From pronunciation to vocabulary to grammar, this concise survey clearly documents the recent history of Standard English. Drawing on large amounts of authentic corpus data, it shows how we can track ongoing changes to the language, and demonstrates each of the major developments that have taken place. As well as taking insights from a vast body of literature, Christian Mair presents the results of his own cutting-edge research, revealing some important changes which have not been previously documented. He concludes by exploring how social and cultural factors, such as the American influence on British English, have affected Standard English in recent times. Authoritative, informative and engaging, this book will be essential reading for anyone interested in language change in progress, particularly those working on English, and will be welcomed by students, researchers and language teachers alike.

Moving Target
Moving Target

Author: Carole-Ann Upton

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-07-22

Total Pages: 195

ISBN-13: 1317641434

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Moving Target offers a rigorous exploration of the practice of translating for the theatre. The twelve essays in the volume span a range of work from Eastern and Western Europe, Canada and the United States. For the first time, this book draws together existing translation theory with contemporary practice to shed light on a hitherto neglected aspect of the production process. How does the theatre translator mediate between source text, performance text and target audience? What happens when theatre is transposed from one culture to another? What are the obstacles to theatre translation, and what are the opportunities? Central to the debate throughout is the role of the translator in creating not only a linguistic text but also a performance text, as the contributors repeatedly demonstrate an illuminating sensibility to the demands and potential of theatre production. Impacting upon areas of (inter)cultural theory as well as theatre studies and translation studies, the result is a startling revelation of the joys, as well as the frustrations of the dramatic art of the translator for performance.