A History of the English Language
This course will take place in person.
We will also explore the influence of French, Norse and Latin, as Middle English became a form of the language recognisable to us now. We will consider the adoption of words from different languages and the sociolinguistics of grammar and pronunciation. We will also discover attempts to control the language, the divergence of English into different forms, the London voice, and how language continues to change.
Who is this course for?
Anyone interested in finding out about the history of the English language. No previous knowledge of the subject is necessary.
What can I expect?
Students are encouraged to bring along their own experiences of language for comparison, and to have a go at using historical accents. On-site courses include physical access to original materials such as historic dictionaries and documents; online courses use a large range of images of texts for illustration, as well as quotations and explanations. Handouts explaining the main points are issued after sessions.
How we’re keeping you safe
August 2022 update: Keeping you safe and healthy is our number one priority.
If you test positive for Covid-19 or are asked to isolate and are not able to attend your class or pre-booked event, please contact the Bishopsgate Box Office for further information (enquiries@bishopsgate.org.uk). Please do not come to the Institute in person if you have symptoms or have tested positive.
Bishopsgate Institute has a thorough cleaning schedule in place and we clean the most populated areas more often. You will find hand-sanitising stations throughout the building as well as touch-free drinking fountains.
Find out more about how we’re keeping you safe.
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Need to Know
You will learn
- How English evolved from other languages
- How languages such as Old Norse, French, Latin and other European and non-European languages fed into English
- How the language has changed over 1500 years and is still evolving
- Recent developments and attempts to manage the language.
Meet the Tutor
Julian Walker
Julian Walker worked as an educator at the British Library for 16 years. He teaches book and printing history, and the history of English. Julian is the authority on the English language during the First World War, a subject of ongoing research in the Languages and the First World War project, which he directs. He has written several books on the history of English, in fields such as cooking, sport, and conflict, and is a regular consultant on the history of English words and idioms for BBC local radio.
Course Overview
Week 1
The path from Indo-European to Old English; the relationship to Celtic; the first writing in English; the Scandinavian and Latin influence; dialects of OE; word-building and the loss of inflexions; sound changes.
Week 2
How politics changes language; the core events of 1066 and 1204 and the relationship with French; the power-balance between French and Middle English; sound changes; changes in grammar.
Week 3
1500 to 1650. The influence of printing; changes in pronunciation, lexis and phraseology; the influence of the Renaissance; translating the Bible into English; sources for the growth of the vocabulary; Latinate terms and arguments about English; scholarship of English; Shakespeare’s pronunciation.
Week 4
1650 to 1850. Dictionaries, grammars and prescriptivism; the emergence of Standard English; the origin of and changes in punctuation; dialect and difference.
Week 5
Dialects; the London voice. Status, social class, and power in the use of English – swearing, slang and jargon; the teaching of English. Estuary English.
Week 6
American English and Scots/Scottish English. How English is changing now; English as a foreign language; prescriptivism now or ‘managing the language’.
Dates and Times
A History of the English Language
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