Adapting the Dynamic Model to historical linguis- tics: Case studies on the Middle English and Anglo- Norman contact situation
Abstract
This chapter describes a new application of the Dynamic Model of contact by Edgar W. Schneider to the medieval contact situation between Anglo-Norman and Middle English, which lasted from 1066 until ca. 1500.
Specifically, the emergence of an insular variety of Old French called Anglo-French, as well as the transfer of linguistic features from French into Middle English, are discussed within this framework. By way of three pilot studies, the productivity of copied features as well as instances of ‘failed change’ are explained by the model’s dynamic and granular nature.
The chapter demonstrates how the model can be applied to further contexts than its original scope, and may provide a framework to explain contact-induced developments in both settler and indigenous languages.