#  John Trevisa 

 



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##### In 1385 John Trevisa translated from Latin into English Ranulph Higden's *Polychronicon*, including and expanding Higden's comments on the state of the English Language:

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As hit is yknowe how many maner people beth in this ylond,   
 ther beth also of so many people longages and tonges.   
 Notheles Walschmen and Scottes, that beth noght y-melled  
 with other nacions, holdeth wel nigh here furste  
 longage and speche, bot yif Scottes, that were som time  
 confederat and wonede with the Pictes, drawe somwhat  
 after here speche. Bote the Fleminges that woneth in  
 the west side of Wales, habbeth yleft here strange   
 speche and speketh Saxonlych ynow. Also Englischmen,  
 theigh hy hadde fram the beginning three maner speche,  
 Southeron, Northeron, and Middel speche in the middel   
 of the lond, as hy come of three maner people of Germania,  
 notheles by commixstion and melling, furst with  
 Danes and afterward with Normans, in many the contray  
 longage is apeired, and som useth strange wlaffyng,  
 chytering, harryng, and garryng grisbittyng.  
 .  
 This apeiring of the burth-tonge is because of twey  
 thinges. One is for children in scole, ayenes the usage and   
 manere of al other nacions, beth compelled for to leve here   
 owne longage and for to construe here lessons and ther thinges   
 a Freynsch, and habbeth siththe the Normans come furst  
 into Engelond. Also gentil men chlidren beth ytaught for to   
 speke Freynsch from time that a beth yrokked in here cradel  
 and conneth speke and play with a child his brouch; and   
 oplondysch men wol likne hamsilf to gentil men, and fondeth  
 with gret bisynes for to speke Freynsch, for to be more   
 ytold of.   
   
 This maner was moche y-used tofore the furste moreyn,  
 and is siththe somdel y-chaunged. For John Cornwal, a   
 maister of gramere, changede the lore in gramer-scole  
 and construccion of Freynsch into Englysch; and Richard  
 Pencrych lurned that maner of teching of him, and other  
 men of Pencrych, so that now, the year of oure Lord a   
 thousand three hondred foure score and five, of the   
 secund Kyng Richard after the Conquest nine, in the   
 gramer-scoles of Engelong children leveth Frensch   
 and construeth and lurneth an Englisch, and habbeth  
 therby avauntage in on side and desavauntage in  
 another. Here avauntage is that a lurneth here gramere  
 in lasse time than children wer y-wonded to do.  
 Disavauntage is that now childern of gramer-scole conneth  
 no more Frensch than can here left heele, and that   
 is harm for ham and a scholle passe the se and travaile  
 in strange londes, and in many caas also. Also gentil men   
 habbeth nowe moche y-left for to teche here childern Frensch.   
   
 . . .   
   
 Al the longage of the North-humbres, and specialich at York,   
 is so scharp, slytting, and frotyng and unschape  
 that we Southeron men may that longage unnethe understand.  
 Y trowe that that is bicause that a beth nigh to strange   
 men and aliens, that speketh straungelich, and also because   
 that the kinges of Engelond woneth alwey fer from that   
 contray.

  
   
 mixed   
 first   
 except that   
 wonede = dwelled   
 here = their   
   
 ynow = enough   
 though they   
   
 hy = they   
 mixture and mingling   
 many cases the country   
 impaired. . . stammering   
 chattering, snarling,   
 and grating gnashing of teeth   
 impairment. . . two   
   
   
   
 a = in   
   
 a = they   
   
 provincial. . . try   
   
   
   
 plague   
   
 teaching   
 construing   
 learned   
   
   
   
   
 construe. . . on = in   
 on = one   
 here = their. . . a = they   
 accustomed   
 children. . . know   
   
 ham = them. . . and a = if they   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 piercing, and rasping, and unshapely   
 hardly