Курсовая работа: Characteristic features of American English

clerks- "dark."

either, neither, most Americans say, "e-ther, ne-ther"—"I-ther, ni-

ther" is the English pronunciation.

issue, Americans say "ish-you"—the English say "is-sue."

leisure, most Americans say "le-sure"—the English say "laysure."

lieutenant, Americans say "lew-tenant"—the English say "lef-tenant."

nephew, Americans say "nef-hew"—the English say "nev-hew."

schedule, Americans say "sked-ule"—the English say "shed-ule." [10. p.211 ]

1.6. Differences in American and English Spelling

When the colonists came to America, spelling was not a prob­lem—if a man could write at all he was lucky. English spelling was not yet rule-ridden: i and y, as well as u and v, were often used interchangeably. Not until 135 years after the Pilgrims landed did English spelling have a guide in Dr. Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language. This monumental work froze much of English spelling and, among other things, decreed that such words as critick, loglck, musick, andpublick end in a final k and such words as colour, honour, etc., end in -our. [10. p.212 ]

England, including its colonies, began to follow Johnson's spell­ing; but, in 1758, three years after Johnson's dictionary was published, Noah Webster was born, in Hartford, Connecticut, and 21 years after Johnson's dictionary the American Revolution began—two events that were to help separate English English and American English. After graduating in law from Yale, Webster couldn't make a living doing legal work, so he became a teacher. He then found English schoolbooks hard to obtain, and unsatisfac­tory, so he compiled his own three-part Grammatical Institute of the English Language, including an elementary spelling book (in 1783), a grammar (in 1784) and a reader (in 1785). Part I became the fantastically successful The American Spelling Book, which went through edition after edition and sold 80 million copies in its first hundred years, 1783-1883. It was one of the most influential books ever published in America: from the time America became a nation, past the Civil War, and almost into the Gay 90s, genera­tions of Americans learned to spell and pronounce from it, spelling and pronouncing each syllable in every word over and over again under stern teachers. It was known to millions as Webster's Speller, the Blue-Backed Spelling Book (1853) and the Blue-Backed Speller. [10. p.213 ]

Americans are more scrupulous about clearly articulating certain unaccented syllables, especially -ary, -ery, and -ory, and certain ds, gs, hs, Ps, rs (following vowels) and t's than the English. Thus the English say melanchy, monastery, necessary, preparatory, secretary, etc, when Americans fully articulate the final syllables. Also, except in parts of New England and the South, Americans articulate the first l in fulfill, the h in forehead, the r in lord and there, and the final t in trait, rather than pronounce them as the English do: fu'fill, for 'rid, laud, theh, and trai. [10. p.214]

The English are also more conservative in using fewer abbrevia­tions and more capital letters and commas than Americans do. They capitalize such words as the Bar, the Church, the Government, the Press, and Society. By doing away with such capital letters, Americans are closer to the fashion of the 18th century, when the months, the days of the week, and the names of religions were often not capitalized. [10. p.215 ]

Written forms of American English are fairly well standardized across the United States. An unofficial standard for spoken American English has developed because of mass media and of geographic and social mobility. This standard is generally called a General American or Standard Midwestern accent and dialect, and it can typically be heard from network newscasters, although local newscasters tend toward more provincial forms of speech. Despite this unofficial standard, regional variations of American English have not only persisted, but have actually intensified, according to William Labov. [1 ]

Regional dialects in the United States typically reflect the elements of the language of the main immigrant groups in any particular region of the country, especially in terms of pronunciation and vernacular vocabulary. [5 ]

British and American English are the reference norms for English as spoken, written, and taught in the rest of the world. For instance, the English-speaking members of the Commonwealth often closely follow British English forms while many new American English forms quickly become familiar outside of the United States. [4 ]

Practical part.

Chapter II. Origin of American English words and their cultural background

2. 1. Glimpses of origin of American words

2.2. Animals

Foreigners are charmed with the vivid descriptive names Americans have given their native animals. American settlers com­bine descriptive words to give many vivid names for the mam­mals, reptiles, fish, birds, and insects—and Americans have continued to name animals by descriptive combinations ever since. [9. p.180 ]

Examples:

bald eagle, 1688, because its white neck and head make it look bald.

This bird was considered our national symbol before its picture

was placed on the Great Seal of the United States in 1785; since

then it has also been called the American eagle, 1798, and the

United States eagle, 1 847. Baltimore oriole, 1771, originally called the Baltimore bird, 1669,because its black and orange colors were those on the coat of arms of Lord Baltimore.

bullfrog, 1698, because it makes a roaring noise like a bull. canvas back, 1782, from the color of its back. [9. p.181 ]

catbird, 1709, because its call resembles the mewing of a cat. Like many words on this list it was originally spelled with a hyphen, cat-bird.