Early Modern English facts for kids

Early Modern English is a special time in the history of the English language. It's the period when English started to sound and look much more like the English we speak and read today. Think of it as the bridge between old-fashioned English and modern English. This is also the time when the famous writer William Shakespeare created his amazing plays.

What makes Early Modern English different from the older Middle English is a big change called the Great Vowel Shift. This was when the sounds of long vowels in English changed to how they sound to us now.

What is Early Modern English?

Early Modern English was spoken and written from around the late 1400s to the mid-1600s. This was a time of great change in England and the world. Many new ideas and discoveries were happening. The language changed a lot during this period too.

One of the biggest reasons for these changes was the invention of the printing press. Before the printing press, books were copied by hand. This meant there were many different ways to spell words. When printing became popular, spelling started to become more standard.

The Great Vowel Shift

The Great Vowel Shift was a major change in how English was pronounced. It happened slowly over many years, mostly between the 1400s and 1700s. Before this shift, long vowel sounds were different. For example, the word "house" might have sounded more like "hoos" (rhyming with "goose"). After the shift, it sounded like "hows."

This shift affected all the long vowel sounds. It's why English spelling can sometimes seem tricky. The spelling of many words was set before the vowel shift finished. So, the way we spell words like "name" or "time" doesn't always match how we say them today.

Shakespeare's English

William Shakespeare wrote his plays during the Early Modern English period. His works are a great example of how the language was used then. When you read Shakespeare, you might notice some words are different. Some words have changed their meaning, and some are no longer used.

However, much of Shakespeare's language is still understandable to us. This shows how much Early Modern English is like the English we speak today. He also helped to add many new words and phrases to the English language.

Images for kids

• 

  Title page of Gorboduc (printed 1565). This play was written in Early Modern English.

• 

  Shakespeare's writings are a famous example of Early Modern English.

In Spanish: Inglés moderno temprano para niños