The Middle English Period.

The Middle  English Period.

¬  Introduction:-

Þ          The old English period had relatively pure Anglo Saxon tongue even though little influences of Latin, Celtic and Danish tongue had been. But since 1066 English began to change drastically. It becomes a hybrid language. Before Norman conquest, English language gad come to touch with Normans king Edward who reigned from 1042 to 1066 had spent his youth in France. When he becomes king, he knew no English no English custom and had no friends and he preferred Norman Courtiers and councilors. This gives us idea that French must have been spoken in the court at that time. This process was completed by William, the conqueror but it was limited to the court. Common folks were untouched. So side by side tow tongues existed; English and Norman-French.

Þ          As the king and the courtiers spoke Norman-French, it was social status. Learned man too adopted it. But 90% of population still spoke Anglo-Saxon tongue. Gradually these two languages mingle to give us Middle English. By 13000 the Norman French it was established. Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales’ (1346) has 12-14% of words of French origin. Following are the reasons that French began to have influence.

1. Reason of French influence:-

a)      The two communities inevitably come into contect with the each other. Inter marriages took place

b)     Some of the people sent their children to France for education,

c)      After two hundred years the Norman believed themselves as English.

d)     It was the ‘official’ (governmental) language. However in 1362 English replaced. French as the language of law court. With Latin was also growing.

e)      Persian French began to enter England toward the end of 14^th Century.

f)       French translations come.

2. Characteristic of Middle English:-

Þ          Characteristic of Middle English is seen in the variety of dialects. Chaucer’s work and a poem ‘patience’ from west Midland mark this difference showing Chaucer very near modern English. West Saxon dialect had supremacy, which gave a leveling tendency. In absence of any ‘standard’ English, various writers wrote in their ‘regional’ language. Near to Saxon tongue was that of the East Midlands. It was spoken around London. As the city became important these speech too became important. Oxford and Cambridge also used it. Caxton printed his books in it. So by 1450 ‘English’ had become synonymous with ‘East Midland’. Some of the writers began to adopt this tongue including Chaucer.

Þ          There are four aspects which will show us the education of the Middle English period.

(A) Grammatical change:-

1. Simplification of grammar:-

Þ          Grammar was on the way of simplification. ‘e’ vowel was leveled in final, unaccented, in flexional syllables. To make plural ‘en’ began to come, so plurals were leveled. But the Midland dialect shows ‘-es’ suffix. French had also it, but as time went on they to went away. Some survivals are: Children, oxen, chicken, brethren. To make verb en was added the ‘to’ replaced it. For the directional use it was there. e.g. ‘I go to fetch it’ or ‘I have come to help you.’ Since the as it is a part of infinitive, it also worked as infinitive. Chaucer shows both of these tendencies: ‘to ryden our’, ‘to goon on’, ‘to take our way’. Etc

2. Simplicity of language:-

            In simplicity grammar, Language to begun adopting simplicity. Inflexions were reduced. Genitive case (‘s) got another French word ‘of ’.  Except it other noun distinctions disappeared.

3. Substitution of Gender:-

Þ          Earlier it had not semantic understanding but according to the meaning gender was applied. As there was complexity, mostly masculine gender was applied but in French it was different. A word in England is masculine and same one in French is feminine. To solve the riddle neutral gender comes. Pronoun ‘she’ came into being in the middle of 12^th century.

(B) Change in pronounciation:-

            Written documents provide us proofs of grammatical changes but to find out them for pronounciation is very very tough task. As they very from place, people and time only a few have certainty in this manner.

1. Vowel /e/ changed into /C/ e.g. ham- hoom and now home, stane=stone. But Northun dialects preserved it though Norman loan words didn’t go for change. e.g. dame, chant, fame.

2. Lengthening and shortening vowels

          i.            In open syllables ca words which doesn’t have consonant at the end. e.g. we, she,  break was lengthened and shorted in closed syllable.(A word which had consonant at the end; bloster, grammar. etc.) So the difference in tilling-tiling, canning-caning etc is found. There were plenty of violations as well.

        ii.            /i:/ changed into /ei/ and /o/ into /u/ eg. Feet was spoken as like fate and food, boon, doom etc were spoke like the modern word ‘show’.

      iii.            /e/ and /i/ changed into diphthongs like /ei/ and /au/. ‘game’, ‘fame’, ‘find, had long vowels in modern English.

      iv.            ‘r’ and ‘s’ changed position. e.g. ‘to burn was ‘bernan’ or ‘brennan’. ‘Brid’ was ‘bryd’. ‘clasp’ was ‘clapse’ and lipsed’ was ‘lisped’

There were many fluctuations in this pronouncing methods throughout the period.

(C) Change in spellings:-

            Change in spelling does not indicate change in pronounciation.

1. ‘û’ began to be written as ‘ou’ because of French scribes. e.g. hûs and mûs turned into ‘hours’ and ‘mour’.
2. ‘o’ was represented by ‘oo’, ‘home’ was ‘hoom’ and ‘coomen’ for ‘come’
3. ‘c’ was replaced by ‘k’ in front of vowels ‘e’, ‘i' and ‘y’. e.g. ‘cyning’ and ‘cene’ become ‘king’ and ‘keen’ but before ‘a’, ‘o’, ‘u’ it remained the same. ‘c’ was spoken ‘ch’ so old English ‘cild’ become ‘child’. ‘ch’ contain the same origin and spoken a ‘k’ e.g. character , chronic, chorus etc.
4. ‘g’ was pronounced like ‘y’ so from ‘giefan’=yeven-give and ‘gearu’ –year come the words.
5. Because of new soft ‘g’ (now alphabet ‘j’) word come e.g. gentle, gesture.
6. French replaced ‘cw’ into ‘qu’. e.g. cwen(queen), cwellen(kill).
7. ‘es’ in many words was removed e.g. estrauge straunge and now strange’. Squire, state our other words.

(D) Change in addition and vocabulary:-

Þ          Vocabulary addition and change was greatly noticed in this period that the others. Mainly it is because of Norman French influence. ‘wed’ and ‘marry. Both word words existed. ‘wed’ is a native one. Meaning ‘to give pledge’ and ‘marry’ a French one meaning to become a husband ‘ Web is provincial which had nothing to do with marriage but now it is understood as same. But proper word for is ‘marriage’. Some such words are kingly royal, child-infant and meal-repast.

Þ    Similarly living animal were cooked French name were given. e.g. ‘sheep’ and ‘mutton’. A living sheep is killed and when cooked it becomes not ‘sheep’ but ‘mutton. We have now-pig pork, cow beef and calf veal.

Þ    William congurero’s name is referred with giving names of fendal and memorial system like demesne, domain, castle, baron, livery. Under the memorial system the centre of a district’ was the manor house or the villa who worked as villains and their places of living as ‘village’. Longer of it war ‘tun’; but French made it ‘town’. The word villain meant that these people were coarse had uncouth behaviour and lacked refinement find how it is surprising that ‘villain or villainy world in modern English have been established.

Þ    Law system brought new words. English words were there but when the person was brought into court. As French were officials, French mane were given e.g. arson, trespass , cheat, larceny, treason and later on embezzlement.

Þ    Legal words come. They are:

                        Assize,             justice,             curfew

                        Judge,              jury,                 verdict

                        Commission,   license,             statue

                        Prison,             punish,             plaintiff.

Þ          Church related words: canon, curate, cardinal, fricir,, deacon, parson, archdeacon. Scholarship brought new words. e.g. of abstract terms of: Mercy, pity, charity, beauty, humility, courtesy. Astrology and medical words: influence, jovial, humour, saturnine, choleric, sanguine, cordial, physic.

Þ          Literature: Tragedy, comedy: Holy visits to foreign countries/place brought many new words. ‘assassin’ was an eastern/ Arabic word. From the town mosul come muslin(a kind of fine fabric). Damascus gave ‘damask’. Castle of hasarat gave hazard. Some other Arabian word are algebra, azure, scarict, orange.

Þ          During this middle English period surnames were first adopted by English man. Earlier it was used to distinguish a person; from one Tom to another Tom. Surnames are derived from various sources. They are following:

¬  Occupational: Tyler, Bowman, Baker, Fletcher ( arrow maker)

¬  Place names: Allwater, Allwood, Fieldsend.

¬  Other : Johnson, Jackson, Wilson, Robinson.

Þ          Middle English period is fairly rich in the adoption of various changes. Actually this provided flexibility for the language which was really helpful. When modern period began, the English language was well set.