History of the English Language

By Theqsk
  • Period: 400 to Jan 1, 1066

    Old English Era

  • Jan 1, 700

    Suspected date of Beowulf's writing

    Suspected date of Beowulf's writing
  • Jan 1, 1041

    Invention of the Printing Press

    Invention of the Printing Press
  • Jan 1, 1066

    Norman Invasion of England

    Norman Invasion of England
  • Period: Jun 27, 1070 to Jun 27, 1470

    Middle English Era

  • Jun 27, 1300

    Normans Overthrown

    English becomes the dominant language again.
  • Jan 1, 1392

    Canterbury Tales

    Canterbury Tales
  • Jun 27, 1399

    Depostion of King Richard II

    Depostion of King Richard II
    The dethrowning of the king causes many linguistic changes
  • Jun 27, 1470

    Printing Introduced in England

    Printing Introduced in England
    Makes literature more available to the general public
  • Period: Jun 27, 1480 to

    Modern English Era

  • Jan 1, 1492

    Discovery of North America

    Discovery of North America

  • Shakespeares First Folio

    Shakespeares First Folio

  • English Renaissance

    English Renaissance
    A cultural and artistic movement during the renaissance.

  • Age of Enlightenment

    Age of Enlightenment
    Created a more scientific aproach to many subjects including literature.

  • Start of the Revolutionary War

    Start of the Revolutionary War

  • Victorian Era

    Victorian Era
    A literary genre that was heavily influenced by women readers and authors.

  • Viking Invasions

    Viking Invasions
    Introduced a lot of Scandenavian words to the language.

  • Unification of Anglo-Saxon tibes

    Unification of Anglo-Saxon tibes
    Decline in regional dialects.