New English Period. Main Historical Events. New English Phonology. Great Vowel Shift. Other Phonological Changes. Foundations of Modern English Spelling.

 

Part 1: Get ready for a test on the theme: “Middle English Grammar”. Use

materials to Seminar 6 (the previous one).

 

A sample of the test:

TEST 9. Card N...

Make the morphological analysis of all the verbs and verbals from the text... on p.... Analyze the form of each of them in ME (class, person, number, tense, mood - for verbs; form - for verbals). Compare the unit with the corresponding word in OE and state the changes it underwent in ME.

 

Part 2: New English Period. Main Historical Events. New English

Phonology. Great Vowel Shift. Other Phonological Changes.

Foundations of Modern English Spelling.

The Outline of Seminar 7

Points for Discussions:

1. General Characteristics of the NE Period.

2. Social Structure: transition from feudalism to capitalism.

3. Economic Concentration.

4. The Appearance of the Printing Press.

5. The Activities of Different Scholars and Their Contribution into the Development of the Language.

6. NE Phonology. The Great Vowel Shift.

7. Changes of Short Vowels in ENE.

8. Vocalization of Consonants and Formation of New Vowels in NE.

9. Growth of New Sibilants and Affricates in ENE.

10. Voicing of Consonants in ENE.

11. Changes of Unstressed Vowels in ENE.

12. Changes within the System of Stressed Vowels:

a) transformation of -er into -ar;

b) emerging of new diphthongs;

c) emerging of new short phonemes and its causes;

d) emerging of new long phonemes and its causes.

13. Consonant System in ENE:

a) falling off [x] and [j];

b) voicing of voiceless fricatives in unstressed positions;

c) emerging of new sibilants and its interpretation;

d) loss of consonants;

e) simplification of consonant clusters.

14. Historical Foundation of Modern English Spelling.

Recommended Literature

Obligatory 1. Lectures on the theme.

2. Verba L. History of the English Language.-Nova Knyha,

2004.

P.152-169.

3. B. Ilyish. History of the English Language.-Л.,1973.

P.228-236.

4. И. П. Иванова и др. Практикум по истории

английского языка.-М.,1985.

 

TheoryTexts for analysisAssignments Les.15,16,17,pp.105-124 Text26, p.106 1-4, p.106-107

11, p.107

12,16, p.108

19,20, p.109

22-25, p.110

 

Additional: 1. T. A. Rastorguyeva. History of English.-M.,1983.

P.188-218 (choosing only material on ENE).

2. G. I. Stoudenets. History of the English Language in

Tables.-K.,1998.

Tables 85-95.

 

Questions for Self-testing:

1. What centuries does the NE period embrace?

2. What peculiar features of the social structure is NE period

characterized by?

3. What historical and cultural events promoted establishing of the literary national standard of English? Why did it become possible only in NE and not earlier?

4. What prominent linguists of 16 th – 19 th centuries do you know? Name some of their works.

5. What is the essence of the Great Vowel Shift? How did it influence ModE?

6. What are the reasons and the initial impetus of the Great Vowel Shift?

7. What are the exceptions to the Great Vowel Shift?

8. What quantitative changes affected the system of vowels in ENE?

9. What changes affected the unstressed vowels in ENE? What can you say about the history of the so called 'mute e' in English?

10. Was the change of -er into -ar assimilative or independent? Was the change consistent? How did it affect ModE?

11. What new short phonemes appeared in NE?

12. What new long phonemes appeared in NE?

13. How many vowel phonemes are there in ModE? Is the system symmetric?

14. What new diphthongs appeared in NE?

15. What absolutely new vowels appeared in NE?

16. What was the cause of the appearance of new diphthongs and triphthongs in NE?

17. What changes affected the class of fricatives in NE? What were the causes for that?

18. What change affected the sound [r] in NE? What are peculiarities of the process in different regional variants of English?

19. What new sibilants and affricates appeared in NE? How are they reflected in ModE spelling?

20. What consonant clusters underwent simplification in NE?

21. What kind of process can be named “Verner's Law” in NE?