Friday, July 11, 2008

A brief chronology of English

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  1. BC 55
    Roman invasion of Britain by Julius Caesar.
    Local inhabitants speak Celtish
    BC 43
    Roman invasion and occupation. Beginning of Roman rule of Britain.
    436
    Roman withdrawal from Britain complete.
    449
    Settlement of Britain by Germanic invaders begins
    450-480
    Earliest known Old English inscriptions.
    Old English
    1066
    William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy, invades and conquers England.
    c1150
    Earliest surviving manuscripts in Middle English.
    Middle English
    1348
    English replaces Latin as the language of instruction in most schools.
    1362
    English replaces French as the language of law. English is used in Parliament for the first time.
    c1388
    Chaucer starts writing The Canterbury Tales.
    c1400
    The Great Vowel Shift begins.
    1476
    William Caxton establishes the first English printing press.
    Early Modern English
    1564
    Shakespeare is born.
    1604
    Table Alphabeticall, the first English dictionary, is published.
    1607
    The first permanent English settlement in the New World (Jamestown) is established.
    1616
    Shakespeare dies.
    1623
    Shakespeare's First Folio is published
    1702
    The first daily English-language newspaper, The Daily Courant, is published in London.
    1755
    Samuel Johnson publishes his English dictionary.
    1776
    Thomas Jefferson writes the American Declaration of Independence.
    1782
    Britain abandons its American colonies.
    1828
    Webster publishes his American English dictionary.
    Late Modern English
    1922
    The British Broadcasting Corporation is founded.
    1928
    The Oxford English Dictionary is published.

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