The War of the Words

     Have you ever wondered why we use the noun MOON but its corresponding adjective is LUNAR? Or why while we call the animals COW, SHEEP, or PIG once they´re food we call them BEEF, MUTTON, or PORK? The reason is the tremendous impact French had on the English language during the Middle Ages, mostly due to a single battle: The Battle of Hastings. In fact it is estimated that more than 10,000 English words are borrowed from French. But let´s slow down for a minute to try and grasp the historical context:

     It all started in the year 1066 with the Norman Conquest of England. William Duke of Normandy considered that he had a claim to the throne of England and decided to invade, overthrow King Harold, and take over the Crown. The armies of William and Harold met at the Battle of Hastings on October 14, 1066. After intensive fighting that lasted all day Harold was killed by an arrow and William became king, starting what came to be known as the Norman Dynasty. William established a new nobility that was entirely from Normandy, spoke French, and wrote in Latin. After the Norman Conquest English was not spoken by a king for over three centuries! At least not for official business (the first king to address his court in English was Henry V, in 1399).

     French thus became the language of the aristocrats and English of the common people. To this day English words that come from Latin or French tend to be deemed of a higher order of sorts. If we think about it, peasants and common people in the Middle Ages were much more likely to be uneducated and simply name things (using nouns) than to describe them in detail (using adjectives), which accounts for the fact that certain nouns in English are of Anglo-Saxon origin (SUN, MOON), but their corresponding adjectives come from Latin (SOLAR, LUNAR). Also, they were more likely to deal with the livestock (COW, SHEEP, PIG) than with the meat that results from it (BEEF, MUTTON, PORK). In addition most words that had to do with the arts, politics, law, government, and religion in English are of Latin/French origin (such as SOVEREIGN, PARLIAMENT, JUDGE, EVIDENCE, JUSTICE).

     Now you know a little more about the origin of certain words in English (if you want to know more on the subject the video on the right is a good starting point). The problem is French is only one of the main three influences (the other two being Latin and Germanic), but English has been influenced by as many as 20 other languages through its History. This explains why, and most English learners will agree with me on this one, English spelling is so difficult to understand!