1. Прилагательное как часть речи
в истории английского языка
Дисциплина: История английского языка
Московский Государственный Авиационный
Институт
Выполнил: студент группы 201
Боровик Ирина Игоревна
Москва, 2011

2. History of adjectives in English Language
Germanic language and the Old English language
System of 4 or 5 cases
Period 1
Period 2
Period 3
Middle English language
Reduction and weakening of unaccented syllables
Early modern English language
Simplification of language
Period 4 Modern English language
General grammatical standards of language

3. Germanic language and the Old English language
The distinguishing features of adjectives were then:
• adjectives agree with gender, number and case of nouns;
• double adjective declension: strong declension (indefinite) and
weak declension (definite)
• system of 4 or 5 cases

4. Germanic language and the Old English language
Strong declension (indefinite)
Indefinite adjectives define nouns generally without special emphasis. There was the
difference in suffix declension in stems of adjectives with -jă- and -jō-, -wă- and -wō-.
Such adjectives in nominative case of masculine and neuter gender lost or changed
their endings with the lapse of time from -jă- to -i- and then to -e-
(swōtja>swōti>swēte, but swētum – in masculine and neuter gender in other cases)
Some adjectives with stems -wă- and -wō- such as earu, nearuʒ were the same in all
genders in nominative case, but changed according to rules in other cases earwe,ʒ
nearwes )
CASE Masculine gender Neuter gender Feminine gender
Nominative
Genitive
Dative
Accusative
Instrumental
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
Ʒōd
singular plural Singular plural singular plural
-es
-u
-ne
-e
-e
-ra
-um
-e
-es
-um
-e
-u, -
-ra
-um
-u, -
-u, -
-re
-re
-e, -
-re
-a
-ra
-um
-a
-um

5. Germanic language and the Old English language
Weak declension (definite)
These adjectives define nouns which are known and distinguishable from others.
There were demonstrative pronouns (sē – masculine, sēō – feminine, ƥӕt – neuter,
ƥᾱ - plural) near definite adjectives and nouns too. Later these pronouns became
articles – new grammar word form.
sē Ʒōde mann – хороший человек
sēō Ʒōde ewēn – хорошая женщина
pӕt lytle bearn – малое дите
CASE Masculine gender Neuter gender Feminine gender
Nominative
Genitive
Dative/ Instrumental
Accusative
Ʒōda
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdra
Ʒōdum
Ʒōdan
Ʒōde
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōde
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdra
Ʒōdum
Ʒōdan
Ʒōde
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdan
Ʒōdra
Ʒōdum
Ʒōdan
singular plural singular plural singular plural

6. Germanic language and the Old English language
Degrees of comparison of adjectives
There were three degrees such as: positive, comparative ( with the suffix –ira, later
changed to –ra), superlative (with the suffix –ist, later changed to -est). Some
exceptions were with the suffix –ora, later changed to –ra and with the suffix –ost.
Positive Comparative Superlative Meaning
eald ealdira > ieldra ealdist > ieldest old
earm earmra earmost poor
The other system of adjective degree formation was suppletive system which joined
together different roots of words having the same meaning.
ōd – betera – betst =Ʒ good, better, best
Yfel – wiersa – wierst = bad, worse, worst
Lytel – lǣssa – l st =ǣ little, less, least

7. CASE Masculine
gender
Neuter
gender
Feminine
gender
All genders
Nominative
Genitive
Dative
Accusative
singular plural singular plural singular plural singular plural
Middle English language
The simplification of declination started in XII century and the great changes
took place in the second half of XIII century:
• there were no differences between indefinite and definite types of adjectives, this
difference moved to articles
• nouns and adjectives lost grammatical category of gender
• destruction of case system began
Indefinite adjectives Definite adjectives
XII CENTURYXIII CENTURY
-
-es
-e
-e
-
-es
-e
-
-
-re
-re
-
-
-es
-en
-en
-e
-re
-en
-e
-
-es
-en
-
-e
-re
-en
-e
-e
-re
-en
-e
-
-re
-re
-
-e
-en
-en
-en (neut.
-e)
-en
-re
-en
-en
-e
-re
-e
-e
-e
-re
-e
-e
-e
-re
-e
-e
-e
-e
-e
-e
-e
-re
-e
-e

8. Middle English language
XIV century
Ending – re fell away and the only one
suffix of adjectives in cases was
unstressed –e. It helped to distinguish
singular forms without endings such as
short, wild, long from plural forms of
indefinite adjectives: shorte, wilde, longe.
XV century
Ending –e fell away too as the last
difference in forms of adjectives and as the
last possibility to agree adjectives with
nouns.
Adjectives are invariant part of speech,
except degrees of comparison which
exist up to date.

9. Middle English language
Degrees of comparison of adjectives
At this time suffix of comparative degree took some changes from
–ra > -re > -r > -er but sounded as [ ]ǝ
Superlative degree changed from
-ost > -est and some had mutation in roots
Old – elder – eldest
Long- lenger – lengest
Strong – stenger – stengest
Suppletive system of adjectives changed to more
modern English language form:
Gōd – bettre – best
Evel, ivel – werse, worse – werst, worst
Litel, lutel – lesse – lest
Michel, muchel – more – mest, most

10. Early Modern English language
The Great Vowel Shift is one of the historical events marking the separation
of Middle and Modern English, which took place mainly during the 15th
century. English has continuously adopted foreign words, especially
from Latin and Greek. During the Renaissance (1400's and 1500's) the Latin
language became important in England especially in the church and in
medicine. Thereby English acquired many Latin words in this period.
English was further transformed by the spread of a standardized London-
based dialect in government and administration and by the standardizing of
printing. By the time of mid-late 16th century the language had become
almost recognizable as Modern English. In 1604, the first English dictionary
was published which was named as A Table Alphabeticall. It was
monolingual English dictionary, created by Robert Cawdrey which was
claimed purpose was "for the benefit and help of Ladies, Gentlewomen, or
other unskillful persons".
Standardization and Simplification began and came into the open in XV
century. These process can be seen in changing forms of adjectives
which became invariable part of speech.

11. Early Modern English language
Suppletive adjectives had changes in sounds and had some lexical
changes. Some forms came into existence from the other roots (like bad
forced out evil, which in modern English has the different meaning) but
suppletion is retained as the essential quality of adjectives.
Good – better – best
Bad – worse – worst
Much, many – more – most
Little – less – least
In Early Modern English appeared new type of adjectives named as
polysyllabic adjectives such as beautiful, interesting and etc. New
method of forming degree of comparison of adjectives was found according
to the tendency in English grammar to use auxiliary words. Analytical
forms of degree of comparison of polysyllabic adjectives were formed with
the help of a generalized adjectives.
Beautiful – more beautiful – the most beautiful
Interesting – more interesting – the most interesting

12. Modern English language
Modern English has two methods of forming degrees of comparison of
adjectives:
Synthetical method ascending up to writing antiquity for short adjectives
Analytical method ascending appeared at the end of the middle period of
English language for polysyllabic adjectives
History in practice
Periods Positive Comparative Superlative
Old English eald ealdira > ieldra ealdist > ieldest
Middle English old elder eldest
Modern English old older oldest

13. Periods Positive Comparative Superlative
Old English ōdʒ betera betst
Middle English gōd bettre best
Modern English good better best
Modern English language
History in practice
for suppletive adjectives

14. Modern English language
The main difference between Early Modern
English and Late Modern English is vocabulary.
Late Modern English has many more words,
arising from two principal factors:
 firstly, the Industrial Revolution and
technology created a need for new words;
 secondly, the British Empire at its height
covered one quarter of the Earth's surface, and
the English language adopted foreign words
from many countries.

15. Citations
1.Arakin V. D. «Essays about a History of
English language», 2007
2. Fennell B. A. «A History of English»
3.Smirnizkiy A. I. «Lectures about a History
of English language», 2006
4.Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia