Scott J
Favorite Answer
Ironically, English was discovered in France, in the forgotten town of Eng by Swedish explorers. The explorers delighted in its quirky grammar, inconsistent conjugation, and unpredictable spelling. Anxious to see how this language would fair in a larger setting, they exported it to the island of Dole. The language flourished, the residents became a powerful force on the sea, and the island was renamed "England" after the now dominant spoken tongue.
OK, not true, but it was fun to write. Now the truth.
English was not 'discovered' or found, but developed over thousands of years as the languages of the residents, immigrants and invaders of the British Isles melded together into the native language. The primary genetic basis of the English race is a mix of the ancient Anglo and Saxon races. The language has its roots there too, of course. In fact "English" is the modern spelling and pronunciation of the old word "Anglish" after the early Anglos, who settled these islands, overwhelming the previous inhabitants. English has influences from the French (after the Normand conquest) as well as many other cultures. The varied types of verb conjugation and spellings are from adaptations of word usage from other languages. This makes the language a rich one, full of subtle meanings, but also a difficult one to learn for foreign speakers.
Anonymous
Who Discovered Words
KittenMom2010
If you're asking who discovered England, the post ice age homo erectus did.
"Bones and flint tools found in Norfolk and Suffolk show that Homo erectus lived in what is now England around 700,000 years ago.[14] At this time, England was linked to mainland Europe by a large land bridge. The current position of the English Channel was a large river flowing westwards and fed by tributaries that would later become the Thames and the Seine. This area was greatly depopulated during the period of the last major ice age, as were other regions of the British Isles. In the subsequent recolonization, after the thawing of the ice, genetic research[15] shows that 'England' was the last area of the British Isles to be repopulated (circa 13,000 years ago). The migrants arriving during this period contrast with the other of the inhabitants of the British Isles, coming across land from the south east of Europe, whereas earlier arriving inhabitants came north along a coastal route from Iberia. These migrants would be the Celts who dominated much of western Europe."
Anonymous
Hmm, I can't tell you who discovered English but I can tell you the 5 major linguistic influences on English and they are:
- Celtic
- Latin
- Anglo Saxon
- Scandinavian
- French
Interesting huh? I'm an Communications & English student and this is my first semester ;)
Derail
I agree with Scott's first paragraph. By the way, the island of Dole was a sand bar in the Thames River. It's gone now.