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The History of the English Language

XB101 (4 semester units in English)

Important: New academic policies apply to XB courses.

English is the official language of 71 nations and is spoken on every continent on the planet. Yet despite its ubiquity, the varieties of written and spoken English are astounding and can be perplexing to anyone who has encountered reggae lyrics, the writings of Chaucer, or a lilting drawl of the Old South.

The English language has a fascinating structure and history. In this course, you examine the grammatical and semantic structure of English as it has evolved over the centuries, with attention on the nature and function of languages in general, illuminating the connections between language and other elements of culture. Topics include the origin and derivation of words; historical changes in sounds, forms, and meaning; literary and philosophical influences on the language; and contributions from other languages and cultures.

Prerequisites: Access to the Oxford English Dictionary (most libraries now have the compact edition) and the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology is necessary. (You can subscribe to the OED online for as brief as a month at www.oed.com/subscribe.) Access to a library is recommended.

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