The History of English Podcast

In the first decade of the 1600s, English speakers were on the move as they established the first permanent English settlement in North America. They also began a steady a migration to northern Ireland after an event known to history as ‘the Flight of the Earls.’ As these English speakers relocated to regions outside of Britian, they took their regional accents and dialects with them. In this episode, we’ll examine how those settlement patterns shaped the way English is spoken around the world.

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 180

In the early 1600s, several landmark events shaped the history of England and determined how and where the English language would be spoken in the centuries that followed. The period from 1602-1605 saw the end of the Elizabethan era, the unification of the crowns of England and Scotland, the authorization of the King James Version of the Bible, the Gunpowder Plot, and the first English description of New England. The period also produced a literal ‘defining moment’ with the publication of the first English dictionary. In this episode, we explore those defining moments and examine how they shaped the future of English. We also explore several plays by William Shakespeare that are also dated to this period. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘Twelfth Night’ – William Shakespeare
‘Othello’ – William Shakespeare
‘A Table Alphabeticall’ – Robert Cawdrey

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 179

In the first couple of years of the 1600s, several new Shakespeare plays appeared. ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ and ‘As You Like It’ were recorded in the Stationer’s Register, and a third play called ‘The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark’ was likely performed on the stage for the first time. In this episode, we’ll look at those plays and examine how they influenced the English language. We also explore the creation of the East India Company in 1600 and the Essex Rebellion of 1601. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘Much Ado About Nothing’ – William Shakespeare
‘As You Like It’ – William Shakespeare
‘The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark’ – William Shakespeare

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 178

In this episode, we look at clothing and fashion in the Elizabethan era, and we examine the connection between clothing, custom and language. We also examine Shakespeare’s plays about the lives of Julius Caesar and Henry V of England. Along the way, we also explore how Elizabethan clothing conventions influenced the structure and presentation of those plays. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘Henry V’ – William Shakespeare
‘Julius Caesar’ – William Shakespeare

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 177

Theaters were an important part of cultural life in Elizabethan England, and they contributed many words to the English language. Those words joined thousands of other words that were pouring into English from around the world. In this episode, we look at how distant cultures were contributing to the growth of English and how Shakespeare’s acting company built a world-famous theater in the late 1500s. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘Henry IV, Parts One and Two’ – William Shakespeare
‘The Merry Wives of Windor” – William Shakespeare
‘“A Report of the Kindome of Congo’ – Abraham Hartwell, Translator
‘The Isle of Dogs’ – Ben Jonson and Thomas Nashe
‘Discours of voyages into ye Easte & West Indies’
‘A Worlde of Wordes’ – John Florio
‘Palladis Tamia, Wit’s Treasury’ – Francis Meres

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 176

Romeo and Juliet is one of William Shakespeare’s most popular plays and one of the most popular plays ever written. In this episode, we examine the language of the play to see how it reflects the English of Elizabethan England, and we identify evidence of emerging pronunciations that would become common over the following centuries.

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 175

English spelling largely reflects the state of the language in the late 1500s. In this episode, we look at one of the first English spelling books, and we explore several plays by William Shakespeare to examine the way he rhymed words. We also explore the way modern spellings reflect the pronunciation of words during the Elizabethan period. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘King John’ – William Shakespeare
‘Richard II” – William Shakespeare
‘The English School-Maister’ – Edward Coote
‘Haue With You to Saffron-Walden’ – Thomas Nashe
‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ – William Shakespeare

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 174

In this episode, we look at the development of English comedy in the early modern era. We examine some of William Shakespeare’s early comedies, and we also distinguish Shakespearean comedy from other types of comedic performances which had been popular for centuries. We also look to Italy to see how developments in literature and drama there had an influence on the theater of Elizabethan England. And, as always, we see how those developments shaped the English language. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘The Taming of the Shrew’ – William Shakespeare
‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’ – William Shakespeare
‘The Merchant of Venice’ – William Shakespeare

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 173

In this episode, we explore the concept of a successful succession. During the early 1590s, France was divided by a bitter conflict over the succession of Henry of Navarre to the French throne. Meanwhile, William Shakespeare wrote a couple of plays that appear to make reference to the events in France. He also composed other plays that dealt with the theme of succession. And his plays also indicate that the pronunciation of words like “succession” were changing during the 1500s as several consonants experienced sound changes during that period. Works discussed in this episode include:
‘The Comedy of Errors’ – William Shakespeare
‘Richard III’ – William Shakespeare
‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’ – William Shakespeare
‘Titus Andronicus’ – William Shakespeare

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 172

In this episode, we turn our attention to the wordcraft of William Shakespeare. Today, many people have mixed opinions about his plays and poems. They know that he is widely regarded as the greatest English writer of all time, but they struggle with his language. This time, we explore what makes Shakespeare’s use of the English language so unique and why it is so challenging for modern speakers. Ben Crystal joins the discussion to provide insight into the Elizabethan theater, Shakespeare’s Original Pronunciation, and the way modern audiences respond to that original form of speech.

TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 171