history of the english language - word origins, how english was derived

William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy, invaded and conquered England and the Anglo-Saxons in 1066 AD. The new overlords spoke a dialect of Old French known as Anglo-Norman. The Normans were also from Germany and Anglo-Norman was a French dialect that had considerable Germanic influences in addition to the basic Latin roots. The next wave of innovation in English came with the Renaissance. The revival of classical scholarship brought many classical Latin and Greek words …

…on American English. "Armadillo", "mustang", "canyon", "ranch", "stampede", and "vigilante" are all examples of Spanish words that made their way into English through the settlement of the American West. To a lesser extent French, mainly via Louisiana, and West African, through the importation of slaves, words have influenced American English. "Armoire", "bayou", and "jambalaya" came into the language via New Orleans. "Goober", "gumbo", and "tote" are West African borrowings first used in America by slaves.