What role did Latin play in the early development of English?

Question

Didn't the Romans bring Latin over to the Britons? I'm a bit confused because the Anglo-Saxons established their own dialect as well....

Answer 1

The Britons didn't use much Latin; they spoke a Celtic language similar to Scots and Irish. When the Anglo-Saxons invaded they brought their own Germanic tongue, which became Old English. A few Norse words came into the language with the Viking invaders of the 9th and 10th centuries. After the Norman Conquest, however, the upper classes spoke Old French and the lower classes spoke Old English, which helps explain the variety of synonyms in Modern English. By the time of Chaucer, Middle English had a lot of French words which came from Latin.

Answer 2

Our language is a hodge-podge combination of so many languages I can't even begin. We have a great root in Latin, but also Welsh, Norse, Saxon, French, Italian... even some Arabic. The Latin came from Roman conquests and the need for many in the local towns to share the dialect with those who controlled the area. Some attempts were even made by regional commanders to squelch languages other than Latin altogether (Welsh comes to mind in particular). Simply put, Rome ruled and united Britain, which in turn had a major role in founding the New World. Once united under a common language, there's no reason for the peoples to ignore it once the Romans are no more.

Answer 3

The Anglos, the Saxons, and other groups (including the Norse) all contributed to the English language - and when the Romans got to Britain, they added some Latin to the mix. English is a language that has grown and evolved over centuries and centuries and carries in it traces of all the other languages used in the islands at some time or another.

Answer 4

My Latin teacher told me that 3 out 5 English words are derived from Latin. The Romans spread Latin through out their empire, which spanned 3 continents at its height. The Roman empire did not entirely disappear after it collapsed, and its languague blended with the languague of its conquerers. It combined with the various ancient European dialects. Old English is a combination of several of these, Latin being one of the most prevalent.