The growth of the English language is the most captivating as well as overwhelming. But the question is why?
To begin with, English is the most flexible and dynamic language. It is continuously living and growing from day one of its formations. According to most humans, this leading medium of conversation and writing is not rigid in any way. And for that reason, it is not dead even after crossing so many centuries of human civilization.
Several instances show many admired languages gradually became dead. All of them lost their global expansion due to their rigidity. They cease to change. Or it is better to say they could not adjust or change themselves over time. Latin is a prominent example of this genre. It remained unchanged or static for almost two centuries.
On the other hand, English has emerged as the most accessible medium because of its ongoing living feature. Persistency in continual changing and developing is the dominant life force behind its global acceptance.
The increasing worldwide popularity of it, for sure, must rouse jealousy for other dialects. But the secret of leaving others behind and moving forward includes the occurrence of changes ceaselessly in vocabulary, grammatical forms, pronunciation, and of course, meaning. This feature indeed defines the fusion of the steady, balanced movement and regularity with development.
The most significant part of the English language is vocabulary. It is an ever-changing portion that keeps English lively and never allows it to become static. The best feature of the English vocabulary is that old words gradually die out or disappear, and meaningful new words enrich this family of words.
The history of English literature unveils that a big chunk of the old English vocabulary is no more visible today. In addition, the new sets of words have become significant members of it to meet the new circumstances and demands of society and human life. The English language owns a rare dynamism. It can assimilate and integrate different words, whether found in native sources or taken from foreign tongues. There is no denying that the rich “cosmopolitan vocabulary” is the strong point of this language. It ensures matchless international acceptability.
After vocabulary, changes in the word meaning play a remarkable role in the growth of the English language. Yes, to meet the requirement of the new situation and circumstances, meanings of existing words witness notable changes. During the Shakespearean era, the word ‘Nice’ denoted the meaning ‘foolish.’ But the present-day meaning is entirely different.
Also, before the advent of Christianity, the word ‘God’ defined a distinct sense. Yet, after the English peoples’ conversion to Christianity, the term surfaced with a new definition. The best part is that all these changes have never unlocked a sense of chaos but pinpointed a gradual evolution. The said development is constantly emerging to relate timely requirements and shaping of the living. It ensures the expansion of the language’s use and simultaneously pinpoints the sign of growth.
The third pillar that is continuously improving and polishing the English language is the meaningful changes of pronunciation. One good example is the known word “stone.” In old English, it was “stan.” Later, the pronunciation changed, and now it is “stone.” It is undoubtedly a remarkable feature characterized by the strength to alter the accent of a word to make it more shining. With the help of phonetical changes, it can easily simplify the pronunciation and make it more charming. History can disclose how, from the beginning, this part acted to make English day by day more and more beautiful, refined and elite yet the most preferable.
The fourth column that makes English logically relevant and distinct from others is its grammatical form. Persistent simplification in grammatical order shows how umpteen endings and different complex applications of the old English no longer exist. The current English embraces a simplified structural form with fewer endings and easy-to-use applications. In truth, a significant number of anomalies in the old English are not visible anymore. Over time, they got eliminated and made way for a correct grammatical order in the modern English language.
‘Inflexions’ were the most common anomalies that made the old English enough complicated. They usually made the distinction of numbers, persons, and moods unnecessarily complex. However, most of the ‘inflexions’ found no place in modern English. Over time, almost all of them disappeared.
The list of anomalies also includes ‘distinct vowels’ and ‘consonant change.’ Earlier in old English, a considerable number of the distinct vowels in verbs were visible. And writers used them in different forms for suggesting different activities. In addition, they also applied the consonant change in the shapes of so many verbs. However, these two problematic parts disappeared in the current form of the English language. Moreover, the said consonant change now indicates a single case only. For example, were -> are, and was -> is.
Also, the ‘form of adjectives’ is undoubtedly much more straightforward, even regular in the current form. In reality, abolishing or disappearance of all these oddities unfolds the process of simplification. And it makes the growth of the English language smooth and fascinating.
It is an unquestionable truth that English grammar has, so far, achieved immense clarity and simplicity. The best thing is this process of gaining, and the journey of reaching the victory point is continuing as if a never-ending activity. It is well organized, neat, and in order growing.
The upbringing from mere dialect to the official language of the universe didn’t happen all of a sudden. It occurred gradually, and various causes acted meaningfully behind this exercise. A steady but flexible development is constantly working as the leading force to ensure the language’s prosperity with increasing popularity. And this is the reason why the healthy growth of the English language is so enchanting and appealing.
