2.4. The Second Consonant Shift (Verner’s Law)

Danish scholar Carl Verner discovered another series of consonant changes in the late 19^th century. By Verner’s Law the voiceless fricatives which had developed through stage 2 became voiced when they were in a voiced environment and when the stress in IE was on the syllable which preceded this consonant.

This result in the following changes:

f > v

th > d

k > g

In addition the voiceless fricative /s/ became /z/ and then in North and West Germanic developed further to /r/. This change is called Germanic Rhotacism. The effects of this change by Verner’s Law are not very visible in Mod E, because of various developments which have taken place subsequently. In Old E the variation between the original consonants and the new one can be seen in the present and singular preterite tense as compared with the preterite plural and past participle of strong verbs.

OE weorpan – preterite plural wurdon

forleosan – past participle forloren (Mod E adj forlorn)

2.5. Germanic Rhotacism

The consonant /z/ that resulted from the voiceless fricative /s/ by Verner’s Law developed into /r/ in North and West Germanic Languages.

/ r/ in North Germanic (e.g. OIcl – dagr)

/ z /

/s/ in East Germanic

(e.g. Gothic dags)

–

West Germanic

(e.g. OE dxg)

Gothic hausjan – OHG horen OE hieran Forms of strong verbs

Gothic kiusan – kaus – kusum – kusans OE ceosan – ceas – curon – coren (to choose)

Periods of the History of the English Language

1. Traditional Periodisation.

2. Henry Sweet’s division of the History of the Language.

3. Approach of Yuri Kostyuchenko.

Recommended Books:

Rastorguyeva T.A. A History of English. – M., 1983. – P. 49 – 55

Blake N.F. A History of the English Language. – New York University Press, 1996. – P. 1 - 24

1. Traditional Periodisation

Traditionally histories of the English have divided their account into three main periods:

• Old English (sometimes referred to as Anglo-Saxon, 449 – 1066);

• Middle English (1066 - 1475/1485);

• Modern English (1476/1485 – up to now).

The last period is divided into 2: Early Modern English and Late Modern English. The reasons for this division are as much political as linguistic. Old English differs from Middle English in that the Norman Conquest of 1066 introduced new settlers who spoke a variety of Old French and thus changed the nature of English. But there was an equally important series of invasions by Scandinavians (the so-called Viking invasions and settlements) from the end of the 8^th century onwards. Middle English differs from Early Modern English, and the transition from one to the other is traditionally dated at 1485 when the Tudors replaced the Yorkists after the Battle of Bosworth. Both 1066 and 1485 are political dates whose familiarity has forced historians of the language to accept then as significant for the development of the language as well.