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Топики по английскому языку (English topics)

Страноведение / Великобритания

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British Isles

The British Isles haven't always been a separate part of Europe. A long time ago Britain was included in the European continent. Then about ten thousand years ago during the end of the last Ice Age, when the climate grew warmer, new rivers and seas were formed, molding Europe slowly into its present shape.

The ancient people of Britain were simple hunters and ate flesh of animals, in addition to fruits, nuts, and honey. They also fished, and gathered oysters. Being nomads, they didn't have a permanent place of living and traveled from place to place, sheltering in caves.

Then the British people became farmers. The typical Stone Age British farmer had patches of land in the forests that covered most of Britain. Farmers kept half-wild cattle and pigs in forests, and in Northern Scotland, sheep were raised throughout non-forest lands.

By the end of the Stone Age (2000 BC) metal was already being used. It was the time of the Invasion of Beaker people. They came from Northern Europe. They used bronze and started the building of Stone monuments at Stonehenge. Mining and trade were also growing during the Bronze Age between 2000-500 BC. Around 500 BC, British people began learning how to smelt iron. Iron tools had an advantage over bronze tools because they were much cheaper.

At the beginning of the Iron Age, around 400 BC, the British Isles were invaded by Celts armed with weapons of iron. They conquered Kent and much of Southern England. They imposed their language on the natives, with its Gaelic form used in Ireland and Scotland, apart from the Brythonic form which was found in England and Wales.

It was the Brythonic tribe that gave its name to the whole country. The first chronicle of Britain was written by an educated merchant from Morsel. He also wrote the first description of the people, called Celts. He said they were a gentlefolk, and skilled craftsmen, who welcomed visitors. The most educated visitor of Britain described the British as a fierce race. His name was Julius Caesar.

Present-day English language dates back to the 5th-6th centuries, when the Germanic tribes of Jutes, Saxons and Anglos overran all of England, except for Cornwall and Cumberland. Some religious terms were borrowed from Latin in connection with converting England to Christianity by St. Augustine. Some parts of England were invaded by Danes and Norwegians, which is why the languages of Anglo-Saxons and Danes formed the basis of the English language. Normans contributed greatly to the development of the English language during their invasion. Afterwards, in the 15th-16th centuries written language was stabilized with the rise and establishment of printing.

In the 19th century, the growth of British colonial power led to the spread of English as a world language. But still it was only in 1930 when the British Foreign Office stopped using French for all its official memoranda.

So it has been a long journey for the old Anglo-Saxon dialects, that originally forged English into the world language that it has become today, as the leading language of contemporary international communication.