Open World p 11 . The Adventure of English - Birth of a Language. Extra Listening

THE ADVENTURE OF ENGLISH

BIRTH OF A LANGUAGE
Starts at minute 3, second 30.

True or false

1. In Friesland, a province in the north of the Netherlands, we can still hear a language that sounds close to the ancestor of English.

2. Words like freeze and mist sound familiar to the English ear.

3. We can recognise these words even though Frisian and English aren't languages of the same family.

4. The West-Germanic tribes who invented these words were belligerent and intrepid.

5. The English coast is 450 miles away from the island of Terschelling

6. These tribes made sail to look for a better life in the sixth century.

7. The Anglo-Saxons were the first people who invaded Britain.

8. The Romans abandoned these islands because they had bigger fish to fry.

9. In AD 491 Germanic invaders laid siege at Pevensey Castle and slaughtered the Celts who had taken refuge there. Not one of them was left alive.

10. The word “Wealas” meant foreigner and slave.

11. These Germanic tribes occupied the whole island of Great Britain in the sixth century.

12. The ending -ing means "castle"

13. The ending -ton means "inhabitants of"

14. The ending -ham means "camp"






KEY

1. T



2. T.



3. F. Both modern Frisian and modern English can be traced back to the same family



4. T warlike (aggressive and wanting to fight), adventurous people

belligerent: aggressive. Very unfriendly and wanting to argue or fight

intrepid: fearless. brave



5. F. 250 miles



6. F. In the fifth century



7. F. The Romans



8. F. The empire crumbled (collapsed. Fell into small fragments or particles; disintegrated)

have bigger/other fish to fry: to have more important or more interesting things to do

9. T
Lay siege to sth: to begin a siege of a town, building, etc.
Siege: operation in which an army tries to capture a town by surrounding it and stopping the supply of food, etc. to the people inside (cercar)



10. T



11. F. Half of mainland Britain



12. F. –ing: the people of (e.g. Reading)

-chester from Latin Castrum (military camp)

13.F.   –ton: enclosure or village (e.g. Warrington); 

 

 

14.F.  -ham: farm
It is commonly believed that the name 'Birmingham' comes from "Beorma inga ham", meaning farm of the sons (or descendants) of Beorma