For all you linguistic purists who seem to have a grudge against Gaelic...The history of the English language really started with the arrival of three
Germanic tribes who invaded Britain during the 5th century AD. These tribes, the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes, crossed the North Sea from what today is Denmark and northern Germany.But most of the Celtic speakers were pushed west and north by the invaders, the invading
Germanic tribes spoke similar languages, which in Britain developed into what we now call Old English. Old English did not sound or look like English today.In 1066 William the Conqueror invaded and conquered England. The new conquerors (called the
Normans) brought a kind of
French, which became the language of the Royal Court, the ruling and business classes. In the 14th century English became dominant in Britain again, but with many
French words added. This language is called Middle English.Towards the end of Middle English, a sudden and distinct change in pronunciation (the Great Vowel Shift) started, with vowels being pronounced shorter and shorter.The main difference between Early Modern English and Late Modern English (1800-present day) is vocabulary, with the British Empire at its height covered one quarter of the earth's surface, and the English language adopted
foreign words from many countries.So Gaelic - like it or lump it!
ref -
http://www.englishclub.com/english-language-history.htm
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