Language

Detail of an illustration from ‘A true relation of the unjust, cruel and barbarous proceedings against the English at Amboyna’, published 1655. © British Library Board/Bridgeman Images.

Making Massacre

A Dutch conspiracy trial in the Indonesian archipelago gave birth to a sadly enduring English word.

Gibberish-4.jpg

The Early Life of Gibberish

What does it mean to speak gobbledygook, mumbo-jumbo or jargon? Such words are more fraught than the playful games of the Jabberwocky suggest.

Place-Names.jpg

Here Be Monsters

In Anglo-Saxon England a hill could be a dragon’s lair and a ditch the home of gods.

bayeaux.jpg

We Speak French Here

French was the only language worth speaking in medieval Britain – and not just by the upper classes.

A stela with Oscan inscription from Pompeii, first century BC, reading: ‘Vibius Popidius, son of Vibius, chief magistrate, was in charge of this work and the same man approved it.’ (The Trustees of the British Museum)

The Language of the Roman Empire

What language did the Romans speak? Latin was used throughout the Roman Empire, but it shared space with a host of other languages and dialects...

The Oaths of Strasbourg from Nithard's history, late tenth century. © Bridgeman Images

Oaths of Strasbourg Sworn

The earliest surviving written evidence of a Romance language, the Oaths of Strasbourg were sworn on February 14th, 842.