THREE WAYS TO DEFINE ENGLISH By 1. Its origins and History. 2. Comparing it with other languages and erlier stages. 3. Examining some reasons for language change, that is, internal and external changes. Chapter 1: The English Language

1. ITS ORIGINS AND HISTORY. According to this 1.B. During the roman accupation speakers of Germanic dialects served in the roman army; there were many trade contacts, and slavery was widespread in Europe. 1. A. English starts when the Germanic tribes and their languages reach the British isles , in 449. This provided Several means of contact between Celtic and Germanic speakers and Roman culture.

2. COMPARING IT WITH OTHER LANGUAGES AND ERLIER STAGES. This states that Old English has a lack of grammatical words such as of, the, and we and modern English has 13 or 14 vowels and different vowels sounds Languages differ in how they work their functions trhough word order and grammatical words. English has at least 25 consonants, not forgetting that English syllable structure is quite complex. English has consonant clusters. English has varieties according to region, social class, and register, or level of formality.

Germanic dialects pushed out the Celtic languages to the periphery. 3. Examining some reasons for language change, that is, internal and external changes. Internal External They occur when speakers stop using inflections and start to rely on words such as of, for, the, and have. They are more predictable. Are brought about by language contact such as issues of political or social identity. These changes are unpredictable. Other Historical reasons are Germanic dialects pushed out the Celtic languages to the periphery. Scandinavians are the most important of the external influences on English grammar and vocabulary. Frech becoming the language of nobility and the court as a result of the settlement of the normans in 1066