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by Albert C. Baugh
Towards the close of the Old English period an event occurred which had a
greater effect on the English language than any other in the course of its
history. This event was the Norman Conquest in 1066. What the language
would have been like if William the Conqueror had not succeeded in making
good his claim to the English throne can only be a matter of conjecture. It would
probably have pursued much the same course as the other Teutonic [i.e., Germanic]
languages, retaining perhaps more of its inflections and preserving a
preponderatingly Teutonic vocabulary . . . and incorporating much less freely
words from other languages. In particular it would have lacked the greater part of
that enormous number of French words which today make English seem on the
side of vocabulary almost as much a Romance as a Teutonic language. The
Norman Conquest changed the whole course of the English language. An event
of such far-reaching consequences must be considered in some detail . . .
On the northern coast of France directly across from England is a district . . .
known as Normandy. It derives its name from the bands of Northmen who settled
there in the ninth and tenth centuries, at the same time as similar bands were
settling in the north and east of England . . . A generation after Alfred reached an
agreement with the Northmen in England a somewhat similar understanding was
reached between Rollo, the leader of the Danes [Vikings] in Normandy, and
Charles the Simple, king of France. In 912 the right of the Northmen to
occupy this part of France was recognized; Rollo acknowledged the French
king as his overlord, and became the first duke of the Normans. In the
following century and a half a succession of masterful dukes raised the dukedom to
a position of great influence, overshadowing at times the power of the king of
France . . .
Readily adopting the ideas and customs of those among he came to live, the
Norman had soon absorbed the most important elements of French
civilization . . . But most important of all, for us, he soon gave up his own
language and learned French. So rapidly did the old Scandinavian tongue
disappear in the Norman capital that a second duke was forced to send his son to
Bayeux that he might learn something of the speech of his forefathers. In the
English
83%
34%
29%
27%
27%
27%
23%
26%
25%
25%
French
11%
46%
46%
45%
47%
42%
45%
41%
41%
42%
Latin
2%
11%
14%
17%
17%
19%
17%
18%
17%
18%
Danish
2%
2%
1%
1%
1%
2%
2%
2%
2%
1%
Other
2%
7%
10%
10%
8%
10%
13%
13%
15%
14%
[Partial list of French words that came into English, ca. 1066-1250]
abbot, cardinal, clerk, countess, empress, duke, court, rent, justice, miracle, dame,
prince, chapel, image, reason, pilgrim, saint, virgin, religion, sermon, prophet,
patriarch, archangel, sacrament, sepulchre, custom, admiral, baron, crown,
astronomy, nunnery, abbey, physician, parishioner, city, crucifix, purgatory,
tournament, unicorn, journey, medicine, witness, constable, uncle, aunt, cousin,
lamp, rose, war, arrive, pay, poor, rich, mercy.
[Consider the following lists of words deriving from Old English and
French respectively]
Old English: calf, cow, boar, swine, deer, chicken, sheep
French: veal, beef, brawn, pork, venison, poultry, mutton
Old English: farmer, woodsman, fisherman, shepherd, hunter, skinner, miller,
baker, cook
French: tailor, butcher, glazier, physician, mason, barber, carpenter, attorney,
painter, chandler, haberdasher, draper, merchant