LING 547

History of the English Language

4 Undergraduate credits
Effective August 1, 1998 – Present

Graduation requirements this course fulfills

This course emphasizes the evolution of English in connection with historical, social, literary and linguistic forces. Topics addressed include Old English language in the Anglo-Saxon culture; the effects on English of the Norman Conquest, the Renaissance and the invention of printing; British colonialism; the spread of English to Asia, Africa and America; the modern development of the language; and underlying principles of change ruling various types of linguistic phenomena that take place during the natural historical development of a language.

Learning outcomes

General

  • Analyze and identify historical samples of English in terms of linguistic structures and in terms of historical and cultural context at a level consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctly characteristic of advanced-standing English majors at a comprehensive university.
  • Comprehend relationships between English and Indo-European, Latin, Romance languages, and Germanic languages at a level consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctly characteristic of advanced-standing English majors at a comprehensive university.
  • Distinguish and classify internal and external factors in the development of English at a level consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctly characteristic of advanced-standing English majors at a comprehensive university.
  • Employ the methods and data that historians and social and behavioral scientists use to investigate the human condition.
  • Examine social institutions and processes across a range of historical periods and cultures.
  • Know the history of the English language, with key trends and influences in the evolution of English from circa 500 A.D. to the present at a level consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctly characteristic of advanced-standing English majors at a comprehensive university.
  • Recognize and identify changing structures of English phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and lexicon at a level consistent with the analytical and expressive complexity and sophistication that are distinctly characteristic of advanced-standing English majors at a comprehensive university.
  • Use and critique alternative explanatory systems or theories.