Middle English

By nisbah
  • 1 BCE

    Great Vowel Shift

    The Middle English period was also the time at which the Great Vowel Shift was characterised. It was a massive sound change affecting the long vowels of the English language.
  • Sep 29, 1066

    Norman Conquest

    After the Norman Conquest, William the Conqueror brought his nobles to be the new government. The Old French took over to be the new language of the court, administration and culture. Latin was mainly used for written language, especially that of the Church.
  • Sep 29, 1200

    French and English Split

    By this time, the English and French had split. English changed a lot as it was mostly being spoken rather than written for about 300 years. The use of Old English came back but with Old French words. Most of the words embedded in the English vocabulary are words of power such as "Crown, castle, court, parliament"
  • Sep 29, 1300

    Renaissance

    The renaissance led to further changes in pronounciation and grammar- led to the emergence of an Early Modern English.
  • Sep 29, 1476

    Printing Press

    William Caxton introduced the printing press in 1476. This helped towards the process of standardisation because there was a house standard; Southern (London) dialect. Therefore teachers and would have the books and would teach it to scholars and therefore the information would get passed on and those who could afford education would learn these.