Have you read Shakespeare’s plays or poems in its original language? It is highly likely that we understand hardly half of what is written. Some words and sentences do not have any resemblance to the modern English we are familiar with today. We may even wonder if Shakespeare wrote in the English language or some other tongue!
It is indeed true that Shakespeare wrote in the English language. However, as all languages undergo evolution as time passes, the English language too has gone through considerable changes to become what it is today.
The origins of English can be traced back to the beginning of the second millennium. To understand the evolution of English easily, the periods have been divided as Old English, Middle English and Modern English. Old English was spoken and written in Britain from the 5th century to the middle of the 11th century and is really closer to the Germanic mother tongue of the Anglo-Saxons.
With the arrival of the French-speaking Normans in 1066, Old English underwent dramatic changes and by 1350, it had evolved into Middle English.
By about 1450, Middle English was replaced with Early Modern English, the language of Shakespeare, which is almost identical to contemporary English. Shakespeare’s works were written in Early Modern English.
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