Language Revolution

Why is it, that I seem to be the only person excited by the fact that we are going through a language revolution?

Everyday I hear teacher's, parent's and politician's saying "Children can't even write properly these days?" Well I for one would like to turn things on their head and suggest that, maybe it is you Sir or Madam that can not write properly these days. That maybe just maybe, our beloved beautiful english language is changing, evolving and that our youth of today with their mobile phones, their twittering computers and facebook profiles have decided without even realising it to stand up and make the biggest change to the written word since ye olde english evolved into modern english during the 1700's.

Being the well read chap that I am I have many, many books in my personal library. However one of my favourites is The Oxford book of english verse. This book contains an awful lot of the most influential english poetry throughout time. I think it compliments my point here quite well.

The first poem in the book is by an anonymous poet but is one of the earliest surviving poems and dates to the 13th century...

Sumer is icumen in
Lhude sing, cuccu!
Groweth sed and bloweth med
And springth the wude nu.
Sing, cuccu!

Awe bleteth after lomb,
Lhouth after calce cu,
Bulluc sterteth, bucke verteth.
Murie sing, cucu!
Cuccu, cuccu,
Wel singes thu cuccu!
Ne swik thu naver nu!

Sing cuccu, nu! Sing, cuccu!
Sing, cuccu! Sing, cuccu, nu!

Now you may need to take my word for it, but the poem is about the coming of summer and the noises on the farmsted, the cows farting etc (Yes Verteth means farts in olde english)

To most people however this is utter gobbledygook however this was the way of the english written work until the mid 1500's when there seems to me a language revolution.

Take Sir Phillip Sidney's (1554 - 1586) from The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia.

My true love hath my heart, and I have his,
By just exchange, one for the other giv'ne.
I holde his deare, and myne he cannot misse:
There never was a better bargaine driv'ne


A considerable change in written word from the 1200's I'm sure you'll agree. It then as I have already said evolved again into pretty much the modern form of english we know and love today around 1700.

William Collins (1721 - 1759) Ode, written to the beginning of the year 1746. As case in point...

How sleep the Brave, who sink to Rest,
By all their Country's Wishes blest!
When spring, with dewy Fingers cold,
Returns to deck their hollow'd Mold,
She there shall dress a sweeter Sod,
Than Fancy's Feet have ever trod.

I am sure that at all these points on history, scholars and self proclaimed fat heads have been up in arms about the atrocities being dealt to the english language, and how anarchy and the great apocalypse is just a step away. However it wasn't and it isn't now.

So if I may offer some advice? The next time you are reading through your child's english homework and your Sk8er Boi has written dat he woz not going der 2moz and dat if u fink about it den Tommy sed so. Before you fly off the handle just think maybe they aren't doing it wrong. Maybe just maybe they are speaking Nu English very very well indeed.