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Is American English influenced by German?
Native speakers of German made up almost half of all immigrants to the United States between 1821 and 1893. These later, more subtle influences have helped shape modern American English. Some German words were translated into English and retained the same usages, even if they did not apply in English.
Which language is the most Germanic?
English
The most widely spoken Germanic language, English, is also the world’s most widely spoken language with an estimated 2 billion speakers. All Germanic languages are derived from Proto-Germanic, spoken in Iron Age Scandinavia….Statistics.
| Language | Native speakers |
|---|---|
| English | 360–400 |
| German | 100 |
| Dutch | 24 |
| Swedish | 11.1 |
Is American English Germanic?
British and American culture. English has its roots in the Germanic languages, from which German and Dutch also developed, as well as having many influences from romance languages such as French. Words like be, water and strong, for example, are derived from Old English terms.
Is English a romance or a Germanic?
So, when it comes down to it, English is a Germanic language, however it has been heavily influenced by the Romance languages over the years. Some even adhere to the Middle English Creole Hypothesis wherein English underwent a simplification between Old English and Middle English.
Why does American English sound so different from British English?
5 big reasons why US and UK English sound so different 1. American English is actually older 2. British English is more like French 3. American spelling was invented as a form of protest 4. American English likes to drop words completely 5. The two types of English have borrowed words from different languages Share this article
Is there such a thing as a classic British accent?
So what’s popularly believed to be the classic British English accent isn’t actually so classic. In fact, British accents have undergone more change in the last few centuries than American accents have – partly because London, and its orbit of influence, was historically at the forefront of linguistic change in English.
What is the difference between US and UK accents?
It’s difficult to make clear distinctions between US and UK accents when there is such a wide variety of accents within both the US and UK. A Texan and a New Yorker are both Americans, but have very different accents. The same goes for British accents in London, Manchester and Glasgow. However, some very general distinctions can be made.
Where does British English come from in the United States?
But linguist David Shores has noted that these claims are exaggerated, and that the island’s isolation, rather than any freezing of Elizabethan speech patterns, is responsible for its linguistic quirks. Another US area that’s been linked to 17th-Century British English is Appalachia, especially the mountainous regions of North Carolina.