THE PHILOLOGICAL APPROACH

THE PHILOLOGICAL APPROACH

Osborn, Katarina

DO ORIGINS MATTER? Can awareness of these serve in the English-learning process? Modern English has evolved through the last 1500 years as a hybrid language (Crystal, D. 2004). The Angles the Saxons and the Danes all made important contributions as well as the Normans. Due to this amalgam of linguistic ingredients, the English language taught round the world presents considerable learning obstacles that are directly related to these original components. This paper will highlight some of these obstacles with a view to demonstrating how effective knowledge of these origins can be for the learner in many areas of English acquisition. The first step is to outline some areas of difficulty in English that are directly linked to the parts that make up this hybrid language that has become a world lingua-franca. These are elements such as, the huge vocabulary bank, spelling problems, pronunciation difficulties, grammar and structural challenges. It is the mammoth task of getting to grips with this amalgam that could be rendered somewhat easier by insights into origins (Crystal, D. 2011). Often students ask questions about the seemingly illogical, idiosyncratic grammar, spelling or pronunciation rules involved in English. Perhaps teachers should be prepared to give some reasonable explanations.

Conference or Workshop Item
PeerReviewed

2014

3465