Anglo-Saxon Fill-in Test

Number of distinct languages

6,800

Definition of language

An organized systematized combination of sounds which have meaning for all persons in a given cultural community

Language families

Languages with similar sounds and grammatical structures that develop from other languages

Why the exact beginning of English is unknown

It develops slowly and changes over time

Ancestral language of English

Indo-European

Trait handed down by Indo-European

Inflection

Definition of inflection

A method of changing word meanings by adding sounds at the end of the word

Examples of inflection

(a) -ed, (b) -es/s

Meaning of 'Engl'

Angles

Meaning of 'ish'

Belonging to

Three barbarian tribes that migrated to Britain

Angles, Saxons, and Jutes

Direct descent of present-day English

Speech of the Anglo-Saxons

French-speaking court that influenced English from the top down

William the Conqueror

English status despite French loan words

Remained English, not a dialect of French

English element virtually unaffected by French

Grammar (as opposed to vocabulary)

Language that English grammar resembles today

German

Division year between Old and Middle English

1066

Characteristics of Middle English transition

(a) Greater French vocabulary, (b) Loss of inflections

Duration of the Middle English period

Approximately 410 years

Year marking the beginning of Modern English

1476

William Caxton's contribution

Set up his printing press in London

Why printing affected spelling

Until printing, all books were copied by hand

Who transcribed books prior to printing

Copyists or scribes

Why pre-print book copies had varied spelling

No two people spoke in exactly the same manner

Printer spelling system origin

The system Caxton used in late 15th-century London

Two far-reaching changes independent of printing

(a) Loss of the unaccounted e, (b) Great Vowel Shift

Cause of leveling pronunciation differences

Communication equipment

Status of the word 'whom'

Becoming extinct

Languages with the most speakers

Chinese and Spanish

Why English is considered the international language

It secures the widest possible audience

Reasons English is difficult to learn

(a) Irregularities, (b) Exceptions to the rules

Where American English is spoken

U.S.A.

Essential differences between British and American English

Intonation (voice timbre, pitch), sentence rhythm, and stress

Definition of Americanisms

Words or usages found in the U.S. but not in Great Britain

British lexicographer

Samuel Johnson

American lexicographer

Noah Webster

British vs. American spelling examples

Honor/Honour, Music/Musick, Traffic/Traffick, Center/Centre, Color/Colour