II MA- HEL- THE INFLUENCE OF LATIN ON ENGLISH LANGUAGE- FINAL (if you don't want to study the highlighted, you can omit it)

            The phenomenon of borrowing words and word formation is the way of enriching one language. English is a Germanic language, having a grammar and core vocabulary inherited from Proto-Germanic. However, a significant portion of the English word-hoard comes from Romance and Latinate sources. The Latin (Classical) influence on the English Language is the earliest and perhaps the greatest of all the influences.

The First Phase or Continental Phase:

            The first Latin influence on Old English was due to England’s contact with the Roman Civilization. Romans were good traders and the Latin words borrowed in this phase belong to trade, agriculture, war and domestic life.

Subject	Latin Loan
Trade and Commerce	Wine (from Lat. ‘Vinum’) Mint (a place where something is manufactured) (from Lat. ‘mynet’) Mile (from Lat. ‘mile’) Camp, money, monger (dealer/trader), pound, finance, inch
Domestic	Kettle, Kitchen, cup, dish, cook etc.
Food	Pepper, cheese, butter, plum, milk etc.

The Second Phase of Latin Influence:

            The Romans held Britain under their control from 54 BC to 410 AD. The Second Phase of Latin Influence on Old English reached England during this period. The Roman rulers succeeded in teaching to the wealthier classes of Southern England. They built splendid roads, formed camps at important places, formulated laws and administered England. They left behind mainly prefixes and suffixes of the names of places. The six main contributions are

            1) castra (a camp) - Lancaster, Doncaster, Gloucester, Manchester, Winchester, Worcester

            2) strata (a paved road) - Stratford, Stradbroke, Stratford-upon-Avon

            3) Colonia (a settlement) - Colne, Lincoln

            4) fossa (a trench)  - Fossway, Fosbridge, Fosbrooke

            5) Portus (a harbour) - Portsmouth, Devonport

            6) vallum (a rampart) – wall, bailey, bailiff

The Third Phase of Latin Influence:

            The Third Phase of Latin Influence on Old English began with the introduction of Christianity around 596 A.D. It sets in another new chapter of Latin borrowing to define the new conceptions, new religion, new ideas and new faith.

            Old English

Biscop (Bishop, an overseer)

Postol (apostle, a person sent out)

Clerc (clerk, an ordained member of the church)

Preost (priest, an elder)

Munuc (monk, a solitary person)

Calc (cup)

Missa (mass, to send)

Subject	Latin Loan
Church	Angel, altar, anthem, apostle, alms, Bishop, candle, disciple, font, hymn, martyr, minister, monk, nun, Pope, psalm, shrine, etc.
Domestic Life	Fan, pea, pine, poppy, pillow, pin, radish, silk, etc.
Plant	Aloes, beet, pea, pine, poppy, plum etc.
Education	School, master, grammar, verse etc.
Animal	Doe, lobster, phoenix, turtle etc.
Verb	Offer, spend, stop etc.

            New terms were also created using native prefixes and suffixes. The reason behind exploiting the native word-stock was that few people knew Latin and words of native origin were easily acceptable.

Old English	New term
Eastron [named after Astro, the spring goddess/ pagan festival celebrated to  herald the onset of the spring season]	Easter (Resurrection Sunday)
Sun (sacred to the nature-worshipping pagans)	Sunday (the holy day)
Godspell	Gospel
þrīnes	trinity
Other examples: God, tithe, sin, etc.

Middle English Period:

In the Middle English period, Latin comes via French and through translation works. However, several legal, scientific and religious terms were directly taken from Latin. The translation of the Bible gives the English people words like- ‘generation’, ‘persecution’ and ‘transformation’. 

Subject	Latin Loan
Law	Client, conviction, conspiracy, custody, legal, legitimate, prosecute, testimony etc.
Theology	Diocese, incarnate, limbo, mediator, requiem, scripture etc.
Literature	Allegory, genius, intellect, prosody etc.
Science	Dissolve, immune, medicine, mechanical, rational, recipe, solar, zenith etc.

Modern English Period:

The Great Revival of Learning, Renaissance of the 15^th century influenced the English Language immensely. The Latin words borrowed during this period are often basic nouns, adjectives and verbs.

Noun	Allusion, atmosphere, area, bonus, folio, picture, pendulum, focus, axis, circus, complex, nucleus, radius, status, virus, specimen, etc.
Adjective	Appropriate, domestic, medieval, filial, perfect etc.
Verb	Assassinate, benefit, affidavit, harass, exit, emancipate etc.

  The flow of Latin borrowings has been going on incessantly even in the present day scenario. Words like 'neutron', 'mutant', 'penicillin', 'formula', 'column', have become the integral parts of English vocabulary. Undoubtedly, Latin loan words leave a huge mark to the English vocabulary.

Some native nouns have Latin adjectives:

Native Noun	Latin Adjective
Father	Paternal
Mother	Maternal
King	Royal
Mouth	Oral
Heaven	Celestial
Mind	Mental