The History of The English Language Research Paper Assignment
Linguistics 11/ English 11
The final exam paper is due on turnitin.com on Monday, May 4th 2015 no later than
10am. Topic Decisions will be due byMonday, April 13th on www.turnitin.com.
The research paper should be based on one of the following topics. Please select a
topic and let me know in advance what your topic is. he format of the paper is MLA and
the length should be 3-5 complete (full) pages plus, not including, your works cited
page. You are required to use no less than 5 sources and the sources must come from
a combination of the following; at least 2 academic databases on our library’s web page
and/or journals, (books are ok too). Note that Wikipedia is not dependable and could
result in inaccurate information. Internet sources must be legitimate, trustworthy sources
and will be checked. If you are not sure if your source is trustworthy, you must ask the
reference librarian in our library either in person or online; not the instructor of the
course. You must have both in-text citations and the final works cited page. The paper
should be double-spaced, each paragraph should be indented, a 12-point font only in
Times New Roman, Arial, or Cambria; no other font. Margins will be set at 1 ½ left, and
1’ right, top, and bottom. You must also have a title. The paper will be submitted online
and no excuses for late papers will accepted. Please make sure you are familiar with
turnitin.com before the last minute to avoid receiving an F for a late paper. If you are not
sure how to write an MLA research paper because you have not taken English 1A, you
may use one of our tutoring services available here at PCC. We’ll talk about this in class
and you should see me before you begin.
NOTE*** - all topics must be related to the influence of your topic on the
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
TOPICS
The Celts
The Romans in England
The Anglos and the Saxons ( 1 topic together)
The Viking invasion and its affect on English
The Anglo- Saxon Chronicles and/or the Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation
King Alfred the Great and Queen Eleanor and her influence on English
Old English system of grammar
Middle English system of grammar ( can include the GVS)
Early Modern English system
Chancery and its duties. How it came to be and what it did?
The Venerable Bede ( the monk)
William Tyndale
The Great Vowel Shift
John Wycliffe
Thomas Caxton and his printing press
Henry the VII and his influence on English
William Shakespeare’s influence on the English Language
Australian English vs. British English
Indian English
(AAE) African American English
Gullah
The Ink Horn Controversy and all its associates
Dr. Samuel Johnson and his dictionary
William the Conqueror ( relate to English)
West Indies English
These topics come from the course and are directly related to what we have studied.
Some topics will be coming up in the next few lectures, but if they pique your interest,
you may claim it.