Changes in the English Language. The Export of English Vocabulary

The extent to which languages change over time is apparent to anyone who has attempted to read Chaucer's Canterbury Tales or the Old English epic Beowulf. Speakers of modern English cannot read the classics of the English language written hundreds of years ago without translation aids (Figure 4-6).

Figure 4-6. Chaucer's Tale of the Wyf of Bath. Chaucer composed The Canterbury Tales in his native Southeast Midland dialect. The English of today is obviously very different

Languages spoken and written thousands of years ago have become intelligible to us today only because of laborious translation efforts. Three thousand years ago, the language of ancient Egypt was written with hieroglyphic characters. Only following years of painstaking archaeological research did experts learn to translate Egyptian hieroglyphics into modern English. Just as languages have evolved in the past, we can expect languages to continue to evolve in the future. Our descendants thousands of years from now will speak languages vastly different than those spoken today.

The evolution of any language involves several processes. First, as we have seen, new words are frequently borrowed or adapted from other languages. Only a minority of words in contemporary English are derived directly from Old and Middle English of medieval times. Words of French origin are common in English for the reason explained previously. Other Indo-European languages have also contributed to English. Many terms associated with music, such as piano, viola, sonata, and allegro, are borrowed from Italian. Other words have been added from non-Indo-European languages (Table 4-3).

Change in a language is also brought about through the invention of new words. Many recent additions to the English language owe their origins to contemporary technological development. The widespread diffusion of computer technology has generated a large new vocabulary. Many of these words have acquired meanings unrelated to the field of computers. Input, flowchart, and feedback originated with computer experts but are now used widely outside the computer field.

Popular culture also plays a part in the evolution of language. Sports terms in English have taken on new meanings, no longer directly related to their origins. Strike out, grand slam, raincheck, and pinch-hit now have meanings unrelated to baseball.

The Export of English Vocabulary. American popular culture not only influences English, but has a major influence in the evolution of languages throughout the world. One study of the evolution of English in Britain identified 221 new words added to that language in 1990. Of these, 140 were of American origin. They included thirtysomething, cowabunga, and numerous others derived from American movies and television programs.

The export of English words into other languages has been less than welcome in some places. Critics cite the excessive intrusion of English words into their languages as evidence of Anglo-American cultural and economic imperialism. This criticism has been especially pronounced in France. Some influential French officials have declared "Mort au Franglais!" or "Death to English-influenced French words." These individuals have attempted to promote the use of French rather than English terms for British and American products, technologies, and ideas.

The Academie Francaise is a government-sponsored organization that monitors the evolution of the French language in France. The Academie has been at the fore-front of efforts to rid French of foreign influences. These efforts have led to a legal dispute between the French government and the Disney Corporation. The Disney Corporation owns Europe's largest amusement park, Eurodisneyland, located twenty miles from Paris (Figure 4-7).

Figure 4-7. Disneyland Goes to Europe. When the Disney Corporation built Eurodisneyland, controversy arose over the naming of some of the attractions. "Tomorrowland" and "Adventureland," could not be translated meaningfully into French, an aspect that the Academie Francaise demanded

The French government has pressured the Disney management to give French names to all of its attractions. Disney responded by claiming that "Tomorrowland," "Adventureland," "Frontierland," and the like could not be translated meaningfully into French. The Academie Franchise disputed Disney officials' claim that their contract with the French government protected their rights to use these and other English names.