【IfyouaskpeopletonametheonepersonwhohadthegreatesteffectontheEnglishlanguageyouwillgetanswerslike“Shakespeare”“SamuelJohnson”and“Webster”butnoneofthesemenhadanye】
IfyouaskpeopletonametheonepersonwhohadthegreatesteffectontheEnglishlanguageyouwillgetanswerslike“Shakespeare”“SamuelJohnson”and“Webster”butnoneofthesemenhadanyeffectatallcomparedtoamanwhodidn'tevenspeakEnglish-WilliamtheConqueror.
Before1066inthelandwenowcallGreatBritainlivedpeoplebelongingtotwomajorlanguagegroups.Inthewest-centralregionintheWelshwhospokeaCelticlanguageandinthenorthlivedtheScotswhoselanguagethoughtnotthesameasWelshwasalsoCeltic.IntherestofthecountrylivedtheSaxonsactuallyamixtureofAnglosSaxonsandotherGermanicandNordicpeopleswhospokewhatwenowcallAnglo-Saxon(orOldEnglish)aGermaniclanguage.IfthisstateofaffairshadlastedEnglishtodaywouldbeclosetoGerman.
Butthisstateofaffairsdidnotlast.In1066theNormansledbyWilliamdefeatedtheSaxonsandbegantheirruleoverEngland.ForaboutacenturyFrenchbecametheofficiallanguageofEnglandwhileOldEnglishbecamethelanguageofpeasant.AsaresultEnglishwordsofpoliticsandthelawcomefromFrenchratherthanGerman.InsomecasesmodernEnglishevenshowsadistinction(区别)betweenupperclassFrenchandlower-classAnglo-Saxoninitswords.WeevenhavedifferentwordsforsomefoodsmeatinparticulardependingonwhetheritisstilloutinthefieldsorathomereadytobecookedwhichshowsthefactthattheSaxonpeasantsweredoingfarmingwhiletheupper-classNormansweredoingmostoftheeating.
WhenAmericansvisitEuropeforthefirsttimetheyusuallyfindGermanymore“foreign”thanFrancebecausetheGermantheyseeonsignsandadvertisementsseemsmuchmoredifferentfromEnglishthanFrenchdoes.FewrealizethattheEnglishlanguageisactuallyGermanicinitsbeginningandthattheFrenchinfluencesarealltheresultofoneman'sambition.
(1)
ThetwomajorlanguagesspokeninwhatisnowcalledGreatBritainbefore1066were________.