Difference Between Old English and Middle English and Modern English
The English language is classified into Old English, English and modern English. English is also known as the third world native language, most widely spoken after Mandarin, Chinese and Spanish. There is a significant fact that is known to many of us that English has become the official language of many other countries where it is not considered the native language. The reason that puts English language apart from most of the other popularly spoken languages in the globe is its popularity world wide. The same is the reason behind the fact that English is also known as a global language that is used in all sects of life. There is an interesting fact that English which is spoken today is drastically different from that which was spoken during the ancient times. The condition is such that even the modern speakers of the English language can not recognize the older version of it. English language has a history of about 1700 years and it can be classified into three categories – the Old English, the English middle and the modern English.
The English language has been bifurcated into three periods that range from Old English to Middle English and then finally to modern English. English began its journey at time when it was brought to Britain by Germanic intruder. These three periods of English can be classified in terms of the years during which they were much in vogue, as follows : –
Old English (from 450AD to 1100AD)
English medium (from 1100AD to 1500AD)
Modern English (from 1500 AD – until now)
Old English
The English language originates from the West Germanic languages that have been made in Britain when Germanics came to this great continent. This language was a combination of different languages because of three important tribes who invaded Britain this time – Anglos, Jutes and Saxons were the tribes. The words spoken by the people speaking these languages then became the words of original Old English.
Medium English
In the eleventh century, there were different incoming Norman conquests in the region of Britain. And it made a huge difference in the development of the English language. William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy, conquered Britain in 1066 and this victory left several important marks on the language of English. The most significant and important affect on the English language was the influence of French language on the English that was spoken during the time. This is the reason why modern English of today sees its roots in the French language.
Modern English
Right from the onset of the fifteenth century, this language has taken a big change. This flow could be seen in the context with pronunciation of vowel. The pronunciation of vowels became shorter and so it took the form which inhibits most of the countries now in this modern era. With this change of vowel, started the classical period of the Renaissance, the Romantic period and after that period, came the Industrial Revolution in Britain, which has added more to the final evolution of the English language. Although the changes that came into the English language after the Industrial Revolution is the reason why the name MODERN ENGLISH has been given to the language. Modern English at present tends to have a more diverse vocabulary in comparison with the initial version of modern English.
Now, for this evolution, English has become what is called as the official native language and in most countries around the world. In Anglo-Saxon, the words tended to end in words that were inflectional and represented their character. The order of words in the sentence of Anglo-Saxon language to verify the meaning as it is these days in English. In Middle English, several of these purposes were dropped and the role that a word represented in a sentence was determined by the order in which the words were written or said. There are some differences of course, but a mass structure of the English-speaking environment is like modern English. Old English had also factors related to grammar, which the other two had forgotten.