拉丁語對古英語詞匯的影響

【Abstract】According to the 19th century histories of the English language， Latin influences upon early English vocabulary are considered to be classified into two periods， including continental borrowing and the Christianizing of Britain. From the points of views of Earl R. Anderson， a professor of Cleveland State University， words borrowed from Latin into Continental Germanic before the fifth century A.D. mostly belong to the semantic fields of commerce and military activity; words borrowed during the seventh century， when the Anglo－Saxons gradually adopted Christianity， mostly belong to the semantic fields of religion， literacy and education， etc. This article tries to analyze how Latin influences Old English vocabulary in various ways respectively.

【Key Words】Latin influenceOld English vocabularysemantic fields

【中圖分類號】H310.9【文獻標識碼】A【文章編號】1674－4810（2012）11－0033－02

ⅠIntroduction

The 19th century histories of the language identified two periods of Latin influence upon Old English， that is， Latin words transmitted through Celtic during the period of Anglo－Saxon migration to Britain， and words borrowed as the result of Christian influence. Our introduction of Latin influence on Old English nowadays is essentially the one given by Albert Baugh 60 years ago in his A History of the English Language. Baugh identifies four periods of Latin influence， each with its particular circumstances and typifying range of semantic fields:（1）a period of Continental borrowing before the mid－fifth century A.D.， when Germanic tribes were in contact with Romans along the imperial frontier， and the words borrowed from Latin had to do mainly with commerce and military activity; （2）the mid－fifth to sixth centuries， a time of Anglo－Saxon expansion into Britain， when a limited number of Latin words， mostly typonyms， passed into English by way of Celtic;（3）the seventh－century Christianizing of the Anglo－Saxons， when English adopted Latin words relating to the church， literacy and education; and （4）the mid－tenth and eleventh century Benedictine reform， when English adopted Latin words of a more bookish， learned， or technical character， among them the names of herbs， medical terms， exotic plants and animals， and theological terms. Here the author tires to state the Latin influences on Old English vocabulary from various perspectives as follows.

Ⅱ Cultural influence of the Celtic

After the conquest of the Celtic population of Britain by the Anglo－Saxons， though fewer survived， there were some evidences that showed the mixture of the two people should have resulted in a corresponding mixture of their languages. At that time， large numbers of the defeated fled to the west of the island. There many Celts were held as slaves by the conquerors and many of the Anglo－Saxons chose Celtic mates. In parts of the island， contact between the two peoples must have been constant and in some districts intimate for several generations. Therefore， the cultural influence of Celt is apparent， especially in place－names. For example， the kingdom of Kent owes its name to the Celtic word Canti or Cantion while the two ancient Northumbrian kingdom of Deria and Bernicia derive their designations from Celtic tribal names. Moreover， a number of important centers in the Roman period have names in which Celtic elements are embodied. Besides these purely Celtic elements a few Latin words such as castra， fontana， fossa， portus， etc. were used in naming places during the Roman occupation of the island and were passed on by the Celts to the English. It’s natural that Celtic place－names should be more common in the west than in the east and southeast， but the evidence of these names shows that the Celts impressed upon the Germanic consciousness at least to the extent of causing the newcomers to adopt many of the local names current in Celtic speech and to make them a permanent part of their vocabulary.

Ⅲ Dialects influence of Roman Germanic tribes

If the influence of Celtic on Old English was slight， there was no doubt about it because the relation of the Celt to the Anglo－Saxon was that of a conquered culture and because the Celt did not want to make any contributions to Anglo－Saxon civilization. Latin was not the language of a conquered people but the language of a highly regarded civilization， one from which the Anglo－Saxon wanted to learn. Contact with that civilization， at first commercial and military， later religious and intellectual， extended over many centuries and was constantly renewed. It began long before the Anglo－Saxons came to England and continued throughout the Old English period. For several centuries， while the Germanic tribes who later became the English were still occupying their continental homes， they had various relations with the Romans through which they acquired a considerable number of Latin words. Later when they came to England they saw the evidences of the long Roman rule in the island and learned from the Celts additional Latin words that they had acquired. Just as Albert Baugh puts it， the first Latin words to find their way into the English language owe their adoption to the early contact between the Romans and the Germanic tribes on the continent. Several hundred Latin words found in the various Germanic dialects at an early date， some in one dialect only and others in several， testify to the extensive intercourse between the two peoples. Such intercourse between the two peoples was certain to carry words from one language to the other.

Ⅳ Influence of Germanic civilization

After the conquest of Gaul by Caesar， Roman merchants quickly entered all parts of the Germanic territory so that the inhabitants of these more remote sections were by no means cut off from Roman influence. Furthermore， intercommunication between the different Germanic tribes was frequent and made it possible for the transference of Latin words from one tribe to another. The adopted words naturally indicate the new conceptions that the Germanic peoples acquired from this contact with a higher civilization. Firstly， the chief occupation of the Germanic tribes in the empire was war， and this experience is reflected in words like camp（battle）， segn（banner）， weall （wall）， etc. Secondly， there are still numerous words connected with trade. They traded amber， furs， slaves， and probably certain raw materials for the products of Roman handicrafts， articles of utility， luxury and adornment. The words mangian（to trade）with its derivatives mangere（monger）， mangung（trade， commerce）are fundamental， while pund（pound）， mydd （bushel）and mynet（coin）are terms likely to be employed. Thirdly， the speakers of the Germanic dialects adopted Roman words for certain foods， such as spelt（wheat）， pipor（pepper）， senep（mustard）， etc.

Ⅴ Influence of Celtic transmission

According to Albert Baugh， Latin influences on Old English sprang from the period of Roman occupation. During the Roman rule in Britain， the country was so much so that Romanized and the employment of Latin by certain elements in the population were inevitable. One would expect a considerable number of Latin words from this period to have remained in use and to appear in the English language today. But this is not true. Few evidences except some place－names can prove their presence in English to the Roman occupation of Britain. It is probable that the use of Latin as a spoken language did not long survive the end of Roman rule in the island and that such vestiges as remained for a time were lost in the disorders that accompanied the Germanic invasions. Thus， there was no opportunity for direct contact between Latin and Old English in England. Those Latin words which could have found their way into English would have had to come in through Celtic transmission. In fact， the Celts had adopted a considerable number of Latin words but the relations between the Celts and the English were such as we have already seen that these words were not passed on. Among the few Latin words that the Anglo－Saxons seem likely to have acquired on settling in England， ceaster is one of them， though it is absent from the Celtic language. This word， which stands for the Latin castra（camp）， is a common designation in Old English for a town or enclosed community. It adds a familiar element in English place－names such as Chester， Colchester， Manchester， Dorchester， and many others. Some of these refer to sites of Roman camps， but it must not be thought that a Roman settlement underlies all the towns whose names contain this common element. In a word， there seems to be a slightest influence of few Latin words， but Old English owed much to contact with Roman civilization.

Ⅵ Influence of religion

Just as Baugh puts it， the greatest influence of Latin on Old English was occasioned by the conversion of Britain to Roman Christianity beginning in 597. The religion was not new in the island because Irish monks had been preaching the gospel in the north since the founding of the monastery of Iona by Columbia in 563. However， the year of 597 marks the beginning of a systematic attempt on the part of Rome to convert the inhabitants and make England a Christian country. At that time， many churches were built and monks were trained for the religious needs. It is not an easy task for Augustine and his monks to change the philosophy of a nation. Christianity preached meekness， humility and patience under suffering， for example， if a man struck you on one cheek you should turn the other. Clearly it was no small task that Augustine and his forty monks faced in trying to alter the age－old mental habits of people in the island. Fortunately， upon their arrival in England one circumstance was in their favor. There was a small number of Christians in the kingdom of Kent， in which they landed. After years’ effort， by the time Augustine died seven years later， the kingdom of Kent had become wholly Christian.

From the introduction of Christianity in 597 to the close of the Old English period is a stretch of more than 500 years. During this time Latin words must have been making their way gradually into the English language. It is likely that the first wave of religious feeling， the intense activity in church building and the establishing of monasteries during this century were responsible for the rapid importation of Latin words into the vocabulary. A few words relating to Christianity such as church and bishop were borrowed earlier. The Anglo－Saxons had plundered churches and come in contact with bishops before they came to England. But the vast majority of words in Old English having to do with the churches and its services， its physical fabric and its ministers， when not of native origin were borrowed at this time. Because most of these words have survived in only slightly altered form in Modern English， the examples may be given in their modern form， such as abbot， alms， altar， angel， art， candle， mass， etc.

Ⅶ Conclusion

Just as mentioned above， Latin influences upon Old English are reflected in various ways and can be classified into two or more periods. In the perceptive of semantic fields， a different period laid a strong emphasis on the borrowed words. At the early stage， words borrowed from Latin mostly belong to the semantic fields of commerce and military activity; words borrowed during the seventh century， when the Anglo－Saxons gradually adopted Christianity， mostly belong to the semantic fields of religion， literacy and education， etc. In a word， the borrowings from Latin in the early days from the periods of continental borrowing， Celtic transmission to the Christianizing of Britain show how quickly the language reflected the broadened horizon that the English people owed to the church.

Reference

［1］George P. Marsh， The Origin and History of the English Language［Lowell Institute Lectures， 1860－1861］.New York， 1863

［2］Albert C. Baugh. A History of the English Language. New York， 1935: 89～119

［3］Earl R. Anderson. Interpretatio Romana: an Influence on Old English Vocabulary［J］. Foreign Language Teaching， 1997（4）: 11～19

〔責任編輯：李錦雯〕