ELex VL 2 Sources and meaning of meaning

RUB Winter Semester 2024/25

  • Instructor: Christiane Meierkord

  • Course: The English Lexicon

Sources of the English Lexicon

  • Overview of the various sources that contribute to the English lexicon.

Page 2: Today's Lecture Overview

  • Topics Covered:

    • Periods in the history of English

    • Sources of vocabulary in different periods

    • The concept of meaning

      • Meaning as arbitrary

      • Exceptions to this rule

    • Different approaches to meaning:

      • Referential approach

      • Representational (mental) approach

      • Usage approach

Page 3: Historical Periods of the English Language

  • Periods Identified:

    • Old English period: c. 450 (700) - c. 1100

      • Invasion of the Anglo-Saxons (c. 449)

      • Reign of King Alfred: 871 - 899

    • Middle English period: c. 1100 - c. 1500

      • Norman conquest: 1066

    • Early Modern English period: c. 1500 - c. 1700

      • Introduction of the printing press: 1476

Page 4: Sources of English Vocabulary

  • Major Sources:

    • Anglo-Saxon Germanic Word Stock

      • Common lexicon that forms the basis of English

    • Borrowings:

      • Words taken from other languages, adapted into English

    • Loan Translations:

      • New compounds formed by directly translating foreign terms (e.g., caste-mark)

Page 5: Origin of the Anglo-Saxons

  • Key Groups:

    • NORTH: Angles

    • STA: Saxons

    • JUTES: Native to Jutland

    • ERISTANS: Influence on early vocabulary

Page 6: Borrowings in the Old English Period

  • Key Borrowing Sources:

    • Anglo-Saxon: Core vocabulary remains high-frequency

    • Celtic: Early influences on place names (e.g., Thames)

    • Latin and Old Norse:

      • Limited but impactful contributions during invasions

Page 7: Specific Borrowings in the Old English Period

  • From Latin:

    • Religious terms: altar, angel

    • Everyday words: cherry, belt

  • From Old Norse:

    • Close to 900 borrowed words including simple terms like they and are.

Page 9: The Middle English Period

  • Significance of 1066:

    • Norman conquest introduced Norman French as the language of the ruling class.

  • Language Landscape:

    • Three languages: English (commoners), French (nobility), Latin (scholarly documents).

Page 10: Middle English Timeline

  • Key Events:

    • 1204: King John loses Normandy

    • 1250: Nobility begins to speak English

    • 1362: Parliament sessions begin in English

    • 1423: Record-keeping in English starts

Page 11: Vocabulary Sources in Middle English

  • Borrowings from French:

    • Fashion (gown, cape)

    • Culture (poet, music)

    • Learning (grammar, medicine)

    • Law (jury, state)

    • Influence on English culture and vocabulary.

Page 12: More Borrowings in Middle English

  • Borrowings from Dutch:

    • Trade vocabulary (guilder, dock)

  • Borrowings from Scots:

    • Terms like laird and bairn.

Page 13: Early Modern English Vocabulary Sources

  • Renaissance Influence:

    • Focus on classical languages: Greek, Latin, Hebrew.

  • Notable Borrowings:

    • Vocabulary derived directly or via French: atmosphere, encyclopedia, pneumonia.

Page 14: Contact with Colonial Languages

  • Influence of Colonialism:

    • Borrowings from Indian languages: bungalow, tandoori.

    • Diverse borrowings reflecting multicultural impact.

Page 15: Definition of Meaning by De Saussure

  • Concept Overview:

    • Connection between a linguistic form and a mental concept is arbitrary but conventional.

Page 16: Exceptions to Arbitrariness

  • Iconic Meaning:

    • Words that resemble what they denote, e.g., onomatopoeia (moo, quack).

    • Sound symbolism indicating specific actions (bash, crash).

Page 17: Meaning as Denotation

  • Meaning linked to referents in the real world:

    • Common nouns: mountain

    • Proper nouns: Mt. Kilimanjaro.

Page 18: Metonymy as Extended Meaning

  • Example of metonymy usage:

    • Buckingham Palace refers to the British monarchy's statement.

Page 19: Contextual Examples of Meaning

  • Official statement reflecting the authority of individuals in specific contexts.

Page 20-26: Additional Examples of Meaning

  • Various linguistic examples showcasing denotation:

    • MacIntosh (raincoat), Hoover (vacuum), wellies (rubber boots), and others.

  • Criticism of the referential approach mentions non-referring items and dynamic verbs.

Page 27: Representational Approach to Meaning

  • Lexical items reflect mental concepts associated with words.

  • Illustrates the concept differences between English dialects (e.g., bus vs. coach).

Page 28: Proper Nouns vs. Common Nouns

  • Definitions:

    • Proper nouns: Unique references (Oxford University).

    • Common nouns: General references (car).

Page 29-30: Antonomasia Process

  • Transformation of proper nouns into common nouns over time (kleenex, biro).

  • Illustrates vocabulary evolution related to brand names.