The development of the vocalic system of the english language: from Proto-Germanic to present-day English

Abstract

This dissertation focuses in the evolution of the vocalic system of English: the aim of this work is to analyze and explain why and how vowels have developed from Old English to Present-Day English. To begin with, the changes in the Indo-European and Proto-Germanic languages are concisely described, and later the changes in Old, Middle, and Modern English are more deeply analyzed until reaching the Present-Day English vowel system. Through this process and comparing studies by different expert authors in the area of linguistics, an attempt will be made to illustrate as clearly as possible what the evolution of the vowels has been and how they have become what they are today. Another main goal of this work is to analyze the changes taking into account the articulatory properties of vowels; that is, to have a general idea of the physiology of the mouth and the movement of its articulators to realize how vowels are formed by humans, which include raising or lowering and advancing or retracting the body of the tongue, rounding or not rounding the lips, and producing the movements with tense or lax gestures. Besides, different kinds of sound change are also provided to clarify how the linguistic environment affects the vowels, that is, their previous and next sounds. To reinforce and clarify the justifications of all the vowel changes, different tables and diagrams are provided classifying and showing the discussed alterations. In addition, different examples are also provided to comprehend the changes more efficiently and to compare them with words from actual English. After investigating the different phases of the English vocalic system, conclusions are drawn about the great importance of studying the vocalic system of the English language, the reasons why it has changed – which are diverse (its own internal dynamic structure and the people who speak it) –, contact with other languages, and also, the significance of researching this language to learn and interpret its history and literature. As a result, it is concluded the exceptional complication of the English vocalic system considering the formidability of interpreting its phonological development.