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Period: 400 to
History of the English Language Timeline
This is the entire timespan for my assignment, 400 - 2012 AD. -
Period: 450 to 1100
Old English
A language that looks nothing like Modern English, Old English included extra letters and symbols that were no longer used once Middle and Modern English came around. One story written in Old English (and later translated) was "Beowulf", a story which started out being told orally. The word "water" came from Old English and many other Modern English words have Old English roots. -
Period: 450 to 480
The Earliest Known Old English Inscriptions
According to "The History of English" (the website), the earliest known Old English inscriptions were made between 450 and 480 AD. -
597
St. Augustine Founds the English Church
In 597, during the Old English time period, St. Augustine came to England and founded the English Church. St. Augustine was not, however, the first person to bring Christianity to England. The change from paganism to Christianity can be seen in the written form of "Beowulf" through contrast between pagan symbols, such as pride, and Christian symbols, such as monotheism. -
Period: 700 to 750
Timespan in Which "Beowulf" May Have Been Written
According to the Brittanica website, "Beowulf" was likely written in this timespan. However, this is highly debated as other sources say very different dates. -
Period: 900 to 999
Old English Gains New Words From Old Norse
According to the ThoughtCo website, the English and the Danish got along well in the 10th century. This led to Old Norse words such as "sister" becoming a part of the English language. -
1066
The Norman Invasion
Normandy invaded England in 1066 with the help of their Duke, William the Conqueror. This invasion helped the English language transition from "Old English" to "Middle English". -
Period: 1100 to 1500
Middle English
Middle English came about from The Norman Invasion. Middle English included French words and is more similar to Modern English than Modern English is to Old English. One example of Middle English is found in the General Prologue of "Canterbury Tales": "A Knyght ther was, and that a worthy man, / That fro the tyme that he first bigan / To riden out, he loved chivalrie..." -
1209
The University of Cambridge is Created
According to the website ThoughtCo, The University of Cambridge was "formed by scholars from Oxford" in 1209 AD. -
Period: 1347 to 1351
The Bubonic Plague
From 1347 to 1351 AD the Bubonic Plague killed many people all over Europe. This plague came from flea-infested rats which stowed away on ships traveling back to Europe. -
1392
Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales" Is Written
In 1392, Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales" came out. "Canterbury Tales" is a story about many different people from many different walks of life who participate in a story-telling competition while they are traveling together. -
1440
Johannes Gutenberg Invents the Printing Press
In 1440 Johannes Gutenberg, from Germany, invented the printing press. While Gutenberg often gets the credit for this idea, other printing methods had already existed for centuries earlier. -
1492
Christopher Columbus Discovers the Americas
In 1492 Christopher Columbus "discovered" the Americas, which he at first thought was Asia. While he is often credited with this discovery, Vikings had landed at North America far earlier. In addition, Native Americans had been living in the Americas far before Columbus ever found them. -
Period: 1500 to
Modern English
Modern English came about from pronunciation changes and contact with other countries. In addition, the printing press helped establish Modern English so that it did not change as much as previous forms of English did.
Some phrases of popular Modern English of the 21st century include common phrases like "I drove my car to work at the office" and new words like "Poggers" (inspired by an emoji on the streaming app, Twitch). -
1565
The First English-to-Latin Wordbook is Published
According to the website ThoughtCo, the first English-to-Latin wordbook was published by a monk known as Geoffrey the Grammarian in the late 15th century (1565 according to other sources). This wordbook was called Thesaurus Linguae Romanae et Britannicae. -
Shakespeare's First Folio is Published
Shakespeare's First Folio was published after his death and contained 36 of his 37 plays. Some of these plays include: Macbeth, The Tempest, and Julius Caesar. -
Period: to
The American Revolution
In the 18th century, the formerly British colonies in North America rebelled against Britain and fought for their independence. The country "The United States of America" was eventually formed after the colonies won the revolution at The Battle of Yorktown. -
The Invention of the Telephone
In 1876 Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. The telephone has changed a lot since then, and now includes texting and internet usage. -
The Creation of the Internet
According to the University System of Georgia, "January 1, 1983 is considered the official birthday of the Internet". The Internet, like books and plays before it, helped establish Modern English and prevent it from changing too much (as languages did before people could read and write). -
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is Published
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, written by J.K. Rowling, was first published in 1997. This book, and the following books in the series, became extremely influential in the late 20th and the 21st centuries. Multiple movies were made and merchandise continues to sell even 24 years later.