The Story of English

(Robert McCrum)
The Story of English is a brief history of the English language from its inception to
a study of its variations all across the contemporary world. English is the most
widely used language in the world. It is the language of world politics, commerce,
science, and popular culture. English has the unique ability to grow and adapt in
response to challenges and new situations, which the authors display with
examples drawn from a wide range of media sources throughout the book. Voice
recordings have made knowledge of spoken English easier in the last century or
so but before that much had to be reconstructed. It is also unclear to the authors
how to separate English into accents, types, dialects, and so on. Along the way,
the authors undermine a number of important myths.
The Story of English is composed of an introduction, nine chapters, and an
epilogue. The introduction explains what the authors intend to accomplish in the
book and explain some of the animating problems that the author observes.
Chapter 1, An English-Speaking World explains how the world came to be
dominated by English in recent decades. The book is particularly focused on the
United Kingdom and so starts its history from this location. Many regional dialects
of English existed until the BBC and Received Pronunciation became widespread.
While regional dialects did not disappear, they were substantially diminished. The
United States continued the spread of English after the decline of the British
Empire. However, global English is not limited to American or Standard English.
Chapter 2, The Mother Tongue, tells the story of the origin of English. The
development of English began when the Celtic British were conquered by Julius
Caesar in 55 B.C. which led to their partial Romanization. The Romans left England
in the early fifty century AD and soon thereafter three Germanic tribes, the
Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes, migrated to English. When Christianity came to
the British Isles in the late sixth century, a large range of Roman and Greek words
were imported. Scandinavian invasions between the 8 th and 11th centuries were
another important influence and the Norman Conquest revolutionized the English
language, transitioning English from Old to Middle English.
Chapter 3, A Muse of Fire, shows how Middle English started to evolve into
Modern English during the Elizabethan Age through the flourishing of English
culture and the beginning of the British Empire.
Chapter 4, The Guid Scots Tongue, tells the history of the Scottish dialect and
accent.
Chapter 5, The Irish Question, tells the same story for the Irish.
Chapter 6, Black on White, explains the formation of black dialects across the
Western Hemisphere.
Chapter 7, Pioneers! O Pioneers! Focuses on American English and the alterations
made from Standard British English.
Chapter 8, The Echoes of an English Voice, focuses largely on the Australian and
New Zealand variants of English.
Chapter 9, The New Englishes, quickly reviews the many variants of English that
have developed in countries that the British controlled in Africa, the Caribbean,
and the East like South Africa, Jamaica, and Singapore. In the epilogue titled
fittingly Next Year’s Words, the authors make predictions about the future
evolutions of the English language.
Chapter 1- An English-Speaking World Summary and Analysis
English has an impressive history of success. English did not exist two thousand
years ago and five hundred years, later the precursor tongue, Englisc, was spoken
by as many people as Cherokee is today. A thousand years later, Shakespeare was
in his prime and English was spoken by five to seven million. Four hundred years
later, English is spoken by 750 million although only half of them speak it as their
first language. English is undoubtedly the language of the planet. It has the richest
vocabulary at about five hundred thousand words. English has few rivals such as
Chinese, Spanish, Arabic, Russian, German, and Japanese, but no equals. English
has become a vital alternative language in many countries, and in some cases like
in India, often unifying them.
Chapter 2-The Mother Tongue Summary and Analysis
English was made through three invasions and a cultural revolution. Germanic
tribes took it to Britain, followed soon after by the Angles, Saxons and Jutes. Latin
and Greek influenced it when St. Augustine and others brought Christianity to
England. The Danes added their own elements and then it was deeply
transformed by the French. English was always a hybrid forged between war and
peace. Only after a thousand years, however, did English become recognizable to
the modern ear. It was not clear until the eighteenth century, however, how
closely it was connected to European languages.
Chapter 3- A Muse of Fire Summary and Analysis
The achievements of the English language during the Elizabethan Age were
extraordinary. Elizabeth became queen in 1558 and Shakespeare was born in
1564. James I, who had the King James Version of the Bible translated, died in
1625. Over those seventy years, the English language reached an extraordinary
level of vitality. England expanded due to great changes, the Renaissance, the
Reformation, and the rise of England as a Navel power. The Printing Press nearly
doubled the number of books in England and by 1600 nearly half of the English
were minimally literate. The classics were influential as well. The scientific
revolution of the Renaissance took place in part in England and new terms were
introduced, such as atmosphere and skeleton. The Renaissance added over ten
thousand words to the English language.
Chapter 4- The Guid Scots Tongue Summary and Analysis
Scots is one of the oldest and most interesting varieties of English dating back to
the sixth and seventh centuries. The Scots originated the “Mc” prefix. Their
language was most dominant in the North and the South ultimately dominated it.
Standard English was the greatest threat and the pressure to standardize English
after the scientific revolution was strong. During this period, Samuel Johnson
produced an English language dictionary. The language exploded with new terms
that had to be tamed. Jonathan Swift came next and was particularly concerned
about corruption of the English language. English spelling was too chaotic.
Chapter 5-The Irish Question Summary and Analysis
English is not Ireland’s native language and most unique Irish writers have been
assimilated into the English writing tradition. In America, forty million people
claim to be of Irish descent. Irish remains one of the most recognizable English
tongues. Ireland has had a traumatic history where the English have conquered
them for eight hundred years. Irish culture is a strange mixture of Anglo-Saxon
and Celtic.
The Gaelic tradition is a source of the inspiration of Irish literature. Old Ireland
spoke the language and exerted major influenced in England in the eighth and
ninth centuries. The culture of Ireland rose to a high point in the tenth century.
From the late 12th century onwards, England began their domination.
Chapter 6-Black on White Summary and Analysis
Linguists are beginning to discover that Black English is not simply lazy or
ungrammatical English but something much more than simply a variation of
English. This form of English has been widely hated and was the product of the
slave trade. Many Black English variants exist, including African pidgins, Caribbean
Creole, and the English of the American south, among others. The blacks that
were imported across the English-speaking world three hundred and fifty years
ago spoke several hundred local languages that merged in transit and when blacks
began to mix and intermarry.
Chapter 7-Pioneers! O Pioneers! Summary and Analysis
Americans and British people have generally thought that each other’s form of
English was somehow inferior to their own. This is particularly true of the English.
The American Revolution led to a gradual divergence between American and
Standard English and Americans deliberately changed some of their language to
distinguish themselves. Many of the American Founders invented their own
words. Americans were already a polyglot society and had to acknowledge that
they would not have a single language although English would be the first
language.
In 1828, Daniel Webster produced his famous Webster’s dictionary, which was a
landmark in separated American English from Standard English. His elementary
Blue-Backed American Speller sold eighty million copies during his lifetime.
Webster was deeply and explicitly committed to separating American and
Standard English.
Chapter 8-The Echoes of an English Voice Summary and Analysis
The English, Scots, and Irish took their mother tongue across the globe to
Rhodesia, India, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Falklands, Australia, New Zealand, and
South Africa.
The London language called Cockney was often a sign of being low class. It was
the speech of a worker in London, although it was not always that way. The
“polite pronunciation” became the language of the southern English middle class,
whose most distinctive feature is the long “a.” The Education Acts of the late-
Victorian years stressed “correct English” and isolated the speech of the London
working class. Those in poverty in the East End were not much affected which led
to the caricature. Cockney therefore began to attract the attention of English
writers interested in the working classes.
Chapter 9- The New Englishes Summary and Analysis
All the English dialects still have an admiration for the “highest” British accents.
Languages always break up and evolve but English has been somewhat well-
maintained. However, the most significant pressure for English to evolve is in
areas where English is spoken as a majority second language. Jamaica offers the
distinctly different English accent of all.
Jamaican English is almost unintelligible to other English speakers but the authors
believe it is a harbinger of Englishes to come in other parts of the world. Many
famous Jamaicans have made great achievements for the language, however,
such as Bob Marley. The international power of English keeps Jamaican from
deviating too much however. Standard English is still associated with money and
success. Jamaican has also spread to areas in Toronto, New York, and London
where many Jamaicans live.
History of English Language in 10 Minutes Introduction
• The English Language’s history is vast and rich, evolving over 1500
years. • Its journey comprises multiple influences, invasions, and
innovations.
The Anglo-Saxon Era
• English Language’s roots can be traced back to the departure of the
Romans from Britain.
• Germanic tribes such as the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes began settling in
Britain.
• The term “Anglo-Saxon” is derived from the Angles and Saxons.
• Romans left behind infrastructure like roads but not much of their Latin
language.
• The Anglo-Saxon vocabulary was simple, with words like ‘house’,
‘woman’, and ‘werewolf’.
• Days of the week like Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were
named after Anglo-Saxon gods.
Influence of Christianity and Vikings
• Christian missionaries brought Latin words into the language.
• Latin introduced words like ‘martyr’, ‘bishop’, and ‘font’.
• Vikings introduced words such as ‘drag’, ‘ransack’, and ‘die’.
The Norman Conquest
• In 1066, William the Conqueror invaded England, introducing French and
Latin words.
• Words like ‘judge’, ‘jury’, ‘evidence’, and ‘justice’ have French origins.
• The commoners spoke English while the elite and the church used French
and Latin respectively.
The Shakespearean Impact
• William Shakespeare introduced approximately 2,000 new words and
phrases.
• Words like ‘eyeball’, ‘puppy dog’, ‘anchovy’, ‘dauntless’, and ‘besmirch’
are credited to him.
• His works reflected the vast expressive capability of the English language.
The King James Bible
• In 1611, a new translation of the Bible was introduced.
• This translation made religious texts accessible to common people.
• It introduced common phrases like “a leopard can’t change its spots” and
“a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”.
The Rise of Scientific English
• The 17th century marked the rise of scientists like Robert Hooke, Robert
Boyle, and Isaac Newton.
• The need for new scientific terminology led to words like ‘acid’, ‘gravity’,
and ‘electricity’.
English and Empire
• The British Empire introduced English to various parts of the world. •
English borrowed words like ‘barbecue’ from the Caribbean, ‘yoga’ from
India, and ‘voodoo’ from Africa.
The Age of the Dictionary
• Lexicographers aimed to standardize English spelling and definitions.
• Dr. Johnson’s “Dictionary of the English Language” was a major
contribution, followed by the Oxford English Dictionary.
American English
• English evolved differently in America due to influences from Native
Americans and immigrants.
• Words like ‘raccoon’, ‘cookies’, ‘pizza’, and ‘mafia’ found their way into
American English.
The Age of the Internet
• The advent of the internet brought about a new form of English.
• Abbreviations like ‘LOL’, ‘IMHO’, and ‘BTW’ became popular.
• The internet age saw a blend of typed and spoken English.
Global English
• English has been influenced by over 350 languages.
• With 1.5 billion speakers worldwide, various forms like ‘Hinglish’ and
‘Chinglish’ have emerged.
• The global nature of English suggests that its association with England
might reduce in the future.
Conclusion
• The evolution of the English language is a testament to its adaptability
and resilience.
• From its Anglo-Saxon roots to its global presence, English continues to
grow and adapt, reflecting the changing dynamics of human civilization.