Effect of the Norman Conquest on the ling. Situation

The Norman Conquest was not only a great event in British political history but also the greatest single event in the history of the English language. Its earliest effect was a drastic change in the linguistic situation. The Norman conquerors of England had originally come from Scandinavia (compare Norman and Northman). About one hundred and fifty years before they had seized the valley of the Seine and settled in what was in future known as Normandy. They were swiftly assimilated by the French and in the 11 th c, came to Britain as French speakers and bearers of French culture. 'They spoke the Northern dialect of French, which differed in some points from Central, Parisian French. Their tongue in Britain is often referred to as "Anglo-French" or "Anglo-Norman", but may just as well be called French. Since we are less concerned here with the distinction of French dialects than with the continuous French influence upon English, both in the Norman period of history and a long while after the Anglo-Norman language had ceased to exit. In the early 13th c., as a result of lengthy and inefficient wars with France John Lackland lost the French provinces including the dukedom of Normandy. Among other consequences the loss of the lands in France cut off the Normans in Britain from France, which speeded up the decline of the Anglo-?. The most immediate consequence of the Norman domination in Britain is to be seen in the wide use of the French language in many spheres of life. For almost three hundred years French was the official language of administration: it was the language of the king's court, the law courts, the church, the army and the castle. It was also the every day language of many nobles, of the higher clergy and of many townspeople in the South. The intellectual life, literature and education were in the hands of French-speaking people; French; alongside Latin, was the language of writing. Teaching was largely conducted in French and boys at school were taught to translate their Latin into French instead of English.

For all that, England never stopped being an English-speaking country. The bulk of the population held fast to their, own tongue: the lower classes in the towns, and especially, in the country-side, those who lived in the Midlands and up north, continued to speak English and looked upon French as foreign and hostile. Since most of the people were illiterate, the English language was almost exclusively used for spoken communication.

At first the two languages existed side by side without mingling. Then, slowly and quietly, they began to permeate each other. The Norman barons and the French town-dwellers had to pick up English words to make themselves understood, while the English began to use French words in current speech. A good knowledge of French would mark a person of higher standing giving him a certain social prestige. Probably many people became bilingual and had a fair command of both languages, These peculiar linguistic conditions could not remain static. The struggle between French and English was bound to and in the complete victory of English, for English was the living language of the entire people, while French was restricted to certain social spheres and to writing. Yet the final victory was still a long way off. In the 13th c. only a few steps were made in that direction. The earliest sign of the official recognition of English by the Norman kings was the famous PROCLAMATION issued by Henry III in 1258 to the councilors in Parliament. It was written in three languages: French, Latin and English.. The three hundred years of the domination of French affected English more than any other foreign influence before or after. The early French borrowings reflect accurately the spheres of Norman influence upon English life; later borrowings can be attributed to the continued cultural, economic and political contacts between the countries. The French influence added new features to the regional and social differentiation of the language. New words, coming from French, could not be adopted simultaneously by all the speakers of English; they were first used in some varieties of the language, namely in the regional dialects of Southern England and in the speech of the upper classes, but were unknown in the other varieties. This led to growing dialectal differences, regional and social. Later the new features adopted from French extended to other varieties of the language. The use of a foreign tongue as the state language, the diversity of the dialects and the decline of the written form of English created a situation extremely favorable for increased variation and for more intensive linguistic change

London dialect.

In the 14^th century there developed the process of the rise of the national language. This language was based on the London dialect. Its cause was the great shift in social structure which characterized the English that period. It was the time when new elements made themselves felt inside the feudal society. These elements were the town merchants, who were the bearers of a new social structure, which was to replace feudalism. Growth of commerce, industry, development of many circulations. These were the manifestations of social changes. They marked the end of feudal and the formation of new society. In the 14^th century there ere 3 main groups of dialects in English: northern, midland, southern. The dialects differed from each other by essential phonetic and morphological features. These differences corresponded to the territorial position among the dialect belonged to the London dialect. After the Norman conquest London became the capital of England. London is situated on the Thames. It lays on the boundary between the midland and the southern dialect. In 13^th century it already showed a mixture of midland and southern elements. The later it prevailed. To the end of the 14^th century London dialect became influential in other parts o the country. That was to the growth of its importance as economical and political center. London’s geographical position was extremely favorable for the quick growth of its political importance and its role as the birthplace of a national language. Many roads along which England in trade was conducted crossed in London. Thanks to the great depth of the Thames sea ships could be easily reach London and it became the center of national trade. London’s role as a trade center attracted people from every part of the country and that’s why elements of other dialects penetrated into London English dialect. Thus, the London dialect, which became the base of the national language, was a complex formation, which reflected different influences connected with the social and political life of that period. It contain alongside east midland, south-eastern elements and partially south-western elements. The London dialects of those centuries is represented by several important documents: the proclamation of Henry III, poems by Adam Devy, Geoffrey Chauser.