History of the English Language, A (5th Edition)

The first edition of this book: "History of the English Language"(1935) New York: Appleton-Century Company, is quite aged and I have not read the current 5th edition - Thomas Cable must be the updater, whose name appears as the co-author.

The first edition is not very vigorous, writing is softer, and information sprinkled in it is arbitrary which makes it easier and fun to read(it doesn't place rigorous demands on your brain!). Yet, it's well worth reading, particularly if you are a student of English. One more thing, this is not a linguistics book. It lays out the ontogeny of the English language: organic growth and development of it (Studying English or any other language for the purpose of fluency in it is not studying linguistics. It's philology!

This book is the predecessor of books: "The Story of English", (1986)Robert McCrum, William Cran, and Robert MacNeil, New York: Viking,(this was made into a successful PBS series, actually the book might be the afterthought!); Professor David Crystal's "Stories of English"; H.L. Mencken's "American Language",(1946) New York.

If you are curious about English and its convoluted history it's a rewarding book to read.

I use this text for a class, but it can easily be read for leisure. It gives you a concise history of the English language, as noted by the title, and a possible future outlook. I'm only half-way through, but have come across some fascinating information already. A History of the English Language is a must read for all native English speakers and those who are learning English as an additional language.

I received this book before my class started and it was in terrific condition. Thank you!

For anyone interested in the English language, and anyone curious about it, I strongly recommend this major book. Of course, get the latest edition, mine is the fifth, that is the 2002 edition.

As to the book itself, it's a most complete study of English. It does a wonderful job of explaining the development in history of the language and it willl undoubtedly shed so much light on your understanding of English that it's really worth a peek. That book will make clear most of the strangeness of English; if you ever wondered about "irregular" verbs--as most non-native do--you will find the answer in this book. And there's more than just English alone, the book also deals with Indo-European and tells a lot about tons of other things that make the whole thing--the development of languages--much clearer to the reader.

That is the book most used by universities as far as the history of English is concerned. You don't need to be a specialised linguist to read it, by the way; even though, due to the extreme preciseness of the work, you may not remember most of the details put in there. I'm thinking mostly of historical details and such, but that shouldn't worry you, just know it's very well documented.

The book is divided into sections, most of which are chronologically placed, although not all; there's for instance a section about English in America.

That's about it for my review of this great book. The best thing you can do is check it for yourself, but I strongly recommend it. Even if you have no specific interest in linguistics and stuff, you'll still get a lot of enjoyement from reading this book, if only because you speak English. It's gonna be a hoot for you I assure. Go for it!

I bought "A History of the English Language" looking for a dependable history of the English language that could be read by a beginner in Linguistics. In this book I found exactly what I wanted.

"A History" presents English's long, complicated development in a fascinating and accessible way. Although the text is dense and somewhat slow, it is never boring. The writers are clearly very passionate about the subject, and although the book is fifty years old it is well-updated, including a new chapter on African-American English.

In fact, few books have taught me more than "A History." England's numerous migrations and occupations, by the Romans, the Normans, the Scandinavians, and the French, shaped the language, so I learned much about England's own history. I found the first chapter, about the Indo-European language and its influence, especially edifying. "A History" also briefs you on the European intellectual movements that influenced English. In explaining English's development, Baugh and Cable acquaint the reader with many linguistic terms and theories.

This readable, informative, comprehensive history of English is highly recommended.