Middle English does not come from Old English...

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...it comes from the Anglicized Norse spoken in the Dane Law (roughly the East Midlands).

Yes, it's true. Although a shit-ton of Old English vocabulary made it into this version of Norse, it is Norse based on its sentence structure (syntax). Middle English syntax is nothing like that of Old English. It is almost exactly like that spoken where the Vikings ruled.

The idea is that Norman-French, when it came into use after 1066, forced the Danes and Saxons into an alliance against the Norman French. The most powerful leader of these guerrilla forces was Danish/Norse-English, and thus Norse structure was retained.

I've missed details, but what do yall think?

 

 

Fucking murderous Vikings with their dragon boats and death metal. 

Happy USA  Turkey Day,

Mr.  Flooops.

I knoow a Quêbecoïs Lady who(m) would discuss topics of linguistic derivatives all day long,  and She has multiple Degrees in subjects 'liek thaat'.

Kraaaazy Girl.  Makes a fine living translating French / Spanish / Engliish for books and technical manuals.

She & You would babble incessantly over obscure roots of Language for Hours.  Wish I could introduce you.

You could, Stu. Try fatebook.

Sorry Mr. Flooops.

About the time of Her 4th or 5th Masters degree  (I lost count) ,  she hooked up with Her current fellow,  converted to Vegetarianism,  and quit TV.

So,  we only speak a few times per year these days.

Not that I do a lot of TV,  but she also quit Firewood.  The fellow is asthmatic,  so no more Maple for heat.

Religious differences amongst Pagans.

I'm not looking to get married! 

I just wanna talk language history.

Anybody want to discuss the grammatical changes?

i.e. loss of ge- prefix on past participles... 

the possibility that Modal Phrasal Verbs developed from the Danish use of our current infinitive marker "to"...

And what of the "middle voice"?

"Tits" predates the Viking colonization.

What "'middle voice'," QuotesOnMars?

Do you mean singular, dual, plural thingie?

Heard it on the Thomas Jefferson hour recently, I believe he used the "middle voice" often in his writing.

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/middle_voice

It looks like a good rhetorical device. Language-wise, though, Jefferson was yesterday.

I have considered this form lately. It's cool that you brought it up and gave it a name.

I'd have to go through my Jefferson collection to talk about his use of it.

Have you heard of the "dual" form between singular and plural? I don't know what it's called.

Weird shit.

 

I believe the discussion on the TJH was precisely about the way in which Jefferson used it as a rhetorical device ... maybe he was "yesterday", but he writing was very well thought out and crafted with intention. 

I didn't name it "middle voice" ...  just recalled it after reading your thread.

Not sure what you mean by "dual form between singular and plural" ... would "deer" be instance of what you refer?

Floops:  just passed a cognitive threshold for being able to "process", will need to re-visit at a later time.

Are you passing that this way, then?

 

No takers?

 

Are you passing that this way, then?

Then are you passing that this way?

Are you then passing that this way?

Discuss

All acceptable, Brian.

I'm out of here for the weekend, folks.

I expect much excitement about the op when I get back.

 

Ancient Music

Winter is icummen in, 
Lhude sing Goddamm. 
Raineth drop and staineth slop, 
And how the wind doth ramm! 
Sing: Goddamm. 

Skiddeth bus and sloppeth us, 
An ague hath my ham. 
Freezeth river, turneth liver, 
Damn you, sing: Goddamm. 

Goddamm, Goddamm, 'tis why I am, Goddamm, 
So 'gainst the winter's balm. 

Sing goddamm, damm, sing Goddamm. 
Sing goddamm, sing goddamm, DAMM. 


-- Ezra Pound

I am more and more convinced that the op is true; there are just too many examples. 

Hey Lodbrok, what do you think of this idea? Are you out there? Er du der ute?

 

my mom used Old English but I have found Howards Feed n Wax to be effective

where does the middle finger come from 

You've got some work to do, Floops.

From Wiki:

"Middle English developed out of Late Old English"

Yeah, I know. 

Here it is: grammar makes a language, not  its vocabulary. 

You know this is true, otherwise, English is French. 

Well, when comparing the old languages, it turns out that Middle and Modern English follows Old Norse grammar. 

Just a few points:

-Verb before the Object, rather than after

-"To" Infinitives, and thus also split infinitives

-Modal system

-prepositions ending sentences

and many more. 

 

Are you still interested?