法语对英语的影响

cit city 城市 ducduke 大公 baronbaron 男爵 jugejudge 法官 arm earmy 军队 ennemienemy 敌人 gardeguard 门卫 prisonprison 监狱 libert eliberty 自由 limonlemon 柠檬 beufbeef 牛肉 saumonsalmon 鲑鱼 三文鱼 herbeherb 草药 法语对英语的影响法语对英语的影响 Abstract Both French and English belong to the Indo European Family Since the Middle English period French has had strong influence on English The influence of the French la nguage upon the English language can be divided into two main stages The first one is f rom 1066 to 1500 The decisive factor during this time is the Norman Conquest A large number of French words poured into English as a part of English etymology extending in fluence to grammar spelling pronunciation and word formation The second stage is from European Renaissance to the present globalization With the increasing communication amo ng economy culture and technology many foreign borrowings have been imported from d ifferent countries French as a borrowing continues its contribution to the English vocabula ry By analyzing the fusion of the two languages this paper tries to present the vocabular y evolution and its cultural connotation Key Words French English vocabulary influence Norman Conquest naturalization 摘 要 法语和英语同属于印欧语系 中古英语以来法语对英语就有着极其深刻的影响 法语对英语的影响主要分为两个阶段 第一阶段从 1066 年到 1500 年 在这一阶段诺曼征服 是其决定性的因素 大量的法语词汇进入英语 构成了英语词源的一部分 其影响涉及语 法 拼写 语音以及构词等方面 第二阶段是从欧洲的文艺复兴到现在加速世界一体化的 信息时代 各国之间的文化相互渗透 经济 文化 科技密切联系 许多国家的词汇进入 英语 法语作为外来语继续丰富着英语的词汇 本文通过分析两种语言的融合来探讨词汇 的发展演变过程及其所反映的历史文化色彩 关键词 法语 英语 词汇 影响 诺曼征服 归化 1 Introduction The development of a certain language has a long history It s inevitable that different l anguages influence and penetrate each other in their formation and development In additio n a particular language assimilates the refined portion of other languages to enrich itself English is the typical representative of this kind of language As a cosmopolitan language English has been greatly influenced by various languages especially by French Since the Middle English period French had a strong influence on English The influence of the Fre nch language upon the English language can be divided into two main stages The first st age is from Norman Conquest to 1500 One of the most influential factors is the Norman Conquest At this stage the French was used by the upper class at first and then the two languages fused together and at last the French was acknowledged by common people Th e second stage is from 1500 to the present time On the whole the most direct and obser vable impact manifests itself on the word borrowing The scale of vocabulary is wide We can find words relating to every aspect of human society e g government law religion military affairs food and so on Moreover the degree of vocabulary influence is considera ble Some words are assimilated some native words are lost while other words meanings are expanded Besides French also influences English grammar spelling pronunciation and word formation And now the influence is still going on 2 Indo European Family The languages brought into relationship by descent or progressive differentiation from a pa rent speech are conveniently called a family of languages It is assumed that there are rou ghly 300 language families in the world and the Indo European one of these is made up of most languages of Europe the Near East and India The parent tongue from which the Indo European languages have sprung had already became divided and scattered before the dawn of history The surviving languages show various degrees of similarities to one anot her the similarity bearing a more or less direct relationship to their geographical distributi on They accordingly fall into eleven principal groups Indian Iranian Armenian Hellenic Albanian Italic Balto Slavic Germanic Celtic Hittite and Tocharian 1 The Italic branch has its center in Italy and to most people Italy in ancient times suggest s Rome and the language of Rome Latin The various languages that represent the surviv al of Latin in the different parts of the Rome Empire are known as the Romance or Rom anic languages The most extensive of the Romance languages are French Spanish Portug uese and Italian The common form that the languages of the Germanic branch had befor e they became differentiated is known as Germanic or Proto Germanic The languages des cended from it fall into three groups East Germanic North Germanic and West Germani c West Germanic is the group to which English belongs In short both French and Engli sh belong to the Indo European Family 3 Many English words coming from other languages especially from French As we know the English language is of a mixed character On one hand it shares with West Germanic languages many common words and similar grammatical structures On the other hand more than half of the English vocabulary is derived from Latin Greek notabl y French 4 The influence of the French language upon the English language 4 1 The social background of the influence 4 1 1 The origin of Normandy On the northern coast of France is a district known as Normandy It derives its name fro m the bands of Northmen who settled there in the ninth and tenth centuries The Norman s had soon absorbed the most important elements of French civilization They gave up the ir own language and learned French For some years before the Norman Conquest the rela tions between England and Normandy had been fairly close In 1002 rhelred the Unread y had married a Norman wife and their son Edward who had thus been brought up in F rance was almost more French than English In 1042 Edward was restored to the throne and he brought with him a number of his Norman friends and gave them important place s in the government A strong French atmosphere pervaded the English court during the t wenty four years of his reign 4 1 2 The Norman invasion At his succession the most influential noble was Godwin earl of the West Saxon earldom His eldest son Harold was elected king when Edward died in 1066 But his election did not long go unchallenged William the duke of Normandy at this time was a second cou sin to the late king Although this relationship did not give him any right of inheritance t o the English throne he had nevertheless been living in expectation of becoming Edward s successor He hoped to obtain the crown by force On September 1066 William landed at Pevensey on the south coast of England with a formidable force Harold was killed d uring the battle and the English were soon in full retreat On Christmas Day 1066 Willia m was crowned king of England 4 1 3 The Norman Settlement William s possession of the throne had been a matter of conquest and was attended by all the consequences of the conquest of one people by another One of the most important of these consequences was the introduction of a new nobility For several generations after th e Conquest the important positions and the great estates were almost always held by Nor mans or men of foreign blood Similarly Norman prelates were gradually introduced into all important positions in the church It is less easy to speak with certainty of the Norma ns in the lower walks of life who came into England with William s army Many of the m doubtless remained in the island and their number was increased by constant accretions throughout the rest of the eleventh century and the whole of the next Likewise merchants and craftsmen from the continent seem to have settled in England in considerable numbers It is quite impossible to say how many Normans and French people settled in England b ut because the governing class in both church and state was almost exclusively made up f rom among them their influence was out of all proportion to their number 4 2 The influence of French upon English in the Middle English period 4 2 1 The use of French by the upper class Whatever the actual number of Normans settled in England it is clear that the members of the new ruling class were sufficiently predominant to continue to use their own langua ge This was natural enough at first as they knew no English but they continued to do s o for a long time to come picking up some knowledge of English gradually but making no effort to do so as a matter of policy For 200 years after the Norman Conquest Frenc h remained the language of ordinary intercourse among the upper classes in England The nobility chose to maintain French as the language of society administration and commerce At first those who spoke French were those of Norman origin but soon through intermarr iage and association with the ruling class numerous people of English extraction must hav e found it to their advantage to learn the new language and before long the distinction b etween those who spoke French and those who spoke English was not ethnic but largely social The most important factor in the continued use of French by the English upper cla ss until the beginning of the thirteenth century was the close connection that existed throu gh all these years between England and the continent The subjugated English were not ki lled off nor were they driven from their country They were relegated to the status of an inferior people good swineherds and servants Therefore England became a bilingual co untry The Normans belonged to a race of Scandinavian origin but during the residence in Nor mandy they had given up their native language and had adopted the French dialect of that region The Normans introduced into England a variety of the French language we call N orman French the other variety is Parisian French By the end of the thirteenth century P arisian French began to enter England and more still in the fifteenth century A large nu mber of French words made their appearance in the works of Chaucer and other English writers especially in many English translations of French literary works published at that t ime 4 2 2 Fusion of the two peoples and two languages In the years following the Norman Conquest the sting of defeat and the hardships incident to so great a political and social disturbance were gradually forgotten People accepted the new order as something accomplished they accepted it as a fact and adjusted themselves to it The fusion of Normans and English was rapid And the early fusion of French and English in England is quite clear from a variety of evidences It is evident in the marriag e of Normans to English women It is evident from the way in which the English gave t heir support to their rulers and Norman prelates It is evident in many other ways Every where there are signs of convergence 4 2 3 Knowledge of French among the middle class If by the end of the twelfth century the knowledge of English was not unusual among m embers of the highest class it seems equally clear that the knowledge of French was ofte n found somewhat further down in the social scale In fact the knowledge of French may sometimes have extended to the free tenants So the two languages fused together and infl uenced each other 4 2 4 French influence on the vocabulary The influence of the French language upon the English language is direct and evident It is much more observable from the vocabulary Where the two languages exist side by sid e for a long time and the relations between the people speaking them are as intimate as t hey were in England a considerable transference of words from one language to the other is inevitable The number of French words that poured into English was unbelievably grea t There is nothing comparable to it in the previous or subsequent history of the language In the influx of French words two stages can be observed an earlier and a later with the year 1250 as the approximate dividing line When we study the French words appearing i n English before 1250 roughly 900 in number we find that many of them were such as the lower classes would become familiar with through contact with a French speaking nobi lity e g baron noble dame servant messenger feast minstrel juggler largess story rim e lay etc In the period after 1250 the conditions under which French words had been making their way into English were supplemented by a new and powerful factor those who had been accustomed to speak French were turning in increasingly to the use of English In changin g from French to English they transferred much of their governmental and administrative vocabulary their ecclesiastical legal and military terms their familiar words of fashion f ood and social life the vocabulary of art learning and medicine In general we may say that in the earlier Middle English period the French words introduced into English were s uch as people speaking one language often learn from those speaking or learning to speak English they were also such words as people who had been accustomed to speak French would carry over with them into the language of their adoption Only in this way can we understand the nature and extent of the French importations in this period We can find words relating to every aspect of human society 1 Governmental and administrative words We should expect that English would owe many of its words dealing with government an d administration to the language of those who for more than 200 years made public affair s their chief concern The words government administer might appropriately introduce a li st of such words It would include such fundamental terms as crown state empire realm reign royal prerogative authority sovereign majesty scepter tyrant usurp oppress court council parliament assembly statute treaty alliance record record repeal adjourn tax s ubsidy revenue tally exchequer Intimately associated with the idea of government are als o words like subject allegiance rebel traitor treason exile public liberty The word offi ce and the titles of many offices are likewise French chancellor treasurer chamberlain m arshal governor councilor minister viscount warden castellan mayor constable coroner and even the humble crier Except for the words king and queen lord lady and earl mo st designations of rank are French noble nobility peer prince princess duke duchess c ount countess marquis baron squire page as well as such words as courtier retinue sir madam mistress The list might well be extended to include words relating to the econom ic organization of society manor demesne bailiff vassal homage peasant bondman slave servant and caitiff since they often have a political or administrative aspect 2 Ecclesiastical words The church was scarcely second to the government as an object of Norman interest and a mbition The higher clergy occupying positions of wealth and power were as we have s een practically all Normans Ecclesiastical preferment opened the way to a career that oft en led to the highest political offices at court In monasteries and religious houses French was for a long time the usual language Accordingly we find in English such French wor ds as religion theology sermon homily sacrament baptism communion confession pena nce prayer orison lesson passion psalmody such indications of rank or class as clergy clerk prelate cardinal legate dean chaplain parson pastor vicar sexton abbess novice friar hermit the names of objects associated with the service or with the religious life su ch as crucifix crosier miter surplice censer incense lectern image chancel chantry cha pter abbey convent priory hermitage cloister sanctuary words expressing such fundame ntal religious or theological concepts as creator savior trinity virgin saint miracle myste ry faith heresy schism reverence devotion sacrilege simony temptation damnation pen itence contrition remission absolution redemption salvation immortality and the more g eneral virtues of piety sanctity charity mercy pity obedience as well as the word virtue itself We should include also a number of adjectives like solemn divine reverend devou t and verbs such as preach pray chant repent confess adore sacrifice convert anoint ordain 3 Law French was so long the language of the law courts in England that the greater part of the English legal vocabulary comes from the language of the conquerors The fact that we sp eak of justice and equity instead of gerihte judgment rather than dom crime in place of synn gylt und d etc shows how completely we have adopted the terminology of Frenc h law Even where the Old English word survives it has lost its technical sense In the sa me way we say bar assize eyre plea suit plaintiff defendant judge advocate attorney bill petition complaint inquest summons hue and cry indictment jury juror panel felo n evidence proof bail ransom mainpernor judgment verdict sentence decree award fi ne forfeit processes sue plead implead accuse indict arraign depose blame arrest seiz e pledge warrant assail assign judge condemn convict award amerce distrain impriso n banish acquit pardon The names of many crimes and misdemeanors are French felon y trespass assault arson larceny fraud libel slander perjury adultery and many others Suits involving property brought into use such words as property estate tenement chattels appurtenances encumbrance bounds seisin tenant dower legacy patrimony heritage hei r executor entail Common adjectives like just innocent culpable have obvious legal imp ort though they are also of wider application punishment prison gaol pillory We have likewise a rich array of verbs associated with legal 4 Army and navy The large part that war played in English affairs in the Middle Ages the fact that the co ntrol of the army and navy was in the hands of those who spoke French and the circum stance that much of English fighting was done in France all resulted in the introduction i nto English of a number of French military terms The art of war has undergone such ch anges since the days of Hastings and Lewes and Agincourt that many words once commo n are now obsolete or only in historical use Their places have been taken by later borro wings often likewise from French many of them being words acquired by the French in the course of their wars in Italy during the sixteenth