The Stories of English
by:
David Crystal (author)
When and why did 'thou' disappear from Standard English? Would a Victorian Cockney have said 'observation' or 'hobservation'? Was Jane Austen making a mistake when she wrote 'Jenny and James are walked to Charmonth this afternoon'?This superbly well-informed - and also wonderfully entertaining -...
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When and why did 'thou' disappear from Standard English? Would a Victorian Cockney have said 'observation' or 'hobservation'? Was Jane Austen making a mistake when she wrote 'Jenny and James are walked to Charmonth this afternoon'?This superbly well-informed - and also wonderfully entertaining - history of the English language answers all these questions, showing how the many strands of English (Standard English, dialect and slang among them) developed to create the richly-varied language of today.
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Format: paperback
ISBN:
9781585677191 (1585677191)
Publish date: September 6th 2005
Publisher: Overlook TP
Pages no: 584
Edition language: English