DEATON APHG LANGUAGE

INTRODUCTION Language- a system of communication through speech. The U.S. is not very diverse in language. How? Literary Tradition- System of written communication. Many spoken languages do not have a written record. What does this mean?

INTRODUCTION Countries will have an official language- one that is used by the government for laws, signs, reports, etc. In some countries the official language is not spoken or read by many inhabitants. Why/how does this happen? How is language like luggage?

ORIGINS AND DIFFUSION OF ENGLISH English Colonies- English is so widespread mainly due to colonization during the past 4 centuries. However, English is actually considered a Germanic language. How? The English inhabitants were the Celts. 2000BCE They were invaded by the Angles, Jutes, and Saxons who were all German tribes. The two larger tribes account for the name Anglo-Saxons. England comes from the word Angles’ land which was the largest Ger. Tribe who were from the “angle/coner” of Germany.

ORIGINS AND DIFFUSION OF ENGLISH This all occurred before literary tradition. So, as time progressed and the groups lived isolated from one another their languages developed differently. England would be invaded by more groups who all contributed to the language. Such as the Vikings. However, one of the largest influences is actually from Norman invasion.

ORIGINS AND DIFFUSION OF ENGLISH In 1066 the Normans conquered England and they were from France. They made it the official language for the next 300 years. The upper class used it, but the uneducated continued to use English. When the people fought the leadership of France they went back to mainly using English. However, their fancier words in their language comes from this French influence, while their root language is mainly Germanic.

DIALECTS OF ENGLISH Dialect- A regional variation of a language distinguished by distinctive vocabulary, spelling, and pronunciation. The U.S. is one of the countries with the most dialects. Largely due to mass immigration by many groups. However, usually one dialect is recognized as the standard language- the dialect that is the most recognized and established for communication.

DIALECTS OF ENGLISH For the U.S. which areas are influenced by the different influx of immigration? Upper East Coast- BRP British Received Pronunciation. Lower East Coast- Cockney and Spanish. Appalachia- Scots Irish so really Celtic Mid-South (Louisiania)- French and English West Coast – Asian and variations of English Upper Mid-West- French and Viking