Download or read book The History of the English Language written by Brigit Viney and published by Oxford University. This book was released on 2003 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Today, English is spoken or used by nearly a quarter of all the people in the world. But who were the first speakers of the language and how has the language changed? How did English travel across the globe and how will it change in the future?Here is a story of invasion and conquest, of exploration and adventure, of poetry and literature, of business and technology. Find out how people like St Augustine, William of Normandy, William Shakespeare, Noah Webster, and many others have influenced and shaped the English language.