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Jul 19, 731
Bede
He was known as the Venerable. He wrote Ecclesiastical History of the English People to help teach the people about their history. -
Samuel Johnson
He wrote a dictionary, which he hoped would help refine the English language. -
Grim's Law
Jacob Grim found that Germanic consonants are tied to Sanskirt, Greek and Latin. His law states that there was a sound change sometime after the Germanic language broke from the neighboring dialects of the parent tongue. -
Webster's Dictionary
Noah Webster felt that American English should be distinct from British English. He reasoned that if American English was distinct it would help to unify the nation. There were also experiences that only Americans have and can describe. Americans also use different definitions and words to describe things. He wrote the first American dictionary in 1828. An American Dictionary of the English Language was written to show that American English was developing along its own lines, and not conforming -
The Oxford English Dictionary
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED)- It was orginally known as A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (NED).
It took forty-four year to compile the first edition and it is updated about every forty years. -
Saxons
They were the most prominent group of the Germanic tribes that invaded England.
The other two main tribes were the Angles and the Jutes. The word England is derived from the word Angles (Engles). -
Danelaw and Treaty of Wedmore
King Alfred ruled England from 871-899. He knew that the prosperity of England was possible if the people were learned. He provided the people with literature that he thought was fundamental to their welfare, like Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Many of these books had to be translated; nevertheless King Alfred the Great is known as the founder of English prose. The onslaught of the Vikings' second wave happened shortly before Alfred became king. He defeated the Danish king, -
St. Augustine
He wanted to convert Britain to Christianity. This influenced the English language because
it introduced many new religious words and concepts to the English people. These words were based on examples
from Latin and Greek. These two classic languages brought a large influence to the English tongue.
