French borrowings

The Norman Conquest of 1066 left England as a trilingual country, although most people would only speak one or two of the dominant languages. Latin was the language for record keeping, learning and the church. French was the language of the Norman aristocracy and therefore also the language of prestige, government and polite social intercourse. English was the language of the common folk and menials. 

When the Normans took over England, they changed the language of government and the court almost overnight and disregarded existing institutions. Instead, they took on almost wholesale institutions derived from France, including the feudal system which guaranteed strong control by the king. 

 There were three periods of French borrowings. The first, from about 1066 to 1250 represents the height of Norman power. The language spoken by the Normans, known as Norman French (different from Central or Parisian French) was the the language of the King’s court, the nobles’ castles and the courts of law. Norman French was therefore the language of honour, chivalry and justice. Indeed, Matthew of Westminster said, ‘Whoever was unable to speak French was considered a vile and contemptible person by the common people’ (1263).

 There were not many French borrowings, since English continues be used, largely in its own, low-level arenas and French and English speakers were kept separate.

The second period, roughly from 1250 to 1400 represents the period of English-French bilingualism in individuals (not just in the nation). The number of French loanwords ballooned in this period. Why was this?

 

Very briefly, this is what happened. In 1204, Normandy (in northern France, where the Normans came from) was acquired by the French king. Among other things, it meant that the Norman aristocracy in England couldn’t travel back and forth between their lands in England and France anymore. They had to choose whether they wanted to remain in England or in France. Those who remained in England began to see England as their home. This led to the reassertion of English as the language of the realm. Other reasons for the reassertion of English are:

• the Normans in England belonged to the Capetian dynasty spoke Norman French; this became non-prestigious in France as the variety spoken by the Angevian dynasty in France, Parisian French, became the prestige variety; because Norman French was seen as socially inferior, it was less difficult to abandon it in favour of English;

• subsequently, England became at war with France in the Hundred Years War (1337–1453).

Even as English was on its way in, the gaps in English vocabulary had to be filled by loanwords from French. These include items pertaining to new experiences and ways of doing things introduced by the Normans. So whilst the English already had kings, queens and earls, terms taken from French include count, countess, sire, madam, duke, marquis, dauphin, viscount, baron, chevalier, servant and master. Other domains that became enriched with French loanwords include:

• Government: parliament, chancellor, government, country, crown

• Finance: treasure, wage, poverty

• Law: attorney, plaintiff, larceny, fraud, jury, verdict

• War: battle, army, castle, tower, siege, banner 

• Religion: miracle, charity, saint, pardon

• Morality: virtue, vice, gentle, patience, courage, mercy, courtesy, pity

• Recreation: falcon, covert, scent, chase, quarry

• Art, fashion, etc.: apparel, costume, gown, art, beauty, colour, image, design, cushion, tapestry

• Cuisine: stew, grill, roast, . . . (compare these with AS-based terms like bake), bacon, mutton, pork, veal, venison (compare these with AS-based terms like boar, calf, cow, deer, ox, sheep, swine)

• Household Relationships: uncle, aunt, nephew, cousin (form from OE: father, mother, brother and from Scandinavian sister)

 The third period of French borrowings is from around 1400 onwards. The borrowings of the first two periods tend to be more elegant and sophisticated but yet not too far away from the core and several became quite nativised (dance, April, native, fine, line, punish, finish). These later borrowings were more, distant from the core, with attention being explicitly called to their sophisticated, well-bred, cultivated, even arty ‘French’ texture: notice the spellings and pronunciations of some of these items: ballet, tableau, statuesque, cliché, motif, format, trousseau, lingerie, soufflé, hors d’oeuvre, rouge, etiquette.