Реферат: Standardization Of The English Language Essay Research

Standardization Of The English Language Essay, Research Paper

Standardization of the English Language

There are several important events before 1500 that when listed together show a

series of steps in the struggle for English language supremacy. These steps are

mainly governmental, legal and official events that pushed English usage. In

1356 The Sheriff’s Court in London and Middlesex were conducted in English for

the first time. When Parliament opened in 1362 the Statute of Pleading was

issued declaring English as a language of the courts as well as of Parliament,

but it was not until 1413 that English became the official language of the

courts everywhere. Thirteen years later in 1423, Parliament records start being

written in English. 1400 marks date that English is used in writing wills, a

seemingly small step, but one that impacted many people and began a legacy of

record keeping in English. In 1450 English became the language used in? writing

town laws and finally 1489 saw all statutes written in English. But it was not

until 1649 that English became the language of legal documents in place of Latin.

The formal rules intended to keep the use of French in official capacities were

not enough to combat the effects of the Black Death and the Hundred Years War

between France and England, which both contributed greatly to the rise of

English and fall of French. By the fourteenth century, English was again known

by most people, although French was not forgotten, and the people who spoke

French were generally bilingual. The? Statute of Pleading made it law that

English and not French would be used in the courts. However, it needs to be

emphasized that at the end of this statement, it says that after the pleadings,

debates, etc. in English were finished, they should be entered and enrolled in

Latin. English became the official language of the court in 1413, but French was

permitted until the eighteenth century.

More than the official bureaucratic changes in rules and law were the changes in

the use of the language by the everyday speakers. The changes that distinguish

Early Modern English from Middle English are substantial. The rules for spelling

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