Strong and Weak verbs in oe contents

Strong and Weak verbs in OE

Contents

Introduction ........................................................................................................................2

a ) The actuality of the course work

b ) The aim of the the course work

c ) The objectives of the course work

MAIN BODY

The Old English Period

1 . Prehistoric Britain , Roman Britain , Anglo Saxon Britain .......5

2 . Verbs : Types and Tenses ( English Syntax ) ........................11

3. Old English Grammar.................................................................15

4 . Question ....................................................................................................32

5 . Glossary ....................................................................................................34

6 . The References ........................................................................................36

6 . Conclusion ...............................................................................................38

INTRODUCTION
This outline history covers the main events in the historical development of the English language: the history of its phonetic structure and spelling, the evolution of its grammatical system, the growth of its vocabulary, and also the changing historical conditions of English-speaking communities relevant to language history.
A language can be considered from different angles. In studying Modern English we regard the language as fixed in time and describe each linguistic level — phonetics, grammar or lexis — synchronically, taking no account of the origin of present-day features or their tendencies to change. The synchronic approach can be contrasted to the diachronic. When considered diachronically; every linguistic fact is interpreted as a stage or step in the never-ending evolution of language. In practice, however, the contrast between diachronic and synchronic study is not so marked as in theory: we commonly resort to history to explain current phenomena in Modern English. Likewise in describing the evolution of language we can present it as a series of synchronic cross-sections, e.g. the English language of the age of Shakespeare (16th-17th c.) or the age of Chaucer (14th c).
Through learning the history of the English language, the student achieves a variety of aims, both theoretical and practical.
The history of the language is of considerable interest to all students of English, since the English language of today reflects many centuries of development. As F. Engels wrote: "Substance and form of one's own language, however, become intelligible only when its origin and gradual evolution are traced, and this cannot be done without taking into account, first, its own extinct forms, and secondly, cognate languages, both living and dead".
This is no less true of a foreign language. Therefore, one of the aims of this course work is to provide the student with a knowledge of linguistic history sufficient to account for the principal features of present-day English. A few illustrations given below show how modern linguistic features can be explained by resorting to history.
Any student of English is well aware of the difficulties of reading and spelling English. The written form of the English word is conventional rather than phonetic. The values of Latin letters as used in English differ greatly from their respective values in other languages, e.g. French, German or Latin.
Another important aim of this course is of a more theoretical nature. While tracing the evolution of the English language through time, the student will be confronted with a number of theoretical questions such as the relationship between statics and dynamics in language, the role of linguistic and extralinguistic factors, the interdependence of different processes in language history. These problems may be considered on a theoretical plane within the scope of general linguistics. In describing the evolution of English, they will be discussed in respect of concrete linguistic facts, which will ensure a better understanding of these facts and will demonstrate the application of general principles to language material.
One more aim of this course work is to provide the student of English with a wider philological outlook. The history of the English language shows the place of English in the linguistic world; it reveals its ties and contacts with other related and unrelated tongues.
Every living language changes through time. It is natural that no records of linguistic changes have ever been kept, as most changes pass unnoticed by contemporaries.
The history of the English language has been reconstructed on the basis of written records of different periods. The earliest extant written texts in English are dated in the 7th c; the earliest records in other Germanic languages go back to the 3rd or 4th c. A. D.
The development of English, however, began a long time before it was first recorded. In order to say where the English language came from, to what languages it is related, when and how it has acquired its specific features, one must get acquainted with some facts of the prewritten history of the Germanic group.
Certain information about the early stages of English and Germanic history is to be found in the works of ancient historians and geographers, especially Roman. They contain descriptions of Germanic tribes, personal names and place-names. Some data are also provided by early borrowings from Germanic made by other languages, e.g. the Finnish and the Baltic languages. However, the bulk of our knowledge comes from scientific study of extant texts.
There is long tradition of phonetic and phonological studies in England. One of the first linguists who made a serious study in English phonetics was Henry Sweet. Phonetics is basic branch of linguistics; neither linguistic theory nor linguistic practice can do without phonetics. That is why phonetics claims to be equal importance with grammar and lexicology. It studies the sound matter, its aspects and functions.
Theoretical significance of phonetics is connected with the further development of the problem or the synchronic study and description of the phonetic system of a national language, the comparative analysis and description of different languages and the study of the correspondences between them, the diachronic description of successive changes in the phonetic system of a language or different languages.
Phonetics studies the sound matter of all existing languages, irrespective of the differences between them and deals mainly with acoustics, articulation and physiology of speech and aspects of phonology. Phonetics is the branch of linguistics, which deals with the sound matter of one particular language. It can be both synchronical and diachronical. The sounds matter is studied diachronically that means all its features are studied in the process of the language development, and it is concern of Historical Phonetics, The course work presents an overview of nearly a century of research into phonetic changes. In addition, the work reviews contemporary research on instructional level in phonetics. This research perspective helps to clarify and perhaps even to resolve some of the contentious issues and points of debate in contemporary discussion and practice.