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Sem-1 Drama

"Edward II" - Marlowe's Classic History Play do you consider it as a tragic play?
Submit your review. ( Hamartia, Anagnorisis, conflict)
Tragedy' according to Aristotle' is the spectacle of the fall of a great man that arouses the emotions of
pity and fear. A l t h o u g h t h e f a l l i s c a u s e d p r i m a r i l y b y Hamartia o r a f a t a l fl a w ' t h e
u l ti m a t e impression overshadows the weakness of the fallen hero refl ected in his error
of judgment and wrests our sympathy as well as admiration. -The emotion of terror is roused in us as
we feel that although by virtue of his position the man is unlike us' his actions and nature are akin to
ours' and as we view the play, we feel that some such tragic eventuality may overtake us'

making ingress through

ahumanerrorc o m m i tt e d b y u s i n a m o m e n t o f n a t u r a l i n d i s c r e ti o n o r w e a k n e s s o r
i n fi r m i t y. - t h i s s e n s e arouses fear or terror in us.

As Gaveston says, “Music and poetry is his delight-therefore I*ll have Italian masques by
night' Sweet speeches' comedies' and pleasing shows”

It is no fault on the part of a king to be fond of music and poetry' Italian

masques' &comedies* and pleasing shows. >Rather they speak of his taste for arts, but a
responsible and most dignified king would spend his time in this way with his sycophant
favourite friend is not welcome.

The tragedies of Marlowe are known for their grand design, extravagance grandeur, ‘rant and bluster’,
the monomaniac characters with their single obsession of power, the passion for their boosting up of self in a
way that we marvel at them, and a certain ruthlessness which defies human sentiment. His last celebrated
tragedy Edward II is concerned with the tragic fall of a historical king, Edward II. As per as technical excellence is
concerned, Marlowe Edward II does not appeal as Shakespeare’s tragedies do. Whereas Shakespeare’s
tragedies deal with lofty universal ideal, Marlowe’s Edward II is all about frustration and weakness. The
dictum “Character is destiny” is absolutely applicable to the tragedy of Edward II. Shakespeare’s tragic heroes
are great men not only in the sense that they are kings and generals, but because they gain a great moral
character in spite of having hamartia (characteristic flaw). Hamlet is a man of lofty ideals; Macbeth and Othello
are men of outstanding qualities; King Lear has the nobility of soul. Accordingly they evoke pity and fear.
Marlowe’s Edward II is a king of different nature. He is not only a fool but a coward.

It is the character of Edward II that has marred the play being a great tragedy. He does not at all
impress us as a true tragic figure. He suffers because of his fond infatuation for his ‘minion’ Gaveston.
There is hardly any redeeming feature in his character. He insults his Lords, humiliates the Bishop and insults his
wife, Queen Isabella. He is utterly weak and irresolute. Shakespeare’s Hamlet is also irresolute which is born of
high philosophy. Excessive thinking paralyses his will to act. But Edward II is not capable of thinking at all.
Shakespeare’s Richard II is weak and insufficient like Edward II. Still he has fineness of temperament, a beauty in
his nature which makes his fate not only piteous but tragic. But King Edward hardly possesses any greatness.
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The great tragedies of Shakespeare involve a moral conception, a dramatic conflict between good and evil from
which goodness ultimately wins. In Edward II, there is a real dramatic conflict between the king and his favourites
on the one side and his rebel Lords on the other. This conflict continues till the end of the play with varying
vicissitude. At one stage, the King is able to defeat his rebel Lords. But in the end he is defeated and finally
executed by the treachery of his own disloyal Queen. Neither inTamburlaine nor in Dr. Faustus there is any
conflict between the two forces.

Edward II is most remarkable for its two famous Scenes: The Abdication(Deposition) Scene and the
Murder (Death) Scene. In writing about the Abdication Scene Charles Lamb commented “The reluctant pangs of
abdicating Royalty furnishedhints which Shakespeare scarce improved in his Richard II.” On the Murder Scene
he remarked “It moves pity and terror beyond any scene ancient and modern; with which I am
acquainted.” Indeed these two scenes perfectly bring out the catastrophe of the play.

After judging all the merits and demerits of Edward II as a tragedy, we may say that it is one of the finest
specimens in whole range of English literature. Lets conclude in the voice of Charlton “Greatly inferior in structure
and corrupted by vulgar interpolations as it is that play has wider human significance and contains the sublimest
of Marlowe’s writing.”

****Anagnorisis is must in a tragic play r in a character that makes him tragic, from there the hero is unable to
reverse. His doom is sure. Anagnorisis is a moment in a plot or story, specifically a tragedy, wherein the
main character either recognizes or identifies his/her true nature, recognizes the other character's true
identity, discovers the true nature of his situation, or that of the others – leading to the resolution of the
story. The startling discovery that produces a change from ignorance to knowledge. It is discussed
by Aristotle in the Poetics as an essential part of the plot of a tragedy,
although anagnorisis occurs in comedy, epic, and, at a later date, the novel as well.

Is there any anagnorisis in Edward king?

Subtitle of the play:- In fact, the play is subtitled the “tragically fall of proud Mortimer,” which also gives some
insight into exactly where Mortimer’s failings lie. Mortimer is certainly “proud” once he assumes power, even to
the point of hubris. He boasts, for instance, that no one and nothing can touch him, and claims to control fate
itself. This arrogance, according to Mortimer himself, is what ultimately causes his downfall: there is a point on
Fortune’s wheel, he says, “to which, when men aspire, / They tumble headlong down.” One recurring image
in Edward II is the “Wheel of Fortune”—a symbol medieval writers used to warn against the dangers of striving for
worldly power and success. The basic idea was that the same fortune that carried a man to a position of
prominence would ultimately bring about his downfall. Perhaps because of the clear parallel to the genre of
tragedy (traditionally concerned with the fall of a powerful individual), the image frequently appears in
Renaissance theater. Edward II, however, is remarkable for the sheer number of downfalls it depicts—not just the
title character’s, but also Gaveston’s, Mortimer’s, and even secondary characters’. In the end, the play suggests
that rank, morality, and individual agency matter very little in the face of an entirely impersonal fate.
This trend becomes particularly clear in the case of Mortimer Junior, who is perhaps the closest thing Edward
II has to a tragic hero
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Edward II by Christopher Marlowe: Irony of Kingship

1)Edward II: Rights and Responsibilities of Kingship
The tragic vision of Marlowe could go beyond a particular time, place and action to include a vast realm
of universal experiences. In Edward II, he presents the ironic and tragic implications of royal power
through rise and fall of central characters. He weaves the plot through a pattern of amplification and
deflation of a king’s stature and power. This is best seen in the progression of King Edward’s career in
the play.
According to I.A.Richards, “Irony in the sense consists in the bringing in of the opposites, the
complementary impulses”. This is extremely true in the case of King Edward II, whose multifarious
weaknesses are responsible for his fatal demise. Ellis Fermor points out that Edward’s position is an
obsession with him. He reminds himself continuously that a king should be princely and commanding.
He tries to give the impression of strength by fits of blustering rage. He oscillates under the unreal
picture of a “ruler” that he idealizes as the model. However, he takes his privileges for granted and fails
to maintain the equilibrium between his duties and his rights. His lack of discretion and lack of
diplomacy adds to his misfortune as well.

2)The Tragic Flaw in Edward II:

Throughout the play, Edward II appears to confront adverse fate; whatever he says, the opposite
happens. At first he threatens in a soliloquy:
“ I will fire thy crazed buildings and enforce
The papal towers to kiss the lowly ground.”
However, in presence of the Pope he can not gather enough courage to detriment him. Being weak at
heart, he is easily overwhelmed by emotions and gets carried away by flattery. There is a hectic
uneasiness about this defiance; he is infuriated to find that he does not produce the effect that he thinks
he should.
From the very beginning, it is clear that undue and inordinate fondness for favourites is a tragic flaw in
a king’s character. Edward II allows his personal friends to override his private life. This is a tactical
error with tragic consequence. His Barons openly flout his orders and take up the banner of rebellion
against him. All his favourites are slaughtered. He is abandoned by his wife Isabella. The irony of
kingship is vividly expressed as the props which should support him—his wife, his brother, his barons,
all turn hostile to him, speeding up his downfall into the mud of ignominy. The force he uses in making
futile declarations having no significance, pushes him into the dark dungeon of infamy. His hollow
notions, and his fixed set of unrealistic ideas about his supposed grandeur earns him infernal torture
and a barbaric death.

Source of Power: Ideal vs Real

One may, therefore, pity King Edward II for his sufferings, but it is quite hard to place him on the same platform
with Shakespeare’s tragic heroes like Macbeth, Hamlet or even King Lear. Even Doctor Faustus, another famous
character by Marlowe, showed repentance and recognition of his error of judgement, passing through a fleeting
moment of anagnorisis before the final hour. However, the kind of fortitude and admirable courage that suits a
king, which even Mortimer shows towards the end in his memorable speech (“Why should I grieve at my
declining fall”), is unmistakably absent in Edward II.
Through the character of King Edward II, Marlowe succeeds in presenting the picture of an impractical king by
exposing his frailties. He shows us a king bereft of his crown, the symbol of power already lost. Yet, it is seen that
even this symbol is regarded as a protection. When, in the Abdication Scene, the king is commanded to let go of
his crown, he clings to it almost childishly. It becomes perfectly clear that he regards the symbol as the actual
repository of power instead of regarding his barons as generators of solid, real, royal power.
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Kingship- History- Irony

The irony reaches its height in the Murder Scene. Like the traditional tragic hero, Edward II is a royal
figure and his downfall is intimately connected to the life of the state. In “Edward The Second”, tragedy
and history are deeply combined. Edwards’s sins are the sins of the government; the crisis he faces is
a political one, and the civil war that threatens his regime is an expected consequence of his errors.
“Marlowe sees history”, observes Irving Ribner, “entirely as the actions of men who bring about their
own ability to cope with events.” This is the humanistic attitude of the historians of both classical and
Italian Renaissance. At the same time, the fact that kingship is not an unconditional state of command
is evident in chronicles. One can cite the recent example of Egypt where the regal power of the
President could not shield him from the wrath of the hostile regime. Perhaps this is the ultimate irony,
that no matter how many instances are recorded or narrated by chroniclers and playwrights, the kings
and rulers never fully comprehend the true meaning of being a king.

Bring out the Renaissance elements in Edward II by Christopher Marlowe.

The Elizabethan age in England( 1533 - 1603),saw the flowering of the Renaissance
elements which had taken root in Europe since 1453,with the fall of Constantinople.Of these
mention must be made of the abundance of Greek and Latin learnings which we find at the
beginning of the play Edward II when Gaveston thinks of enacting the pageant of Diana and
Acteon before the king.There are also references to Hero and Leander,Frantic Juno,Phaeton who
drove too high the Sun's chariot.There are also fine specimens of Renaissance men-
courtiers,ambitious over reachers,murderers like Lightborn who has taken the act of murdering to
the height of an art ,and Machiavellian characters with cold icy intellect who has the will to power
and can take the turning of the Fortune's Wheel with calm resignation like Young Mortimer.Above
all are King Edward II and Queen Isabella,the royal couple,who are examples of the ruling class
during the English Renaissance-persons with deep lust for power.It remains to say that like the
sonnet the full length drama was also a fruit of the Renaissance which Marlowe brings to
perfection in his Five Act tragedy Edward II.

Or

EDWARD II IS A TYPICAL PRODUCT OF ENGLISH RENAISSANCE

Renaissance is a French word employing a sense of rebirth of regenerations of a great outburst of activity in all
the fields of human thought and action.As A.J. Wyatt and A.S.Collins observe;

"The new slant was in critical in revolt against authority men started to think for themselves, and to question
accepted beliefs. Above all, there was in the air a fresh enthusiasm which urged men to enter into every field of
experience."

In English Renaissance, the term signifies an enthusiasm, a spirit of adventure and experiment, an ideal, a delight
in beauty, imagination, ambition and power. As F.S Boas Says:

"For a distinguishing note on the Renaissance ape .......was an uncontrollable aspiration after the ideal,
a scorn of earthly conditions, a soaring passion that sought to scale the infinitude's of power,beauty,thought and
love."
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16th century or Elizabethan period in English literature is regarded as the period of English Renaissance .There
is a high spirit of ambition of power, knowledge, wealth, patriotism, friendship prevalent in the writings of Spenser,
Bacon, Sidney, Marlowe,Shakespeare etc.

Sir Thomas More's vision of a perfect society,Spenser's pattern of the highest manhood, Bacon's call to the
conquest of all knowledge,wealth and friendship,are all Renaissance spirit.
Judged in this light Marlowe's Edward II is a renaissance play.The two most central characters-the character of
Edward II and of Mortimer are the obvious characters of Renaissance spirit. If Edward II aims at achieving the
highest ideal of friendship,Mortimer aims at achieving the highest ideal of power and authority.They are portrayed
with this spirit and vigour . They are drown perfectly in line with Tamburlaine,Dr. Faustus and Barabas. It is a
common element in all Marlowe's plays
Edward II is a king of England. He has all power,authority and wealth. But he is not satisfied with them. It is a
historical fact that he distinguishes himself as a seeker of the high ideal of friendship with Gaveston. Gaveston is
a French and favourite of the king Edward II. He manages to strengthen his hold on the king's affections by
ministering to his artistic and musical tastes,and providing him with entertainment of all kinds. Edward II is so
much devoted to Gaveston that he begins to neglect his duties as a king and husband. He also makes Gaveston
an Earl,Lord Chamberlain, chief secretary and Lord of Men.This favour of the king to Gaveston makes the
nobles ,lords,peers and church hostile to the king. They oppose the king and rise in revolt against him. But the
king does not care. He only says;
"Make several kingdoms of the monarchy,
And share it equally amongst you all,
So I may have some nook or corner left,
To frolic my dearest Gaveston."
Clearly, the king's only care and desire is to frolic with his dearest Gaveston.
Queen Isabella also opposes her husband's unnatural association with Gaveston. She treats Gaveston as her
rival and feels miserable. As she says;
"Unto the forest, gentle Mortimer,
To live in grief and betrayal discontent,
For now my lord , the king regards we not,
But dotes upon the love of Gaveston."
Clearly, their friendship is impolitic, unnatural and unhealthy. It is suspected to be a homosexual
relationship.A.Nicoll deals with"a private story of a homosexual infatuation."
But king does not care for the feelings of his wife and opposition of the nobles and church.He values his
friendship with Gaveston as greater than his love for his wife and kingdom. He even says;
"I'll bandy with the barons and the earl,
And either die or live with Gaveston"
As a result of this story a lord of friendship with Gaveston,Edward II loses his queen, kingdom, power and crown
and suffers imprisonment and death. He also realizes his fault at the end. As he says;
"O Gaveston, it is for thee that I am wrong'd."
It is now clear that Edward II is a typical renaissance character. He is of strong will and determination. His notion
of the ideal of friendship is so high and aspiring that he does not mind the neglect of his duties as a king and a
husband,and willingly suffers his tragic misery and death. This is quite like Tamburlaine and Dr. Faustus.
Another typical Renaissance character in this drama is Mortimer. He is a leader in this drama of the nobles and
Lords in there conflict with the King ,Edward II and his friend and favourite Gaveston. He is determined in his
opposition to the King and his friend Gaveston. He encourages the Lords to be resolute in opposing the King:
"My lords,now let me all he resolute,
And either have our wills,or lose outlive,"
After winning lords to his side,he wins queen Isabella, and promises to restore her to her rightful position.As he
tells her;
"We come in arms to wreck it with the sword;
That England's queen's peace may repossess
Her dignities and honours;and withal-
We may remove these flatters from the king
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That havoc England's wealth and treasury,"

Thus, he becomes an accomplice of the queen. He kills Gaveston and wages war against the king's imprisonment
and murder of the king.After deposing the king and assuming royal power,he boasts of his authority;
"The prince rule,the queen do I command,
And with a lowly Cong to the ground
The proudest lords solute me as I pass;
I seal, I canal, I do what I will."
Clearly,Mortimer is ambitious power like Tamburlaine. He often speaks of himself in the true spirit of Tamburlaine:
tceit and murder. This is why J.C.Maxwell remarks, "the dynamic and ambition element is transferred to the
Machiavellian Mortimer."
But this very element in his character makes him a traitor, an illicit lover and a murderer. While receiving
punishment of imprisonment and death for all these,he is no longer repentant and perverted. He is still proud
and ambitious and says that he is like a traveller who after achieving greatness in his life, goes to discover
countries unrenounced.
Needless to add that Edward II and Mortimer are conceived as the typical Renaissance characters. The
Renaissance element in Edward II is his ambition of achieving the high ideal of friendship,and in Mortimer the
ambition of achieving high power.In achieving their ambitions,they do not care for earthly limitations.They only aim
at attaining the unattainable. They attain them even at the risk of suffering tragic misery and death.

It was probably first performed in 1594, a time of tremendous change in Europe. The Medieval times were over
and the Renaissance was beginning, however, influences of both times can be found in the play. This play is
transitional play where beliefs from both time intermingle, sometimes with disastrous results.

Sem-1 cc-1 group B.

Philology

Philology is more commonly defined as the study of literary texts as well as oral and written records, the
establishment of their authenticity and their original form, and the determination of their meaning. A
person who pursues this kind of study is known as a philologist.

Foreign language influences in English

The core of English language descends from Old English, the language brought with the Angles, Saxon, and
Jutish settlers to what was to be called England in and after the 500s. The bulk of the language in spoken and
written texts is from this source. As a statistical rule, around 70 percent of words in any text are Anglo-Saxon.
Moreover, the grammar is largely Anglo-Saxon.[1]

English is omnivorous and masculine international language today. The language formation is a
continued process of growth and decay. The phenomenon of borrowing words and word-formation
is the way of enriching one language. In the history of 1500 years English language has various
foreign borrowing that is instrumental in the development of the English vocabulary. Contact with
other cultures through conquest, and collaborations the socio-political circumstances, the need to
explain new ideas have been the main reasons for borrowing words from various resources. Alike
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Celtic, Greek, French and Scandinavian borrowing, Latin loans are very important in the
enrichment of English language.

English is profusely influenced over a considerable period of time.

A significant portion of the English vocabulary comes from Romance and Latinate sources. Estimates of native
words (derived from Old English) range from 20%–33%, with the rest made up of outside borrowings. A portion of
these borrowings come directly from Latin, or through one of the Romance languages, particularly Anglo-
Norman and French, but some also from Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish; or from other languages (such
as Gothic, Frankish or Greek) into Latin and then into English. The influence of Latin in English, therefore, is
primarily lexical in nature, being confined mainly to words derived from Latin roots. [2]
While some new words enter English as slang, most do not. Some words are adopted from other languages;
some are mixtures of existing words (portmanteau words), and some are new creations made of roots from dead
languages: e.g., thanatopsis.

Scandinavian Influence upon the English Language

Aside from Greek, Latin and French, only Scandinavian, the language of the people of whom the Anglo Saxons
called ‘Danes’ has made a really substantial contribution to the English vocabulary. The
Scandinavian (Scandinavia, today’s Norway, Sweden and Denmark: Scandinavian invaders are known
as Vikings) colonization of the British Isles had a considerable effect on the English language and vocabulary, as
well as culture. The similarity between old English and the language of the Scandinavian invaders makes it at
times very difficult to decide whether a given word in Modern English is a native or a borrowed word. Enormous
similarity is found between these two languages in nouns like ‘man’, ‘wife’, ‘father’, ‘folk’, ‘mother’, ‘house’, ‘life’,
‘winter’, ‘summer’; verbs like ‘will’, ‘can’, ‘meet’, ‘come’, ‘bring’, ‘hear’, ‘see’, ‘think’, ‘smile’, ‘ride’, ‘spin’; and
adjectives and adverbs like ‘full’, ‘wise’, ‘better’, ‘best’, ‘mine’, ‘over’ and ‘under’. In addition, very interesting to
note that when we work with Scandinavian loan words, the word ‘loan’ itself seems to declare its descent from the
Scandinavian.

With the proper setting down of the Scandinavians in England, Scandinavian words entered
the English language in large numbers. But unlike the case of Latin, where borrowings were usually learned, the
Scandinavian borrowings were in the realm of daily give-and-take transactions.

Scandinavian influence gave a fresh lease of life to obsolete native words. For instance, the preposition
‘till’ is found only once or twice in Old English texts belonging to the pre Scandinavian Period, but after that, it
becomes common in Old English.

Further, some native words lost their original meaning the moment they encountered their Scandinavian counter
part. For example, the word ‘dream’ originally meaning joy changes its meaning into ‘an experience of viewing
images in sleep’, the meaning is derived from Scandinavian sources. Similarly, ‘bread’ changes its meaning from
‘fragment’ to ‘an item of food’.

There exist a large number of places that bear Scandinavian names. More than 600 places in Englishhave
names ending in - by which is a clear evidence of Scandinavian influence. Numerous examples can be cited:
Grimsby, Whit by, Derby, Rugby etc. (the Danish word –‘by’ means town or farm) Names like Althorp,
Bishopsthorpe, Linthrope contain the Scandinavian word ‘thorp’ which means village Similarly we have
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Applethwaite, Braithwaite, Langthwaite, thwaite meaning an isolated piece of land’ while Brimtoft, Eastoft, and
Nortoft ending in ‘toft ’meaning a piece of ground. Such examples can easily be multiplied.

In the earlier period of borrowing, the number of Scandinavian words that appear in Old English is small due to
the hostile relations of the invaders with the English people. Gradually, with the case of tension, we find a
number of words relating to law or social and administrative system entering in the English language. The ‘law’
itself is of Scandinavian origin. The words like nioing (criminal), mall (action of law), wapentake (an administrative
district), husting (assembly), stefnan (summon) etc sojourned a while only to be replaced by French words after
the Norman Conquest.

Here is a specimen of common words in Englishthat owe their origin to the language of the Scandinavians:
bank, birth, bull, dirt, egg, gap, kid, link, race, skirt, sister, window, low, meek, rotten, shy, tight, weak, bait, crawl,
dig, gape, kindle, lift, screech, thrust, they, their, then, aloft, athwart and many more.

In the case of grammar, many of the pronominal forms like ‘they’, ‘them’, ‘their’ etc are of the Scandinavian origin.
The use of ‘shall’ ,’will’ , prepositional use of ‘to’ ‘fro’, use of relative clause with out any pronoun are due to
Scandinavian influence.

Even though the Scandinavian loans abound in English this is not fair to say that the magnitude of loans
affected the native style of English. It is worthwhile to point out that the very Englishness of English remains
unaltered even at the face of abundance of Scandinavian loans in English.

Latin Loan Words in English language. All scientific words related with medicine
invention etc.. for rich and elite class. Not for the common men of England
This Latin influence on English language is heralded by England’s contact with the Latin civilization.
In the old English we find much of the Latin words associated with agriculture and war. Words like
camp (battle), segn (banner), pil (pointed stick), mil (mile) etc are early borrowing. Besides, words
associated with trade enter into the domain. Because of the enormity of wine trade we find words
like win (wine), must (new vine), flase (bottle), eced (vinegar) etc. in the domestic field hardly we
have any cycene (kitchen) to cook food or cuppe (cup) to drink coffe or disc (disk) to have any
dinner.

With the Christianize of Britain in 597 A.D begins another phase of Latin borrowing to define
the new conceptions, new religion, new ideas, and new faith. In the massive inflow of Latin words
are both learned and popular during this time. We have had ‘Church’, ‘bishop’, ‘alms’, ‘alter’,
‘angel’, ‘anthem’, ‘canon’, ‘hymn’, ‘pope’, ‘psalm’, relic etc. during this period. Later, by the
tremendous influence of Church in domestic life we find Latin ‘silk’, ‘radish’, ‘pine’, ‘plant’, ‘school’,
‘master’. The Latin gradually reaches the literary, medical, botanical and intellectual fields. We
have no ‘history’ without Latin. The disease of ‘cancer’, ‘paralyses might get their names otherwise.
Whom do we call a ‘ceader’ tree? How can be a jungle without ‘tiger’ and a desert without “camel’?

In the Middle English period, i.e. 1150 A.D. – 1500 A.D, comes via French and through
translation works. The translation of the Vulgate Bible gives the English people words like
generation, ‘persecution’, and ‘transmigration’. The other borrowed words during this time include
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words from law, medicine, allegory, theology, science, literature etc such as ‘conspiracy’, ‘custody’,
‘frustrate’, ‘genius’, ‘infinite’, ‘intellect’, ‘limbo’, ‘pulpit’, ‘secular’, ‘scripture’, ‘testify’ and many
more.

In the Renaissance the Latin words flood into English texts in overwhelming proportion.
Firstly, they are twain influenced by French and Latin. Secondly, native words and French words
are remodeled into closer resemblance with their Latin origins. The old English ‘descrive’, ‘perfect’
gets the new form ‘describe’, ‘perfect’ by Latin influence. Yet there are the great mass of borrowing
in the early modern English comes directly from Latin. Numerous examples can be cited: ‘affidavit’,
‘agenda’, ‘alibi’, ‘animal’, ‘bonus’, deficit ‘exit’, ‘extra’, ‘fact’. ‘Maximum’, ‘memorandum’, omnibus,
‘propaganda’, ‘veto’ etc.

In the present-day scenario of the technical and scientific English, Latin shares with
Greek the honour of being the source of rich host of new coinages. Words like ‘coaxial’, ‘fission’,
‘interstellar’, ‘neutron’, ‘mutant’, ‘penicillin’, ‘radium’, ‘spectrum’, ‘sulfa’ etc have become an
integral part of the English technical vocabulary. Hybrid forms i.e. partly Latin and partly Greek,
such as ‘egomaniac’, ‘speleologist’, ‘terramycin’ etc. have also entered the English lexicon in a
major way. What is conspicuous about the introduction of Latin words during the modern period is
that they have entered the language mainly through the medium of writing. The Latin elements in
English, except the earliest ones, have been the work of Churchmen, and scholars.

The Latin loan words add enormous addition to the English vocabulary. It fills up the gaps in
the native stock of words. The Latin epithets and synonyms give the masculinity in English. The
Latin dignifies and intellectualizes the English. Yet one can not deny that excessive Latinization of
English has stunned the growth of native vocabulary. Sometimes, theirs superfluous and
purposeless coinage has encouraged an inflated style full of learned and bombastic words and
phrases. In spite of these, the very Englishness of English is still there and it is the power of
English language that it assimilates Latinization into its natural growth.

*********Philological Term Ask The Origin Of The Words may be asked as short question.

ADVICE- This word is an example of French loan word. The middle English 'avis' got this form French
. Due to renaissance influence 'ad' Latin 'advisum' was added as original prefix to 'avis' and we have the

ALMS- Old English 'aelmesse' is derived from Greek 'eleemosune'. Middle English from of the word
was 'almesse'and plural was 'almesses'. In fact ,'alms' is singular as 's' belongs to the original word.

ARMADA- Armada is a Spanish word which means a fleet of warships. Its Latin correspondence is
‘armata’ which means army. The existence of the word in English may be traced to the warships sent by
Spain against England in 1588.Read More Philology

ASSASSINATION- The word came into Middle English during crusades. Its origin is form Arab. The
root word ‘assassin’ has been derived from Arabic ‘has ha-sis meaning hashish eaters. The
specialization of meaning is due to the fact that in Arabia in the 13 century a sect of bandits,
th

intoxicated with drink of hashish, would be sit up the Christian crusaders. The word presently carries
the meaning as ‘one who undertakes or the act of secret political murder’. Verb- assassinate
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ANTICLOCKWISE- This is a classic example of hybrid word forming of affixation of Greek

‘anti’ (against) and the dutch word ‘clokke’. Thus, the word carries the meaning ‘against the direction as
the clock’. Read More Philology

AUTORICKSHOW- It is an example of hybrid word forming of affixation of Greek auto (autos), which
means self and ‘rickshaw’ (an abbreviation of the Japanese word ‘Jinrickshaw)’.

[ such hybrid words are ‘dicta-phone’, television, automobile etc which are half Latin and half Greek].

BREAD- In origin, the word and its sound is old English which meant ‘fragment’. But later by
Scandinavian influence the word took the present meaning of ‘loaf’. It is an example of incorporating
new idea into the old existing word.Read More Philology

BLOOM- Similar to ‘dream’, ‘bread’, ‘Earl’, the word and its sound is old English ‘bloom’, which meant
‘a mass of metal’. The new incorporating idea of ‘flowering’ is added to this word by the Scandinavian
word.

BRIDE GROOM- This is a compounding of two word ‘bride’ and ‘groom’. The old English ‘bride’ had
its existence and has kept its meaning intact till now. However, groom (old English ‘guma’ meaning an
attendant or any man) later joined to form the compound ‘bride – guma’ -a ‘bride groom’, the present
form with slight change in pronunciation and spelling.Read More Philology

BIBLE- It is a Greek loan word coming via French. The original Greek word was ‘biblos’meaning an
important scroll or papyrus. It is an 14 century coinage.
th

[such words include theatre, surgeon, logic ecstasy, idiot etc]

BISHOP- Towards the end of the 6 century a lot of words related to Christianity were introduced into
th

English language. ‘Bishop’ is such a word whose Latin counterpart wasepiscapus. By the process of
‘aphesis’ the old English got the word ‘Bishop’. Read More Philology

BOYCOTT- The very word is coined from the name of a person. The process of driving any word from
the name of person is linguistically known‘ anthroponymy’. Boycott was an estate agent in Ireland who
infamous for his extortion. Consequently the tenants organized a strike against him. Thus, the word
takes the meaning of a strike which took the form of non-cooperation and social segregation.
 Page 11 of 20

BANG- A number of words in our vocabulary today, especially those which describe some kind of
sound, are obviously imitative in character. This is perhaps one of the oldest methods of word making.
‘Bang’ is such a word of sound (strike). It is the word formed by ‘imitation’ or ‘onomatopoeia’. Such
examples are numerous. As a few representative ones we may take ‘pop’, ‘buzz’, ‘click’, ‘whirl’, ‘rumble’,
‘hiss’, ‘giggle’ etc. Read More Philology

CARGO- It is an instance of Spanish borrowing during 1650’s. Spain was proving best in the navigation
during 16 and 17 century. Thus, ‘Cargo’ meaning the ‘freight of a ship’ came into English quite
th th

understandably.

COMPANION- Here is extension or generalization of meaning. Literally it meant one who eats bread
with another person (Latin: con=with, panis=bread). But presently it means ‘close friends’, Thus the
root meaning is entirely lost and the modern significance of the word has evolved. Read More Philology

CAMOUFLAGE- It is an example of corruption or misunderstanding of foreign language. The listed

word is coined from French during 1 world war. However, the original meaning is lost and new
st

meaning is adapted. The origin is French word – ‘camonfler’ which meant ‘disguise’ or
misrepresentation.

CHEAT- It is an example of degeneration of meaning. Originally it means a tax collector (escheator) in

Middle English. But these persons were notorious for corrupt practices. Thus their meaning also
deteriorated as the evil sense, which it bears today as verb. Read More Philology

CLIMAX- It is a Greek loan word but it has undergone a slight change in meaning in respect of the
classical one. The Greek word ‘klimax’ from which ‘climax’ is derived means a ladder’ or ‘gradation’. In
English it is used in the sense of culminating point.

DREAM- In origin, the word and its sound is old English native which meant ‘joy’. Later the meaning is
added from Scandinavian source. Thus it takes the present meaning of ‘something which one seems to
see or experience during sleep’. It is an example of incorporating new idea into the old native
word. Read More Philology

DWELL- The origin old English ‘Dwell-an’ meant ‘to lead astray’ but by the Scandinavian influence it
took on the intransitive verbal meaning of ‘to remain in a place’. It is a popular instance of
incorporating new idea into the native word.
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EARL- The word ‘earl’ and its sound is form old English which meant vaguely ‘a nobleman by birth’. By
the Scandinavian influence the new idea of ‘an under-king or governor’ is added. The corresponding
word (Scandinavian) is ‘Jarl’. Read More Philology

FOWL- Here is semantic transfer known as ‘specialization’. The original meaning of the word signifies
any kind of bird but through the process of specialization the meaning becomes restricted to only a
particular species to be haunted for flesh.

[similarly ‘deer’ had the original meaning of any kind of animal; now it is specialized]

GOD- It is derived from the Old High German ‘got’ and subsequently the Old Norse ‘God’ even years
before the Christianity. It meant the power or powerful person having supernatural power and
benevolence to human being. At the time of advent of Christianity the native word ‘god’, came into
preference instead of Latin ‘deus’. The meaning is slightly modified to mean the ‘one formless object of
supreme adoration. Read More Philology

GOSSIP- The formation of the word is three terms. The first step is compounding and assimilation. The
original word is god-sip which meant ‘godfather’ or ‘intimate friend’. By the process of assimilation
(like gospel from ‘god+spell’), the ‘d’ was assimilated with ‘s’ thus making it ‘gossip’. The second step is
the semantic transfer, specially degeneration of meaning. The word has developed a pejorative sense,
for today it means ‘idle talk’ or an ‘idle talker’. As for third step, by the process of ‘conversion’ it shifts
from noun to verb.

GOVERNOR- In this word we can find the process of elevation in which the meaning of a word is raised
from its original humble rank, and placed with a dignity. The old English of ‘governor’ means a
steersman in a boat but today it is the head of a state who steers the fate of an entire province. Read
Similarly,

Knight (O.E Cnight)- Original meaning – a boy changed meaning – a medieval title of gallantry.

Marshal (O.E Mar)- Original meaning – One who rears horses – changed meaning – highest military
officer.

(a) Chamberlain- Original meaning – Chamber attendant changed meaning – high official position.

GOSPEL- It is an example of obscuration of compounds. After the conversion to Christianity there is a

word ‘god-spell’ which later changed in spelling and pronunciation. By the process of ‘assimilation’ in
which the ‘d’ sound is absorbed by the ‘s’ sound and thus we find the word ‘gospel’.
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HEATHEN- It is an example of utilizing the native source along with the add of foreign component
part. The origin of the word heathen is ‘heath’ (old English), meaning the bower; later it took the
suffix ‘en’ from Latin wordpaganas (pagas – country + anus – dweller). ‘Anus’ is transfused into
English ‘en’. Thus ‘paganus’ which meant in Latin country dweller hints at non-christians as Roman
do live in towns, the corresponding English word ‘heathen’ conveys heath dweller or non-
christians. Read More Philology

HOUSEWIFE- The old English ‘huswif’ means ‘the woman of the house. The original sense and the
equivalent of the original pronunciation of this compound had undergone many changes and at the
modern time three words survive –

(b) Housewife – the mistress of the house.

(c) Huzzif – a needle case.

(d) Hussy – a pert or wanton girl.

HENPECK- This is an instance of back formation the word ‘Henpeck’ is a formation of the word
‘henpecked’ by subtracting the particle ‘ed’ from the back of the word. It is a mistaken notion
because ‘ed’ is not a particle, rather, the integral part of the word. Read More Philology

HANDBOOK- Greek corresponding word is ‘kheiridon’. Similarly the Anglo Saxon devised a compound
‘hand- boc’, which was formed on the same analogy from the native sources and was used by the clergy.
In the middle English period the word handboc was replaced by the French (from Latin) ‘manual’. In
the 16 century the Greek word‘enchiredion’ was in vague. The word ‘handbook’ made its reappearance
th

in the 19 century.
th

HUSBAND- The origin of the word is Old Norse, ‘husbondi’ which was later formed the old
English ‘husbonda’. It is a compounding of two words – ‘hus’ – a house and ‘buandi’ – inhabiting. Read
More Philology

HOLIDAY- It is an example of shorting of vowel sounds. It has been the typical feature of old and
middle English. Here, the two words – ‘holy’ and ‘day’ are combined together – ‘holiday’. The vowel
sound is reduced here. Further, it is an example of fixed compound.

KINDERGARTEN- It’s a German borrowing in 1852. the original meaning is ‘children’s garden’. The
famous educationist Friedrich Frobel used this word to a special kind of education for the children
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where natural and pleasurable method of teaching were introduced through games, singing and
models. Thus, the word when comes into the English it bears this meaning. Read More Philology

KITCHEN- It is one of the earliest loan words from Latin. The Old English ‘cycene’ comes from
Latin coquina’. The word belongs to pre-christian period and the English tribes were learning the
cooking items from the civilized Italy.

[cook, mill etc came at the sometime through the same process]

KNIGHT- Here is an elevation of meaning. In Old English both ‘knight’ and ‘knave’ meant ‘boy’. But
at modern times ‘knight’ has become a man of military rank with certain kind of dignity. It has also
became a little of honour for valiant, gallant and chivalrous job. Thus from the old meaning of boy it has
been elevated to high position.

[contrastingly ‘knave’ has degeneration of meaning] Read More Philology

LANDSCAPE- It means ‘inland scenery’ has come into English from Dutch word ‘Landscape’ meaning
‘view of land’.

LUST- The old English ‘lust’, German ‘lust’ and old Norse ‘lustu’ meaning ‘pleasure or delight are the
origin. During 16 century the word went through specialization and received the meaning of ‘immoral
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pleasure or delight’. Thus the word went through degeneration too.

LORD- It is an example of elevation. The ‘Lord’ has come from Old English ‘hlaford’ which meant ‘the
bread keeper’ (half means bread). Thus from ‘the master of bread’ the meaning got its elevation to
mean ‘God’ or any man of hight and exalted position. Read More Philology

It is an another example of the tendency of monosyllabic in the English language.

LYNCH- ‘Lynch’ or ‘Lynch Law’ has its origin to captain William Lynch of Virginia, about 1776. The
captain was notorious for his forged justice and punishment. Thus in this self constituted illegal court
executed persons with no offense at all. The modern meaning of ‘Lynch’ is to ‘execute’ and ‘lynch
law’ means arbitrary laws.

LIEUTENANT- The origin is French which has been coined during 14 century. The French ‘lieu’ means
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– ‘the place of’ and ‘tenant’ means ‘holding’. Thus the combination means the place of something, one
holding.
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LAW- It is the example of one of the many Scandinavian law terms which become part of the English
language. The most important of these juridical import in the word ‘law’ itself, known in England in the
10 century in the form ‘lagu’.
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(By-law)- ‘By’ is the Danish word for ‘a town’ and is related to English word ‘borough’ – It is evident in
the place names such as ‘whitby’. ‘selby’ etc. And the term ‘by’ occurs again in the word ‘bylaw’, which
is not, as some people seem to suppose, a lesser law, but a low made by the council or corporation of a
town or city, as distance from those which are made by parliament and apply to the entire
country. Read More Philology

MEAT- It is an instance of specialization of meaning. ‘Meat’ is derived from Old English ‘mete’ which
meant any kind of food. Later the word become restricted to the flesh-food only. The original meaning
is still retained in two expressions – ‘meat and drink’, ‘sweet meat’.

MOB- It is an instance of clippings. The corresponding Latin phrase is ‘mobile vulgus’ which means
uncultured or illiterate people who often do riot in society. As a process of clipping only the first part
survives. The word ‘mod’comes into existence in 17 century. Though it was first used as noun, now it is
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also used as verb. Read MorePhilology

MANUFACTURE- ‘Manufacture’ is such word which is given a new significance by the passage of time.
The verb to ‘manufacture’ meant literally ‘to make by hand’. But modern usage nearly always employs
it with the opposite meaning: a manufactured article and a hand made article are entirely different
things.

OUTLAW- The origin is Scandinavian.

PEA- This is an example of mistaken plural and back formation. The origin of the word is Latin.
‘Pisum’ that takes the old English form ‘pease’. But by mistake ‘pease’ was taken as plural form, thus the
latter ‘s’ was subtracted and ‘pea’ is formed as back formation. Again the new plural form comes to
exist in ‘Peas’. Read More Philology

PANDEMONIUM- (Miltonic) It is an example of hybrid word made up from Greek pan (all) and the
Latindemonium (devil-land). Milton coined it as a name for the conference hall of all the devils, but as
the devils were continually quarreling among themselves, so the that Pandemonium was full of noise
and confusion.
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RENAISSANCE- Etymologically ‘renaissance’ means rebirth. By the fall of Constantinople in 1453, it

was sparked off. The word signifies ‘a cultural reawakening under the classical influence’. Read
More Philology

SOPRANO- Like ‘piano’ the word ‘soprano’ came into English from Italian and it indicates the
excellence of the Italians in the field of music.

SMOG- It’s an example of portmanteau formation in which a new word is formed by adding the clipped
forms of two words [sm(oke)+fo(g)]. ‘Smog’ is the product of industrial civilization since the
combination of smoke and fog is seen especially in industrial towns.

Brunch- breakfast + lunch, flurry- fly + hurry, slender- slight + tender.

SCAPEGOAT- The origin of the word is Tyndale’s translation of Bible. Biblically, it is the goat on which
the sins of the people were symbolically laid. There is two goats – one escapes and another sacrificed.
But by the mistaken interpretation of Hebrew word, ‘scapegoat’ is wrongly taken to be the goat that is
sacrificed. Thus, now it means ‘one who is blamed or punished’ for the misdeeds of another’. Read
More Philology

STANZA- Origin is Italian which means ‘the room of a house’. Etymologically it means a resting place.
Its application to poetry (which is of course, the only sense in which it is used in English) probably
depends upon the idea of a self contained unit, at the end of which the poet pauses or rests before
proceeding with his writing.

THEY, THEM, THEIR- The word ‘they’, ‘them’, ‘their’ are Scandinavian loan words whose old English
form is ‘hie’, ‘heom’, ‘heora’. Read More Philology

TELEFILM- It is a hybrid word of combining Greek ‘tele’ meaning far off with the old English word
‘filmen’ which means membrane. It is a coinage of 20 century.
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VILLAIN- It is an example of degeneration – a process by which the word losses its original meaning
and acquire a pejorative sense. The earlier meaning of ‘villain’ was a boy who looked after a villa or a
cottage. As the time passed many of the boys proved to be dishonest and rogue; thus the
‘villain’ acquire the present meaning as rogue. Read More Philology
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VIXEN- (a female fox) The original form of the word is ‘fyxen’. The ‘v’ comes from the Southern
English dialect where they say ‘vat’ for ‘fat’. The word is notable for the example of the surviving old
English feminine suffix ‘en’ or ‘ne’.

The Influence of French on the English Language

The Norman invasion of England in 1066 had a major impact not only on the country, but also on the
English language. William the Conqueror and his merry band of Normans brought with them Norman
French, which became the language of the court, government and the upper class for the next three
centuries. English continued to be used by ordinary people, and Latin was the language of the church.

During the period when Norman French was the dominant language, English was rarely used in writing,
and started to change in many ways. Before the conquest English had a much more complex grammar,
however 70 or 80 years later, the grammar had become much simpler. This change is known as the
transformation from Old English to Middle English. At the same time Norman French became Anglo-
Norman as it was itself affected by English.

More than 10,000 French words found their way into English – words associated with government, law,
art, literature, food, and many other aspects of life. About three quarters of these words are still used,
and words derived directly or indirectly from French now account for more than a third of English
vocabulary. In fact English speakers know around 15,000 French words, even before they start learning
the language.

Quite a lot of the words of French origin used in English sit alongside native English ones, and in some
cases there are words of Latin and/or Greek origin with similar meanings. Beef (from French boeuf) is
meat from a cow (from Old English cu), a type of bovine (from Latin bovinus via French bovin). A
king (from Old English cyning) can be kingly, royal (from French roial) and regal (from
Latin regalis).
In some cases words with the same or similar meanings were borrowed from both Norman French and
Parisian French at different times. For example warden comes from Norman French,
while guardian comes from Parisian French.
The pronunciation of English changed to some extent under the influence of French, as did the spelling.
For example, the Old English spellings cw, sc and c became qu, sh and ch, so we now
write queen rather than cwen, ship rather than scip, and should rather than scolde.

English grammar did take on a few French structures, such as putting in adjectives after nouns in some
expressions – attorney general, secretary general, surgeon general.

*******
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The Scandinavian Influence On The English Language

Who are called Scandinavian? Its influence over the growth of place names and personal names in
English, refer with examples. Scandinavian loan words as short question.

1. Introduction

The history of English language is usually divided up into four major periods that can be justified both on the
basis of linguistic differences and on the basis of historical events that influenced the later development of English
language. These periods are Old English (450-1150), Middle English (1150-1500), Early Modern English (1500-
1700) and Modern English (1700-present). These years are not strict boundaries but rough approximations.

English has been influenced by many languages and one of them is Scandinavian (in the period of OE and ME).
Scandinavian loans differ from other loans from the same period because they refer to common, everyday events
and objects. Because of its extent, it is one of the most interesting of the foreign influences on the English
language.

2. The Scandinavian influence on the English language

“Their activities began in plunder and ended in conquest.” (Baugh and Cable 92)

2.1. Historical background

The Viking Age lasted roughly from the middle of the eighth century to the beginning of the eleventh. The Vikings
were the Germanic tribes of the Scandinavian Peninsula and Denmark. The reasons for their sudden attacks and
voyages are unknown; it is possible that they were of economic or political nature. In their adventures the Swedes
established a kingdom in Russia; Norwegians colonized parts of the British Isles, the Faroes, and Iceland, and from
there pushed on to Greenland and the coasts of Labrador and Newfoundland; the Danes founded the dukedom
of Normandy and finally conquered England (Baugh 92). Vikings conquered large areas of England but were
stopped by King Alfred of Wessex. He signed the Treaty of Wedmore (878) with Gunthrum, the Viking leader. The
treaty defined the boundary line, running roughly from Chester to London, to the east of which the Vikings were
to remain (Berndt 1989: 22). This area was where Danish law and customs were followed and would later be
known as the Danelaw. In the beginning of the eleventh century, the Vikings reached the pinnacle of their
achievement – Cnut, king of Denmark, conquered Norway England and obtained the throne of England (Berndt
23).

Viking invasions led to an immigration wave from Scandinavia. Although most of the new inhabitants were Danes,
there were also Norwegians and Swedes. The two peoples, the English and the Scandinavian, amalgamated. As is
described in Baugh and Cable (98), the Scandinavians intermarried with the English, adopted many of their
customs and accepted Christianity. Not much is known about the relation of the two languages. In some places
the Scandinavian gave up their language early and in some places Norse was spoken as late as the seventeenth
century. It is also highly possible that some of the new inhabitants were bilingual. Old Norse and Old English were
similar languages so it is highly probable that the two may even have been” mutually intelligible to a limited
extent” (Baugh and Cable 96) which made the process of borrowing and adoption easier.

2.2. Scandinavian place-names

Many places in today England bear Scandinavian names (more than 1,400). These names are notable evidence
that the Vikings once settled in England. These places are mostly situated in the district of the Danelaw but are
not uniformly distributed (Berndt 22, 64). According to Baugh and Cable (98-99), there are more than 600 places
with names ending in -by (such as Whitby, Grimsby). The Scandinavian word by means ‘farm’ or ‘town’; the word
can also be seen in by-law (town law). Some 300 place-names end in the Scandinavian word thorp that means
‘village’ (like Althorp, Bishopsthorpe, Linthorpe). There are almost as much place-names that contain the word
 Page 19 of 20

thwaite, ‘an isolated piece of land’ (e.g. Applethwaite, Langthwaite). Around a hundred end in toft, ‘a piece of
ground, a messuage’ (Brimtoft, Nortoft).

Even personal names bear witness to the Scandinavian influence. Names with the suffix -son like Stevenson or
Johnson are the Scandinavian equivalent of OE patronymic -ing (as in Browning).

2.4. Scandinavian loanwords

Although the Scandinavian loan words began to enter the English language probably at the same time when the
Vikings settled down (the period of Old English), the evidence in writing can be found mostly in Middle English
texts. The loanwords were recorded long after they came in use because it took some time before they entered
the standard English. Baugh and Cable divided the early loanwords (in OE) into two groups. The first group
constitute words “associated with sea-roving and predatory people” (99). The second group is made out of “words
relating to the law or characteristic of the social and administrative system of Danelaw” (99). After the Norman
Conquest, most of the words from the second group were replaced by the French terms and thus can no longer
be found in Modern English.

It was only after the Danes had begun to settle down that Scandinavian words started to enter in greater numbers
into language.

NOUNS

axle-tree ,band bank birth boon booth brink bull calf etc.

ADJECTIVES

Awkward, flat, ill, loose, low etc.

VERBS

Bait, bask, batten, die, droop, egg (on), ran-sack etc

2.5. Form (grammatical) words

Scandinavian words that made their way into English were not only open class words (nouns, adjectives and
verbs). The Scandinavian influence extended to grammatical words – pronouns, prepositions, adverbs, and even a
part of the verb to be. This is not a common case when it comes to borrowing. The pronouns they, their, them are
Scandinavian (OE were hīe, hiera, him). Both and same, although they are not pronouns, have pronominal uses
and are of Scandinavian origin. Some other examples include the conjunction though, adverbs aloft, athwart, aye
(ever) and seemly. One of the most important Scandinavian words in English is the present plural of the verb ‘to
be’ – are. The Scandinavian form took place of bÄ“oth or sind.

2.6. Syntax and grammar

Scholars do not agree on the Scandinavian influence on the English syntax. Baugh and Cable (103-105) claim that
“the Scandinavian influence not only affected the vocabulary but also extended to […] syntax”. They admit that “it
is less capable of exact demonstration”, but then conclude that “it is hardly to be doubted” (103). Kirch (503), on
the other hand, argues that all of the previous claims made about the influence of Scandinavian on English syntax
are “the subject of much controversy”. It was considered that these syntactic features originated from
Scandinavian: “(1) relative clauses without pronouns, (2) the omission of the conjunction ‘that,’ (3) the use of ‘shall’
and ‘will’ in Middle English, (4) the genitive before nouns” (Kirch 503). But Kirch (503-510) refutes the quoted
features and concludes that the “investigation turns up no positive proof of Scandinavian influence on English
syntax” (510). Berndt does not even mention syntax, so it is possible that he considers that Scandinavian did
influence it.
 Page 20 of 20

3. Conclusion

As we have seen, even today, after so many years, we can still see the evidence of Scandinavian influence in
English. There are thousands of place-names of Scandinavian origin. Many common and everyday words have
Scandinavian origin. We cannot even imagine the English vocabulary without them. What is even more fascinating
is that Scandinavian left an imprint on grammatical words and possibly syntax, which is a rare case when it comes
to borrowing. It can be concluded that Scandinavian has had significant impact on the development of the English
vocabulary.