Download or read book American and British English differences with a look at their history written by Anke Werckmeister and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2012-10-15 with total page 30 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seminar paper from the year 2008 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Other, grade: 2,0, Free University of Berlin (Institut für Englische Philologie), course: VS Sociolinguistics and Varieties of English II: English as a pluricentric language, language: English, abstract: Both British English and American English are interesting topics to look at but to look at them in a contrastive way is even more interesting because here you have to take the history of both varieties into consideration to see where the differences lie and why they became two distinctive varieties. Now you have to keep in mind that America was settled by British people but yet Americans now do not speak British English and then voted for their own way of speaking and pronouncing English. But how did that come? It was simply impossible not to have a different variety of English in America since English was exposed to different external factors such as other existing languages and a new environment compared to English in England and Great Britain. Hence with the Declaration of Independence in 1776 as a political separation from the mother country a linguistic separation needed to follow to finally divorce the USA from England which was important for the Americans because they wanted to have their own national identity.
Download or read book A History of American English written by J. L. Dillard and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-09-25 with total page 365 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This impressive volume provides a chronological, narrative account of the development of American English from its earliest origins to the present day.
Download or read book One Language Two Grammars written by Günter Rohdenburg and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2009-01-22 with total page 487 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume focuses on British-American differences in the structure of words and sentences. The first full-length treatment of the topic, it will be of interest to scholars working within the fields of English historical linguistics, language variation and change, and dialectology.
Download or read book Differences in British and American English A Corpus based Case Study written by Christian Roßmeier and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2019-03-25 with total page 23 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seminar paper from the year 2011 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,7, University of Bayreuth, language: English, abstract: Considering the "inevitability of change", Ferdinand de Saussure once stated: "Time changes all things: there is no reason why language should escape this universal law". In reference to the English language, Trask noted: "English [...] has been changing throughout its history and is still changing today". In doing so, there is a great number of factors playing an important role for ongoing changes in a language such as sociolinguistic causes of chance which are illustrated in Aitchison in a very coherent and detailed way. "Geographical separation" will be the central keyword, as I will investigate differences and varieties in British and American English use of language. Surprisingly, in comparing Australia and New Zealand, where "equally big differences in language [...] from their mother country" could be expected, it turns out that this is not the case. Although differences in slang expressions can be recognized, spelling and word usage, actually, are alike the original British form so that these differences seem trivial in contrast to the variety of English used in the United States. Therefore, I have decided to focus my attention on specific distinctive attributes of the American variety of English and, based on foregoing research in this field, to create a questionnaire whereby central hypotheses are to be checked and verified, at best. Hence, this paper comprises a brief summary of previous knowledge on this matter, so to speak the theoretical background of my work. Moreover, not only regional factors play a role but also the interviewee's social background when it comes to certain features of language such as word use. Thus, it is highly exciting to see what assessments will be done in the course of this paper.
Download or read book Spotlight on Standard American English and Standard British English written by Thomas Schachtebeck and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2011-01-19 with total page 16 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seminar paper from the year 2007 in the subject Didactics for the subject English - Grammar, Style, Working Technique, grade: 1,3, Free University of Berlin (Fachbereich Englisch), course: Sociolinguistics and Varieties of English II , language: English, abstract: Throughout the 20th century, Standard British English (hereafter BrE) and Standard American English (hereafter AmE) made up the two ‘reference varieties’ of the English language. Even today - in the 21st century – BrE and AmE represent “a large proportion of all native speakers of English (83 per cent)” [Svartvik & Leech 2006: 150] in the world. The reason why these two varieties have aquired such a prestigious position among many other varieties of English is that in Great Britain and in the United States - two of the most influential nations of the 20th century in terms of political power and economical strength – “English has been institutionalised longer than anywhere else” [Cheshire 1991: 13]. Consequently, BrE and AmE “provided the chief native-speaker models which non-native speaking teachers of English” [Svartvik & Leech 2006: 150] aim to instil. Although both ‘reference varieties’ of English seem to be very much the same at first sight, “British and American English undoubtedly are different, and Englishmen and Americans undoubtedly know it.” [Partridge & Clark 1951: 308]. Closer investigations reveal that AmE is different from BrE at levels of phonetics, phonology, grammar, lexis and spelling. Whereas the fields of pronunciation and lexis definitely share the most prominent and numerous differences between AmE and BrE, the field of spelling shows only a couple of minor differences. Today, the vast majority of English lexis is spelled the same in AmE and BrE. However - to a certain extent - there are some characteristic spelling differences between AmE and BrE which many learners of English are not well familiar with. In the following, this paper concentrates on pointing out the major differences in spelling between contemporary AmE and BrE since this linguistic field of interest is very strongly related to the different historical and political developments America and Great Britain went through. Therefore, this paper will first work out some historical reasons for the development of spelling differences between the two ‘reference varieties’ and highlight America’s most influential attempts to standardise American spelling. Afterwards, it will give a detailed overview about the most prominent and common spelling differences between AmE and BrE by categorising them into three major groups and providing a couple of examples for each group, and finally, this paper will briefly reflect on the situation of AmE and BrE in the world today.
Download or read book British to American English a Dictionary and Guide to the English Language written by Denise Scott and published by . This book was released on 2017-07 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: British to American English: A Dictionary and Guide to the English Language--perfect for every academician, whiz-kid or bookworm looking to conquer the language barrier. "The Americans are identical to the British in all respects except, of course, language." ~ Oscar Wilde Whether you're travelling to Great Britain or the United States of America, or you just want to understand the differences in our common language divided, this unique dictionary will answer all of your questions. The book contains a wide array of British terms and expressions and their American equivalents; coupled with a history of the language, numerous examples of its everyday usage such as making small talk, and customs and etiquette. BRITISH vs. AMERICAN ENGLISH. A LIFESAVER? The guide provides copious amounts of valuable material by covering the differences between the British and American English accents, pronunciation, grammar, spelling, as well as an A-Z on idioms, a glossary of common differences and variations in slang, and metaphors. The English language is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England, and is now the global lingua franca. Travel back in time to find out how the earliest spoken dialects of English were brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers back in the 5th century. Explore how English is closely related to the Frisian languages, and learn how its vocabulary has been significantly altered by other Germanic languages, including Latin and in particular French, after the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century. Part language guide, part cultural study. It's a superb addition to every English language learner and linguists library. Filled with extensive quotations from authentic, real-life English from both sides of the pond (the Atlantic Ocean), this is an easy-to-follow, precise and organised guide which tackles the differences, and the similarities between the grammar of British and American speakers. The book is especially effective and useful for learners with no prior knowledge of linguistics, as it demonstrates the grammatical differences and provides a sound account of contemporary English in use. William compares the customs, manners, and practical scenarios of everyday life in the United Kingdom and the United States. Furthermore, he wraps up with a humorous list of expressions that in one country are innocent, but that can be quite vulgar or suggestive in the other. Two large glossaries help travellers translate from British to American English with meanings such as: Flick knife (switchblade) Fringe (bangs) Lorry (truck) Patience (solitaire) Peg (clothespin) Tollgate (turnpike) And more! Any visitor to Old Blighty or Uncle Sam can be brought right up to speed with the this handy A to Z on the most commonly used and the not so commonly used English words that can often cause confusion, bedlam, red faces and even cost you money if misused or misunderstood. Read on your PC, MAC, smart phone, tablet, Kindle device or buy it on paperback.
Download or read book British to American English written by Louis McKinney and published by Independently Published. This book was released on 2020-02-08 with total page 41 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: British to American English: A Dictionary and Guide to the English Language--perfect for every academician, whiz-kid or bookworm looking to conquer the language barrier. "The Americans are identical to the British in all respects except, of course, language." ~ Oscar Wilde Whether you're travelling to Great Britain or the United States of America, or you just want to understand the differences in our common language divided, this unique dictionary will answer all of your questions. The book contains a wide array of British terms and expressions and their American equivalents; coupled with a history of the language, numerous examples of its everyday usage such as making small talk, and customs and etiquette. BRITISH vs. AMERICAN ENGLISH. A LIFESAVER? The guide provides copious amounts of valuable material by covering the differences between the British and American English accents, pronunciation, grammar, spelling, as well as an A-Z on idioms, a glossary of common differences and variations in slang, and metaphors. The English language is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England, and is now the global lingua franca. Travel back in time to find out how the earliest spoken dialects of English were brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers back in the 5th century. Explore how English is closely related to the Frisian languages, and learn how its vocabulary has been significantly altered by other Germanic languages, including Latin and in particular French, after the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century. Part language guide, part cultural study. It's a superb addition to every English language learner and linguists library. Filled with extensive quotations from authentic, real-life English from both sides of the pond (the Atlantic Ocean), this is an easy-to-follow, precise and organised guide which tackles the differences, and the similarities between the grammar of British and American speakers. The book is especially effective and useful for learners with no prior knowledge of linguistics, as it demonstrates the grammatical differences and provides a sound account of contemporary English in use. William compares the customs, manners, and practical scenarios of everyday life in the United Kingdom and the United States. Furthermore, he wraps up with a humorous list of expressions that in one country are innocent, but that can be quite vulgar or suggestive in the other. Two large glossaries help travellers translate from British to American English with meanings such as: Flick knife (switchblade) Fringe (bangs) Lorry (truck) Patience (solitaire) Peg (clothespin) Tollgate (turnpike) And more! Any visitor to Old Blighty or Uncle Sam can be brought right up to speed with the this handy A to Z on the most commonly used and the not so commonly used English words that can often cause confusion, bedlam, red faces and even cost you money if misused or misunderstood. Read on your PC, MAC, smart phone, tablet, Kindle device or buy it on paperback.
Download or read book Oxford English Dictionary written by John A. Simpson and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2002-04-18 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Oxford English Dictionary is the internationally recognized authority on the evolution of the English language from 1150 to the present day. The Dictionary defines over 500,000 words, making it an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, pronunciation, and history of the English language. This new upgrade version of The Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition on CD-ROM offers unparalleled access to the world's most important reference work for the English language. The text of this version has been augmented with the inclusion of the Oxford English Dictionary Additions Series (Volumes 1-3), published in 1993 and 1997, the Bibliography to the Second Edition, and other ancillary material. System requirements: PC with minimum 200 MHz Pentium-class processor; 32 MB RAM (64 MB recommended); 16-speed CD-ROM drive (32-speed recommended); Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 200, or XP (Local administrator rights are required to install and open the OED for the first time on a PC running Windows NT 4 and to install and run the OED on Windows 2000 and XP); 1.1 GB hard disk space to run the OED from the CD-ROM and 1.7 GB to install the CD-ROM to the hard disk: SVGA monitor: 800 x 600 pixels: 16-bit (64k, high color) setting recommended. Please note: for the upgrade, installation requires the use of the OED CD-ROM v2.0.
Download or read book British to American English a Dictionary and Guide to the English Language written by Andrew William and published by . This book was released on 2017-07 with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: British to American English: A Dictionary and Guide to the English Language-perfect for every academician, whiz-kid and bookworm looking to conquer the language barrier. "The Americans are identical to the British in all respects except, of course, language." ~ Oscar Wilde Whether you're travelling to Great Britain or the United States of America, or you just want to understand the differences in our common language divided, this unique dictionary will answer all of your questions. The book contains a wide array of British terms and expressions and their American equivalents; coupled with a history of the language, and numerous examples of its everyday usage such as making small talk, and customs and etiquette. A lifesaver? The guide provides copious amounts and valuable material with differences between British and American English accents, pronunciation, grammar, spelling; as well as an A-Z on idioms, a glossary of common differences and variations in slang, and metaphors. The English language is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England, and is now the global lingua franca. Travel back in time to find out how the earliest spoken dialects of English were brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers back in the 5th century. And how English is closely related to the Frisian languages, but its vocabulary has been significantly altered by other Germanic languages, as well as Latin and in particular French, after the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century. Part language guide, part cultural study. British to American English: A Dictionary and Guide to the English Language is a superb addition to every English language learner and linguists library. Filled with extensive quotations from authentic, real-life English on both sides of the pond (Atlantic Ocean), this is an easy-to-follow, precise and organised guide to the differences - and the similarities - between the grammar of British and American speakers. The book is especially effective and useful for learners with no prior knowledge of linguistics, as it demonstrates how the grammatical differences and provides a sound account of contemporary English in use. William compares the customs, manners, and practical scenarios of everyday life in the United Kingdom and the United States. Furthermore, he wraps up with a humorous list of expressions that in one country are innocent, but can be quite vulgar or suggestive in the other. Two large glossaries help travellers translate from British to American English with meanings such as: Flick knife (switchblade) Fringe (bangs) Lorry (truck) Patience (solitaire) Peg (clothespin) Tollgate (turnpike) And more! Any visitor to Old Blighty or Uncle Sam can be brought right up to speed with the this handy A to Z on the most commonly used and not so commonly used English words that can often cause confusion, bedlam, red faces and even cost you money if misused or misunderstood - particularly in business or social situations. Read on your PC, MAC, smart phone, tablet, Kindle device or buy it on paperback.
Download or read book Speaking American written by Richard W. Bailey and published by OUP USA. This book was released on 2012-01-23 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Speaking American shows what the English language looked like from various points on the American continent at crucial points in its linguistic history.
Download or read book Twentieth Century English written by Christian Mair and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2006-10-26 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Standard English has evolved and developed in many ways over the past hundred years. From pronunciation to vocabulary to grammar, this concise survey clearly documents the recent history of Standard English. Drawing on large amounts of authentic corpus data, it shows how we can track ongoing changes to the language, and demonstrates each of the major developments that have taken place. As well as taking insights from a vast body of literature, Christian Mair presents the results of his own cutting-edge research, revealing some important changes which have not been previously documented. He concludes by exploring how social and cultural factors, such as the American influence on British English, have affected Standard English in recent times. Authoritative, informative and engaging, this book will be essential reading for anyone interested in language change in progress, particularly those working on English, and will be welcomed by students, researchers and language teachers alike.
Download or read book The Men Who Lost America written by Andrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2013-06-11 with total page 876 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Questioning popular belief, a historian and re-examines what exactly led to the British Empire’s loss of the American Revolution. The loss of America was an unexpected defeat for the powerful British Empire. Common wisdom has held that incompetent military commanders and political leaders in Britain must have been to blame, but were they? This intriguing book makes a different argument. Weaving together the personal stories of ten prominent men who directed the British dimension of the war, historian Andrew O’Shaughnessy dispels the incompetence myth and uncovers the real reasons that rebellious colonials were able to achieve their surprising victory. In interlinked biographical chapters, the author follows the course of the war from the perspectives of King George III, Prime Minister Lord North, military leaders including General Burgoyne, the Earl of Sandwich, and others who, for the most part, led ably and even brilliantly. Victories were frequent, and in fact the British conquered every American city at some stage of the Revolutionary War. Yet roiling political complexities at home, combined with the fervency of the fighting Americans, proved fatal to the British war effort. The book concludes with a penetrating assessment of the years after Yorktown, when the British achieved victories against the French and Spanish, thereby keeping intact what remained of the British Empire. “A remarkable book about an important but curiously underappreciated subject: the British side of the American Revolution. With meticulous scholarship and an eloquent writing style, O'Shaughnessy gives us a fresh and compelling view of a critical aspect of the struggle that changed the world.”—Jon Meacham, author of Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power
Download or read book The Standard of Usage in English written by Thomas R. Lounsbury and published by . This book was released on 1908 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Cambridge History of the English Language written by Norman Francis Blake and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 676 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Volume two of this set covers the Middle English Period, approximately 1066-1476, and describes and analyses developments in the language from the Norman Conquest to the introduction of printing.
Download or read book Four Nations Approaches to Modern British History written by Naomi Lloyd-Jones and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-10-26 with total page 279 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection brings together leading and emerging scholars to evaluate the viability of four nations approaches to the history of the United Kingdom from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. It recognises the separate histories of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales and explores the extent to which they share a common, ‘British’ history. They are entwined, with the points at which they interweave and detach dependent upon the nature of our inquiry, where we locate our ‘core’ and our ‘periphery’, and the ‘cause’ and ‘effect’ of our subject. The collection demonstrates that four nations frameworks are relevant to a variety of topics and tests the limits of the methodology. The chapters illuminate the changing shape of modern British history writing, and provide fresh perspectives on subjects ranging from state governance, nationalism and Unionism, economics, cultural identities and social networking.
Download or read book History of English in the US and of African American Vernacular English in particular written by Alissia Wiener and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2018-07-20 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seminar paper from the year 2008 in the subject Didactics for the subject English - Applied Geography, grade: 1.7, University of Duisburg-Essen (Geisteswissenschaften), course: English in North America, language: English, abstract: From the very start I was very interested in African American Vernacular English (AAVE). In this work I also wanted to include a bit of history. I consider that history is an important influence on the present, not only regarding language but everything. History shows us the roots of things and a person who knows history avoids doing the same mistake again. In case of AAVE the language is indeed connected to the history of the African Americans, to the history of slavery and so to the history of the United States of America. For me it is also important to give a wide range on the knowledge about AAVE, a frame of history starting with the broad picture about the settlement and the rest of the history of the US. Then I will look on the history of the African Americans and the origin of their language. Finally a description of AAVE and its features follows. The question this essay deals with was mostly inspired by the controversal views about the origin of AAVE, namely the Creole-based and the dialect theory. Those might be “only” theories about the origin of AAVE but assuming one of those theories is correct defines a certain point of view on AAVE. Is AAVE “only” a dialect derived from a pidgin which developed somewhere in the Caribbean or on in West Africa or is AAVE a dialect which developed in the same manner and at the same time like all the other American dialects? Is it correct to compare AAVE to Standard English listing the mistakes this variety makes or should it rather be compared to other varieties?
Download or read book Spotlight on Standard American English and Standard British English written by Thomas Schachtebeck and published by GRIN Verlag. This book was released on 2011 with total page 37 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seminar paper from the year 2007 in the subject English - Grammar, Style, Working Technique, grade: 1,3, Free University of Berlin (Fachbereich Englisch), course: Sociolinguistics and Varieties of English II, language: English, abstract: Throughout the 20th century, Standard British English (hereafter BrE) and Standard American English (hereafter AmE) made up the two 'reference varieties' of the English language. Even today - in the 21st century - BrE and AmE represent "a large proportion of all native speakers of English (83 per cent)" [Svartvik & Leech 2006: 150] in the world. The reason why these two varieties have aquired such a prestigious position among many other varieties of English is that in Great Britain and in the United States - two of the most influential nations of the 20th century in terms of political power and economical strength - "English has been institutionalised longer than anywhere else" [Cheshire 1991: 13]. Consequently, BrE and AmE "provided the chief native-speaker models which non-native speaking teachers of English" [Svartvik & Leech 2006: 150] aim to instil. Although both 'reference varieties' of English seem to be very much the same at first sight, "British and American English undoubtedly are different, and Englishmen and Americans undoubtedly know it." [Partridge & Clark 1951: 308]. Closer investigations reveal that AmE is different from BrE at levels of phonetics, phonology, grammar, lexis and spelling. Whereas the fields of pronunciation and lexis definitely share the most prominent and numerous differences between AmE and BrE, the field of spelling shows only a couple of minor differences. Today, the vast majority of English lexis is spelled the same in AmE and BrE. However - to a certain extent - there are some characteristic spelling differences between AmE and BrE which many learners of English are not well familiar with. In the following, this paper concentrates on pointing out the major differences in spelling
