1. INTRODUCTION
English is a Germanic language, as are German, Dutch and the Scandinavian languages. Near the end of the Old English period English underwent a third foreign influence, the result of contact with another important language, the Scandinavian.The age of Vikings, starting around year 750 AD, had an important role in the making of modern Europe. The Scandinavian colonisation of the British Isles had a considerable effect on the English language and vocabulary, as well as culture. There are many hundreds of Scandinavian place-names that can still be found in the British Isles, an endings such as -by, -ness, and -thorp, are some typical Scandinavian place-name elements. The Vikings had a influence on the English language itself, judging by the amount of words that were borrowed and the fact that they are part of everyday vocabulary even today.
Began in the eigth century a change, possibly economic, possibly political ocurred in the area and proveked among them a spirit of unrest and adventurous enterprise. They began a series of attacks upon all the lands adjacent to the North Sea and the Baltic. Their activities began in plunder and ended in conquest. The Danes were the group who founded the dukedom of Normandy and finally conquered England. The period of their activity, extending from the middle of the eight century to the beginning of the eleventh, is popularly known as the Viking Age.
Began in the eigth century a change, possibly economic, possibly political ocurred in the area and proveked among them a spirit of unrest and adventurous enterprise. They began a series of attacks upon all the lands adjacent to the North Sea and the Baltic. Their activities began in plunder and ended in conquest. The Danes were the group who founded the dukedom of Normandy and finally conquered England. The period of their activity, extending from the middle of the eight century to the beginning of the eleventh, is popularly known as the Viking Age.
2. THE SCANDINAVIAN INVASION OF ENGLAND.
The Viking Age lasted roughly from the eighth century to the eleventh, with the Viking attacks on Europe beginning around 750 AD (Barber 1993:127). The Scandinavians were excellent sailors, and they had impressive ships and navigational However, the Vikings were mostly seen as barbaric warriors, rather than tradesmen, and the areas of western Europe that suffered the most from Viking attacks were Britain and Ireland.
There are several possible reasons why the Scandinavians took to the sea and headed for the British Isles; one might have been overpopulation in the harsh and poor landscape of the north.
There are several possible reasons why the Scandinavians took to the sea and headed for the British Isles; one might have been overpopulation in the harsh and poor landscape of the north.
Another reason was that in the old Scandinavian society it was customary to leave inheritances to the eldest son, which led to the younger sons wanting to seek their fortune elsewhere, perhaps at sea. However, the major reason might have been the fall of the Frisians, who were, until the late eighth century, the greatest maritime power of North-West Europe. This opened up the sea-routes and thus enabled the Scandinavians to travel south (Barber 1993:127).
The first Viking attacks on England took place around 800 AD and started as merely plundering raids, but some fifty years later the attacks had become more serious and groups had even started spending the winters in Britain (128). Previously these expeditions had been seasonal; winter was not a good time for war or travel, neither by sea nor by land. They found that winters in the south were milder, there was plenty of good land to take and, of course, the seas stayed open, so there was no reason to return home.
3. THE SETTLEMENT OF THE DANES IN ENGLAND.
From around 800 AD waves of Danish assaults on the coastlines of the British Isles were gradually followed by a succession of Danish settlerss. Danish raiders first began to settle in England strting in 865, when brothers Halfdan Ragnarsson and Ivar the Boneless wintered in East Anglia. They soon moved north and in 867 captured Northumbria and it´s capital, York.Some indication of their number may be had from the fact that more than 1,400 places in England bear Scandinavian names.
The area occupied by the Danelaw was roughly the area to the north of a line drawn between London and Chester, excluding the portion of Northumbria to the east of the Pennines.
Five fortified towns became particularly important in the Danelaw: Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, Stamford and Lincoln.ENDURING IMPACT OF THE DANELAW.
The influence of this period of Scandinavian settlement can still be seen in the North of England and the East Midlands, and is particularly evident in place-names: name endings such as -howe, -by ("village") or "thorp" ("hamlet") having Norse origins. There seems to be a remarkable number of Kirby/Kirkby names, some with remains of Anglo-Saxon building indicating both a Norse origin and early church building Scandinavian names blended with the English -ton give rise to typical hybrid place-names.
Old East Norse and Old English were still somewhat mutually comprehensible. The contact between these languages in the Danelaw caused the incorporation of many Norse words into the English language, including the word law itself, sky and window, and the third person plural pronouns she, they, them and their. Many Old Norse words still survive in the dialects of Northeastern England.
Four of the five boroughs became country towns — of the counties of Leicestershire, Linconlnshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. However, Stamford failed to gain such status—perhaps because of the nearby autonomous territory of Rutland.
4. THE AMALGAMATION OF THE TWO PEOPLES.
The amalgamation of the two peoples was greatly facilitated by the close kinship that existed between them. The policy of the English kings in the period when they were re-establishing their control over the Danelaw was to accept as an established fact the mixed population of the district and to devise a modus vivendi for its people. In this effort they were aided by the natural adaptability of the Scandinavian.
The Danes assimlated to most of the ways of English life. Many of them early accepted Christianity.
But these large centres and the multitude of smaller communities where the Northmen gradually settled were absorbed later into the general mass of the English population.
The amalgamation of the two peoples was greatly facilitated by the close kinship that existed between them. The policy of the English kings in the period when they were re-establishing their control over the Danelaw was to accept as an established fact the mixed population of the district and to devise a modus vivendi for its people. In this effort they were aided by the natural adaptability of the Scandinavian.
The Danes assimlated to most of the ways of English life. Many of them early accepted Christianity.
But these large centres and the multitude of smaller communities where the Northmen gradually settled were absorbed later into the general mass of the English population.
5. THE RELATION OF THE TWO LANGUAGES.
The relation between the tow languages in the distric settled by the Danes is a matter of inference rather than exact knowledge. Although in some places the Scandinavians gave up their language early there were certainly communities in with Danish or Norse remained for some time the usual language.
6. THE TEST OF BORROWED WORDS.
The similarity between Old English and the language of the Scandinavian invaders makes it at ties very difficult to decide whether a given words in Modern English is a native or a borrowed word. Many of the more common words of the two languages were identical. The most reliable test depends upon differences in the development of certain sounds in the North Germanic and West Germanic areas. While native words like ship, shall, fish have sh in Modern English, words borrowed from the Scandinavian are generally still pronounced sk: sky, skin, skill, bask, whisk.
The similarity between Old English and the language of the Scandinavian invaders makes it at ties very difficult to decide whether a given words in Modern English is a native or a borrowed word. Many of the more common words of the two languages were identical. The most reliable test depends upon differences in the development of certain sounds in the North Germanic and West Germanic areas. While native words like ship, shall, fish have sh in Modern English, words borrowed from the Scandinavian are generally still pronounced sk: sky, skin, skill, bask, whisk.
7. SCANDINAVIAN PLACE-NAMES.
One very noticeable difference between the area where the Scandinavians settled and the rest of England is the hundreds of place-names with Scandinavian origin in the Danelaw.
The long-term linguistic effect of the Viking settlements in England was threefold: over a thousand words eventually became part of Standard English; numerous places in the East and North-east of England have Danish names; and many English personal names are of Scandinavian origin. Scandinavian words that entered the English language included landing, score, beck, fellow, take, busting, and steersman.
The vast majority of loan words did not appear in documents until the early twelfth century; these included many modern words which used sk- sounds, such as skirt, sky, and skin; other words appearing in written sources at this time included again, awkward, birth, cake, dregs, fog, freckles, gasp, law, moss, neck, ransack, root, scowl, sister, seat, sly, smile, want, weak, and window. Some of the words that came into use are among the most common in English, such as both, same, get, and give.
The system of personal pronouns was affected, with they, them, and their replacing the earlier forms. Old Norse influenced the verb to be; the replacement of sindon by are is almost certainly Scandinavian in origin, as is the third-person-singular ending -s in the present tense of verbs.
There are more than 1,500 Scandinavian place names in England, mainly in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire (within the former boundaries of the Danelawmarker): over 600 end in -by, the Scandinavian word for "village" or "town" — for example Grimsby, Naseby, and Whitby; many others end in -thorpe ("farm"), -thwaite ("clearing"), and -toft ("homestead").
There are more than 1,500 Scandinavian place names in England, mainly in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire (within the former boundaries of the Danelawmarker): over 600 end in -by, the Scandinavian word for "village" or "town" — for example Grimsby, Naseby, and Whitby; many others end in -thorpe ("farm"), -thwaite ("clearing"), and -toft ("homestead").
However, it is important to remember that the Vikings did not populate all the places with Scandinavian names in the Danelaw. It is possible that the Anglo-Saxons adopted their naming tradition and, similarly, places were often renamed; thus, we cannot count on the place-name when deciding whether a place was originally a Scandinavian settlement.
Townend (2002:48) discusses three possible scenarios concerning place-names where there is
contact between speakers of two different languages:
1. The speakers of the incoming language may use the names they encounter without changing them.
2. The incomers may coin their own names, unrelated to the existing ones.
3. The incomers may adapt the names they encounter, to suit their own speech habits.
Concerning the Anglo-Scandinavian relationship, all three possibilities were probably in use, but it is the third option that appears to be the most common one. Speakers then either change the phonetic sounds in the foreign name, or translate the name into their own language, by sound or by element.
Townend (2002:48) discusses three possible scenarios concerning place-names where there is
contact between speakers of two different languages:
1. The speakers of the incoming language may use the names they encounter without changing them.
2. The incomers may coin their own names, unrelated to the existing ones.
3. The incomers may adapt the names they encounter, to suit their own speech habits.
Concerning the Anglo-Scandinavian relationship, all three possibilities were probably in use, but it is the third option that appears to be the most common one. Speakers then either change the phonetic sounds in the foreign name, or translate the name into their own language, by sound or by element.
The distribution of family names showing Scandinavian influence is still, as an analysis of names ending in -son reveals, concentrated in the north and east, corresponding to areas of former Viking settlement. Early medieval records indicate that over 60% of personal names in Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire showed Scandinavian influence.
8. SCANDINAVIAN LOANWORDS AND THEIR CHARACTER.
Naturally, the massive migration and settlement that the Scandinavians undertook led to extensive use of the Norse tongue in the area of the Danelaw, and we can see evidence of it even today through its influences on the English language. Scandinavian vocabulary penetrated nearly every area of the language (Jones 1984:422), but most words of Scandinavian origin in English are concrete everyday words. A few examples follow here:
o The nouns bank, birth, booth, egg, husband, law, leg, root, score, sister, skin, trust, wing and window.
o The adjectives awkward, flat, happy, ill, loose, low, odd, sly, ugly, weak, and wrong.
o The verbs to cast, clip, crawl, cut, die, drown, gasp, give, lift, nag, scare, sprint, take, and want. And of course the present plural of ‘to be’, are.
o The pronouns both, same, they, them and their A few examples of later borrowings from the Scandinavian languages are fjord, saga, ski, slalom, smorgasbord and viking.
The fact that even the pronouns ‘they’, ‘them’ and ‘their’ were accepted into the language shows what massive effectsthe Viking settlement had. Of course, since the development of the Old English pronouns had led to them being very similar and a cause of ambiguity and misunderstandings, it was easy to accept the Norse varian. Nevertheless, it is very unusual that grammatical items are borrowed.
Naturally, the massive migration and settlement that the Scandinavians undertook led to extensive use of the Norse tongue in the area of the Danelaw, and we can see evidence of it even today through its influences on the English language. Scandinavian vocabulary penetrated nearly every area of the language (Jones 1984:422), but most words of Scandinavian origin in English are concrete everyday words. A few examples follow here:
o The nouns bank, birth, booth, egg, husband, law, leg, root, score, sister, skin, trust, wing and window.
o The adjectives awkward, flat, happy, ill, loose, low, odd, sly, ugly, weak, and wrong.
o The verbs to cast, clip, crawl, cut, die, drown, gasp, give, lift, nag, scare, sprint, take, and want. And of course the present plural of ‘to be’, are.
o The pronouns both, same, they, them and their A few examples of later borrowings from the Scandinavian languages are fjord, saga, ski, slalom, smorgasbord and viking.
The fact that even the pronouns ‘they’, ‘them’ and ‘their’ were accepted into the language shows what massive effectsthe Viking settlement had. Of course, since the development of the Old English pronouns had led to them being very similar and a cause of ambiguity and misunderstandings, it was easy to accept the Norse varian. Nevertheless, it is very unusual that grammatical items are borrowed.
It can be difficult to recognise the Scandinavian words since the languages are so closely related; many words that look Scandinavian are actually native English words. For instance, arm, foot, tree, cow, stone, land, eat, and drink are all recorded in early Old English.
Odenstedt continues by mentioning certain ways to decide whether a word is a Scandinavian loan:
1. Germanic /sk/ became /∫ / (sh) in all positions. This change occurred later in Scandinavia, and therefore words like shall, shoulder and shirt are native English words whereas skin, sky and skirt are Scandinavian words.
2. In early Old English the Germanic /g/ before front vowels became /j/, and /k/ became /t/. In Old Norse /g/ and /k/ remained. Thus, child, choose and yield are all native words, while give, gift, kid and kindle are Scandinavian.
3. Date of first appearance. For instance, the Old English word for ‘take’ was niman, but in late Old English tacan is found. The Old Norse word was taka, which shows that it must have been borrowed from the Scandinavians. In the same way, the word for ‘law’ was originally æ but a later recording is lagu, which comes from Old Norse.
In fact, judging by the large number of Scandinavian words in the legal area, The Vikings had a considerable impact upon the law and order of the Anglo-Saxons. Some examples are fellow (‘partner’), law, and outlaw. Even more Scandinavian words related to the legal area existed in Old English but were later replaced. Not only did the Scandinavian peoples bring their laws and customs to the Danelaw, but their view on law and legal custom was to a great extent acknowledged by all of England.
1. Germanic /sk/ became /∫ / (sh) in all positions. This change occurred later in Scandinavia, and therefore words like shall, shoulder and shirt are native English words whereas skin, sky and skirt are Scandinavian words.
2. In early Old English the Germanic /g/ before front vowels became /j/, and /k/ became /t/. In Old Norse /g/ and /k/ remained. Thus, child, choose and yield are all native words, while give, gift, kid and kindle are Scandinavian.
3. Date of first appearance. For instance, the Old English word for ‘take’ was niman, but in late Old English tacan is found. The Old Norse word was taka, which shows that it must have been borrowed from the Scandinavians. In the same way, the word for ‘law’ was originally æ but a later recording is lagu, which comes from Old Norse.
In fact, judging by the large number of Scandinavian words in the legal area, The Vikings had a considerable impact upon the law and order of the Anglo-Saxons. Some examples are fellow (‘partner’), law, and outlaw. Even more Scandinavian words related to the legal area existed in Old English but were later replaced. Not only did the Scandinavian peoples bring their laws and customs to the Danelaw, but their view on law and legal custom was to a great extent acknowledged by all of England.
9. THE RELATION BETWEEN BORROWED AND NATIVE WORDS.
It will be seen from the words in the above lists that in many cases the new words could have supplied no real need in the English vocabulary.
They made their way into English simply as the result of the mixture of the two peoples. The Scandinavian and the English words were being used side by side, and the survival of one or the other must often have been a matter of chance. Under such circumstances a number of things might happen:
It will be seen from the words in the above lists that in many cases the new words could have supplied no real need in the English vocabulary.
They made their way into English simply as the result of the mixture of the two peoples. The Scandinavian and the English words were being used side by side, and the survival of one or the other must often have been a matter of chance. Under such circumstances a number of things might happen:
a) Where words in the two languages coincides more or less in form and meaning, the modern word stands at the same time for both its English and Scandinavian ancestors.
b) Where there were differences of form, the English words often survived.
Some confusion must have existed in the Danish area between the Scandinavian and the English form of many words, a confusion that is clearly betrayed in the survival of such hybrid forms as shriek and screech. All this merely goes to show that in the Scandinavian influence on the English language we have to do with the intimate mingling of the two tongues. The results are just what we should expect when two rather similar languages are spoken for upwards of two centuries in the same area.
10. PERIOD AND EXTENT OF INFLUENCE.
It is possible to estimate the extent of the Scandinavian influence by the number of borrowed words that exist in Standard English. That number is about 900.
These are almost always words designating common everyday things and fundamental concepts. There are, according to Wright, the editor of the English Dialect Dictionary, thousands of Scandinavian words that are still a part of the everyday speech of people in the north and east of England and in a sense are much as part of the living language as those that are used in other parts of the country and have made their way into literature.
Locally, at least, the Scandinavian influence was tremendous. The period during which this large Danish element was making its way into English was doubtless the tenth and eleventh centuries. This was the time in which the merging of the two people was taking place.
These are almost always words designating common everyday things and fundamental concepts. There are, according to Wright, the editor of the English Dialect Dictionary, thousands of Scandinavian words that are still a part of the everyday speech of people in the north and east of England and in a sense are much as part of the living language as those that are used in other parts of the country and have made their way into literature.
Locally, at least, the Scandinavian influence was tremendous. The period during which this large Danish element was making its way into English was doubtless the tenth and eleventh centuries. This was the time in which the merging of the two people was taking place.
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