Topic #26--"Accent" Entry

From Mary Ann!:

"i won't bore you with a detailed lesson on the history of english, but i will share with you this fact>>>english, while belonging to the germanic branch of the "global language tree", is the way it is today because of a historical event that took place in the 11th century. 1066, to be exact. that year will be forever etched in my memory bank. this is the year when the norman invasion took place in the british isles. "normans" were actually folks from normandy {now known as france} & when they invaded britain at that time, they brought with them their culture, their french language, their accent...speaking french was considered a sign of education & upperclass ranking back in the day {a sidenote: "french" is part of the romance languages in the global language tree}...

many words in modern day english, if you'll notice, have roots in french. no kidding. {journal} {chic} {mayonnaise} {invitation} {miserable} {cologne} {harlequin}{mannequin} {lingerie} {sommelier} {soiree} {coiffure} {decoupage} {bourdeaux} {voyage} are but some of the many, many words borrowed from the french language...the list literally goes on & on & on... i made the above collage {yet another french borrowing!} to reflect our french (& german) roots in the english language. & for my love of words & languages>>>always a linguist at heart. "