Abstract:
The English language functions as a lingua-franca in the world facilitating
communication among different nations. The purpose of this review paper is
to ascertain the origin of English language and how it developed all over the
world by a majority of nations. The study is based on the review of literature
available on the history of the language. From the literature it was found that
English language originated in Britain in the 5 th century when the Germanic
tribe named Angels who invaded from ‘Englaland’ using a language called
‘Englisc’ from which the words ‘England’ and ‘English’ derived. Old English,
Middle English, Early Modern English, and Late Modern English were the
periods that gave rise to the development of English language. English was a
flexible language to adapt many of the vocabulary of other languages and the
British Colonization was a major reason for the spread of the language across
the world. However, the evolution of English language is so complex that the
primitive English language that existed is almost non-existent today
