Latin in the Early History of English

doi:10.1017/9781009205702.010

7 - Latin in the Early History of English

from Part II - Contact and External Influences

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 30 October 2025

Olga Timofeeva

Edited by

Laura Wright and

Raymond Hickey

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Laura Wright: Affiliation:
University of Cambridge
Raymond Hickey: Affiliation:
University of Limerick

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Summary

This chapter explores the link between education and linguistic innovation in the early history of English, by looking at the evolution of the school system and the languages of school instruction. Varieties of spoken and written Latin and Latin as a second (and third) language are among the other sociolinguistic anchors of this chapter. The turning points are located at about 650 CE, the spread of Christianity and formal schooling in Latin among the Anglo-Saxons, at 1066, the introduction of French as a second vernacular and language of school instruction, and at 1349, the reversal of the latter situation in the wake of the socio-demographic changes caused by the Black Death. The survey starts on the eve of the Germanic migration to Britain and ends around 1500; it is illustrated with a selection of lexical and structural features introduced into English through contact with Latin.

Keywords

Latin Old English Middle English French Christianity literacy schools loanwords

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Type: Chapter
Information: The New Cambridge History of the English Language
Context, Contact and Development
, pp. 193 - 218

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009205702.010 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2025

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