Language is no stranger
to change. In fact, it reflects everything that happens in life. If it is out
there, there must be a word for it. We have witnessed the most amazing number
of changes in society in recent decades. Many of them have taken place so
rapidly that some of us can scarcely keep up with the speed of change. Join me
as we travel back to fish out for the history and changes that have happened to
English as a language.
An obvious
example of how events in a particular country affect language is the effect
that the various invaders of what are now the British Isles had on the English
language. For example, the Vikings may be best remembered for
their plundering and pillaging, but they left behind a useful linguistic
heritage. Thanks to them we have words such as law, skill, egg, knife, skate and
many more.
The Norman
invasion, masterminded by William the Conqueror in 1066, gave rise to even more
words entering the English language.
The French
influence gave us justice, money, action and village,
to name but a few.
English
explorers and traders also contributed to the growth of the English language by
bringing back words from various places they visited. For example, the language
acquired umbrella, granite, and bandit from
ITALIAN. Bungalow, cot, shampoo and chintz from
HINDI and cigar, cork and negro were
gotten from SPANISH. This last word (negro) was to
cause much controversy in later times and came to be regarded as very
offensive.
The
Renaissance of the 16th and 17th centuries, with its revival of classical
scholarship and a renewed interest in Latin and Greek, had a great effect on
the English language. During this time, many Latin and Greek words ended up in
English. A few examples include crisis, vital, locate, credible,
exclaim, and apparatus.
Over the
centuries, there have been many sources that have provided new words for the
English language. From Japanese, English has acquired judo,
tsunami, karaoke and sushi. From Chinese, the
language acquired tea, ketchup and kowtow, and
from Yiddish, spiel, kosher and chutzpah
were acquired.
From Russian,
English acquired czar/tsar, glasnost, icon,
perestroika and vodka, and Australia supplied it
with boomerang, budgerigar and kangaroo.
It seems that the English language is like a magpie, forever
picking up new shiny items to add to its already rich store. Do not see it as a
prostitute.
©Joseph Baidoo
©Joseph Baidoo
Joseph Baidoo is a Ghanaian and is popularly known on social media as Misty Joe.
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