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Chapter 14: The Great Vowel Shift

  • Manfred Krug
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Volume 4 Early Modern English
This chapter is in the book Volume 4 Early Modern English

Abstract

The long-vowel inventories of all modern English accents and dialects differ substantially from the pronunciations that existed around 1400. Most of the relevant changes have been described as being interlinked and part of the socalled “Great Vowel Shift” (GVS), but consensus in the pertinent scholarship is limited. This chapter pursues a discussion of the history of GVS theories, the major issues and arguments. It is seen that some long-standing tenets and theories have a weak foundation and that the GVS is well known only in the sense that it is widely known. Despite a vast literature, many aspects of the changes are still poorly understood and, probably because of the vast literature, most aspects are controversial. Some of the controversies, however, turn out to be definitional rather than factual in nature. In this context, this chapter provides the likely paths of development from Middle to Modern English(es).

Abstract

The long-vowel inventories of all modern English accents and dialects differ substantially from the pronunciations that existed around 1400. Most of the relevant changes have been described as being interlinked and part of the socalled “Great Vowel Shift” (GVS), but consensus in the pertinent scholarship is limited. This chapter pursues a discussion of the history of GVS theories, the major issues and arguments. It is seen that some long-standing tenets and theories have a weak foundation and that the GVS is well known only in the sense that it is widely known. Despite a vast literature, many aspects of the changes are still poorly understood and, probably because of the vast literature, most aspects are controversial. Some of the controversies, however, turn out to be definitional rather than factual in nature. In this context, this chapter provides the likely paths of development from Middle to Modern English(es).

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Table of Contents V
  3. Abbreviations VII
  4. Chapter 1: Introduction 1
  5. Chapter 2: Early Modern English: Overview 8
  6. Chapter 3: Phonology 27
  7. Chapter 4: Morphology 47
  8. Chapter 5: Syntax 68
  9. Chapter 6: Lexicon and semantics 89
  10. Chapter 7: Pragmatics and discourse 108
  11. Chapter 8: Dialects 128
  12. Chapter 9: Language contact 150
  13. Chapter 10: Standardization 167
  14. Chapter 11: Sociolinguistics 188
  15. Chapter 12: Pronouns 209
  16. Chapter 13: Periphrastic DO 224
  17. Chapter 14: The Great Vowel Shift 241
  18. Chapter 15: Relativization 267
  19. Chapter 16: Literary language 287
  20. Chapter 17: The language of Shakespeare 309
  21. Index 333
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110525069-014

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Table of Contents V
  3. Abbreviations VII
  4. Chapter 1: Introduction 1
  5. Chapter 2: Early Modern English: Overview 8
  6. Chapter 3: Phonology 27
  7. Chapter 4: Morphology 47
  8. Chapter 5: Syntax 68
  9. Chapter 6: Lexicon and semantics 89
  10. Chapter 7: Pragmatics and discourse 108
  11. Chapter 8: Dialects 128
  12. Chapter 9: Language contact 150
  13. Chapter 10: Standardization 167
  14. Chapter 11: Sociolinguistics 188
  15. Chapter 12: Pronouns 209
  16. Chapter 13: Periphrastic DO 224
  17. Chapter 14: The Great Vowel Shift 241
  18. Chapter 15: Relativization 267
  19. Chapter 16: Literary language 287
  20. Chapter 17: The language of Shakespeare 309
  21. Index 333
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