XII Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2020

The English language was developing in conditions of regular invasions. Suppositions of the language independent development but for minor exceptions didn’t exist due to that fact.

Within Middle English period England was fated to face with one more enemy – William the Conqueror. The Norman conquest of Englandbegan with Battle of Hastings, continued with wrestling lock of the South-East shore of Britain and London throw-down and finished with William the Conqueror coronation on Christmas Day in 1066. However, people didn’t want to acknowledge the new king authority and Normans came across massive revolts on the south-west, west and north of England next year. The king had to carry out several cruel military campaigns. Therefore William the Conqueror enthroned within next five years [3].

The consequences of the events evidenced in the English language development are the following:

William the Conqueror captured the throne and this fact had certain impacts. Appointing other noblemen appeared one of the most significant consequences. Many authority representatives died in Battle of Hastings and in the revolts. Those who survived were proclaimed traitors. As a result Norman feudal lords took up their positions and helped William the Conqueror to administer the affairs of the state. All of them spoke Norman French [2].

After William’s death in 1087 the throne was seized by his direct heirs. For the longest time all important posts including church ones and the largest properties lied in the hands of the French people. The number of English speaking abates, who signed executive orders of London Council, was decreasing. It is not possible to quantify exactly Norman and French people who settled down in England within a century after the Norman conquest of England, but their influence on the English language was great beyond doubt [4].

Within several centuries the French language was prevailing. It was the Royal Household language used in Court and in church. However base estates kept speaking Anglo-Saxon Old English. As a consequence the opinion on English as the language of peasantry was formed [5].

For some time both the English and the French languages coexisted and were developing simultaneously. French was strengthening its positions via constant interaction with the continent. While more new borrowings appeared owing to trading relations with various peoples of Britain. In general speaking French was considered to be acceptable and necessary [1].

Taking into consideration all mentioned above it is not possible to insist on the fact that Normans had the intention to eliminate the English language. Their attitude to English was not hostile. It is more probable that it was indifferent, and under certain conditions even favourable. For instance, priests were gradually perceiving that people didn’t understand French. So they often had to translate prayers into English which made sense for the majority of people [2].

The situation could have been the same if the following changes hadn’t happened:

England lost all its territories on the continent in 1204 and Norman area was extracted by France. Consequently grand people who owned land and immovables on the continent began think of themselves as Englishmen [1].

Under Henry the Third rule lots of foreigners came to England, where they were given honor and provided with various privileges. Hence, hostility to foreigners occurred and became the breeding ground for Englishmen’s sense of national identity and solidarity. Soon that circumstance had positive impact on the English language. Foreigners didn’t speak English and it was the main blame of them. For example, Norman people were killed in 1292 because they “didn’t speak French”, though they had lived in Bordeaux for 10 years by that tragic moment [3].

In 1348 a pandemic of bubonic plague bringing very heavy mortality among mainly peasantry, what led to shortage of manpower. And thus, craft workers became critically demanded and highly paid. Quality of their life became better. Status of peasants was compared to the one of free citizens more often. Influence of peasantry increased and as a result influence of the English language increased as well. By the beginning of the 14^th century the English language was understandable for everybody again [3].

Arakin V. D. resumes on coexistence of two languages in the following way: «The English language won, saved its grammatical system and vocabulary, whereas the Scandinavian and the French languages lost their quality, undergoing the English language influence, and gradually disappeared» [1, c. 142]. Inside the certain historical events it is possible to trace distinctly compound forced Norman invasions into English. Despite that fact the English language didn’t disappeared, but regenerated into more enhanced language due to also derivations from the French language.

Литература:

1. Аракин, В.Д. Очерки по истории английского языка : [учеб. пособие для пед. вузов] / В.Д. Аракин. – М. : ФИЗМАТЛИТ, 2007. – 147 с. – Под ред. М.Д. Резвецовой. – ISBN 978-5-9221-0833-1

2. Барлоу, Ф. Вильгельм I и нормандское завоевание Англии / Пер. с англ. под ред. к. ф. н. С. В. Иванова. – СПб.: Евразия, 2007. – 320 с: ил. – Тираж 1000 экз. – ISBN 978-5-8071-0240-1 

3. Википедия URL: https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/ (дата обращения 22.01.20)

4. Морган, О. КеннетИстория ВЕЛИКОБРИТАНИИ / О. Кеннет Морган. – М. : Весь мир,2008. – 658 с. – ISBN: 978-5-7777-0326-2 URL: https://avidreaders.ru/book/istoriya-velikobritanii.html (дата обращения 17.12.19)

5. Среднеанглийский период развития английского языка / Пер. с англ. В. Рахманова. URL: https://www.englishforcing.ru/stati/sredneanglijskij-period-razvitiya-anglijskogo-yazyka/