The language of origin for a particular word affects the ways in which we use that word. The English language is rooted in Old English, but there are many loan words from languages spoken by those with close history with the English, like French or Latin, and even loan words from languages spoken by those encountered through trade or travel. The language of origin affects our word choice because the past informs the present. The context in which we write, the audience we have in mind, and especially the aura or atmosphere we are trying to convey all contribute to the rhetorical situation. The language of origin for particular words can provide additional context, communicate who we imagine is our audience, and boost the intended atmosphere.
Fahnestock argues that the English language is special because of “the size of its lexicon” (23). This size is created in large part by the extensive borrowing from other languages, offering “groups of synonyms occupying different registers” (Horobin 35). This range of synonyms and near synonyms allows the writer to communicate precise and complex thoughts (Fahnestock 24). Fahnestock writes that “every language offers its users certain 'affordances'” (39). The affordances of English are these synonyms.
Fahnestock argues that studying English language and rhetoric must be grounded in an awareness of the “historical layers” (24). This is supported by Smith's position that people are always aware of “the faint outlines of the government under which he lived, and the origin of the language which he spoke” (4).
English is primarily a Germanic language, and the earliest recorded form now known as Old English was used by the Anglo-Saxons and other Germanic tribes (Horobin 15, 17). Old English does include some borrowing from Old Norse, but Old Norse was primarily spoken, not written. Because of this, Old Norse supplied everyday or common words typically used in speech, as well as grammatical items like pronouns or prepositions (24). Old English constitutes the bulk of an English speaker's first vocabulary, and these words seem simple or straight-forward to native English speakers. These terms often have to do with home or family (Fahnestock 32).
While there is some relation between English and Latin, these old written records contain very few loan words from Latin (Horobin 17). Fahnestock notes, that “modern English owes the majority of its vocabulary … to borrowings directly from Latin, or from other Latin-derived vernaculars” (28).
Latin is prominent in Christianity and science (Horobin 23, Fahnestock 27). Latin words are used for a variety of religious terms (Fahnestock 25). Horobin notes that many of the loan words are specialized or technical terms, which only contribute to the perception of Latin as the language of learning and scholarship (23). The most influential historical moment for Latin's impact upon the English language is the Early Modern period, since these borrowings result from “the rediscovery of classical learning” (30).
While the focus is often on Latin, Greek has its own influences. Lots of Christian terms have Greek roots (Fahnestock 25). Ph is used instead of f for the spelling of many disciplines because of the Greek alphabet (Horobin 31). Medical knowledge accumulated in Greek and then Latin texts, so these specialized terms remained in the field (Fahnestock 35).
Certain explaining terms come from something other than the core vocabulary (Fahnestock 38). Borrowed words from Latin and Greek are scholarly and have rational distance (35). A formal style uses a lot of these words, or at least a lot of these words as the most important words in a passage (36). The more formal the tone, the more borrowed words from Latin or Greek (29).
Horobin notes that when the Norman Conquest brought French to lands inhabited by those who spoke English, many loan words were added (28). Fahnestock recognizes that these loan words were not neutral; rather, Fahnestock writes, “a French-speaking minority ruled the English-speaking majority, creating a social stratification reinforced by language difference” (25). Because of this social position, most French loan words recorded during this time are about the Anglo-Norman government and justice (Horobin 28). Many terms for legal proceedings, civil administration, military domination, civil and military architecture, and the artillery were derived from Old French (Fahnestock 25, Smith 11). Longmore notes that even when Francien became the language of the kingdom of France, it did not immediately become the language of the country, or of the people. It was only after massive involvement with politics, military service, and government bureaucracies that French became the language of the French population (284).
In later centuries, French held “a prestigious place in English society,” resulting in many loan words about high society and culture (Horobin 29). The English language has borrowed from Old French terms for fine clothing and food, the arts, luxury items (Horobin 29, Fahnestock 26-27). These borrowings communicate elevation and elegance (Fahnestock 27, 33). They often “carry notions of royalty” (34). In many cases, Horobin argues, “the French word was responsible for ousting the English word entirely” (29). When a person selects a word borrowed from French instead of a word original to English, this choice conveys an elevation above the standard.
There are examples of loan words from other languages as well, but these loans resulted from trade instead of social significance in England. The Spanish, Italian, and Dutch were important maritime trade powers, so the English borrowed terms for their foods, architecture, and the knowledge they gained from trade based in colonizing (Horobin 32). Some words were introduced into English after colonizing the Americas, from Native Americans, Spanish colonizers, or slaves taken from Africa (Fahnestock 30). These examples stayed specific to particular cultural artifacts, so using these terms can communicate specificity or authenticity.
“Language reformers” sometimes try to weed out the borrowed words for a more “true” English. One critic wrote a treatise on witcraft instead of logic to this end (Fahnestock 29). In Canada, formal attempts have been made to bring English back to its Anglo-Saxon roots – or writing in “Plain English” - for the ease of people whose first language is not English. These guidelines often focus on “the reduction of the number of Latin-based words in favor of Anglo-Saxon equivalents” (Thrush 290).
Consider Fahnestock's introductory example of the “unwriting” of a portion of Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural speech. At critical words of this “unwritten” speech, options are given in italics for words with different languages of origin: Old English, French, and Latin (Fahnestock 23). Cmiel notes that Lincoln overwhelmingly chose words with Old English origins, and almost completely avoided Latin or Greek (Democratic Eloquence 117). English, he argues, has a “terse, sinewy power” and that images of this power are “are all based on the Anglo-Saxon roots of the tongue” (Broad Fluid 929). Lowell remarks on Lincoln's “truly masculine English” in other speeches as representing personal and national strength (308).
“The notion of a word,” Fahnestock explains, “stands for a form/meaning pairing” (31). With so many languages contributing to English, several words can share just one meaning, creating the groups of synonyms discussed by Horobin (35). Synonyms, Fahnestock concludes, are the “fuel of rhetorical power in English” (31). French words communicate superiority, Latin and Greek words demonstrate expertise, and Old English words express honesty and comfort. Some linguists and philosophers “argued that language, properly understood, might … help us feel at home” (Broad Fluid 914).
Cmiel, Kenneth. “A Broad Fluid Language of Democracy: Discovering the American Idiom.” The Journal of American History, Discovering America: A Special Issue, vol. 79, no. 3, Oxford University Press, Dec. 1992, pp. 913-936. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2080793.
Cmiel, Kenneth. Democratic Eloquence: The Fight over Popular Speech in Nineteenth-Century America. W. Marrow, 1990.
Fahnestock, Jeanne. Rhetorical Style: The Uses of Language in Persuasion. Oxford University Press, 2011.
Horobin, Simon. “How English Became English : A Short History of a Global Language.” Oxford University Press, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central, ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uark-ebooks/detail.
Longmore, Paul K. “They … Speak Better English than the English Do: Colonialism and the Origins of National Linguistic Standardization in America.” Early American Literature, vol. 40, no. 2, University of North Carolina Press, 2005, pp. 279-314. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/25057400.
Lowell, James Russell. “The Claims of the English Language.” Poetical Works, III, Southern Presbyterian Review, Jan. 1853.
Smith, Adam. “The Philology of Miscellany; Consisting of Select Essays from the Memoirs of the Academy of Belles Lettres at Paris, and Other Foreign Academes.” Vol. 1, Printed for the editor; and sold by T. Beckett and P.A. Dehondt, in the Strand, 1761. Eighteenth Century Collections Online, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CW0110962091/ECCO?u=faye28748&sid=ECCO&xid=0d656d00.
Thrush, Emily A. “Plain English? A Study of Plain English Vocabulary and International Audiences.” Technical Communication, vol. 48, no. 3, Society for Technical Communication, Aug. 2001, pp. 289-296. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspxdirect=true&AuthType=ip,sso&db=cms&AN=4945989&site=ehost-live&scope=site.