Stemmata quid faciunt? quid prodest Pontice longo
Sanguine censeri? aut quid auorum ducere turmas? &c.
Latine. Next vnto the British speach, the Latine toong was brought in by the Romans, and in maner generallie planted through the whole region, as the French was after by the Normans. Of this toong I will not say much, bicause there are few which be not skilfull in the same. Howbeit, as the speach it selfe is easie and delectable, so hath it peruerted the names of the ancient riuers, regions, & cities of Britaine in such wise, that in these our daies their old British denominations are quite growne out of memorie, and yet those of the new Latine left as most vncertaine. This remaineth also vnto my time, borowed from the Romans, that all our déeds, euidences, charters, & writings of record, are set downe in the Latine toong, though now verie barbarous, and therevnto the copies and court-rolles, and processes of courts and leets registred in the same.
The Saxon toong. The third language apparantlie knowne is the Scithian or high Dutch, induced at the first by the Saxons (which the Britons call Saysonaec, as they doo the speakers Sayson) an hard and rough kind of speach, God wot, when our nation was brought first into acquaintance withall, but now changed with vs into a farre more fine and easie kind of vtterance, and so polished and helped with new and milder words, that it is to be aduouched how there is no one speach vnder the sunne spoken in our time, that hath or can haue more varietie of words, copie of phrases, or figures and floures of eloquence, than hath our English toong, although some haue affirmed vs rather to barke as dogs, than talke like men, bicause the most of our words (as they doo indéed) incline vnto one syllable. This also is to be noted as a testimonie remaining still of our language, deriued from the Saxons, that the generall name for the most part of euerie skilfull artificer in his trade endeth in Here with vs, albeit the H be left out, and er onlie inserted, as Scriuenhere, writehere, shiphere, &c: for scriuener, writer, and shipper, &c: beside manie other relikes of that spéech, neuer to be abolished.
The French toong. After the Saxon toong, came the Norman or French language ouer into our countrie, and therein were our lawes written for a long time. Our children also were by an especiall decrée taught first to speake the same, and therevnto inforced to learne their constructions in the French, whensoeuer they were set to the Grammar schoole. In like sort few bishops, abbats, or other clergie men, were admitted vnto anie ecclesiasticall function here among vs, but such as came out of religious houses from beyond the seas, to the end they should not vse the English toong in their sermons to the people. In the court also it grew into such contempt, that most men thought it no small dishonor to speake any English there. Which brauerie tooke his hold at the last likewise in the countrie with euerie plowman, that euen the verie carters began to wax wearie of there mother toong, & laboured to speake French, which as then was counted no small token of gentilitie. And no maruell, for euerie French rascall, when he came once hither, was taken for a gentleman, onelie bicause he was proud, and could vse his owne language, and all this (I say) to exile the English and British speaches quite out of the countrie. But in vaine, for in the time of king Edward the first, to wit, toward the latter end of his reigne, the French it selfe ceased to be spoken generallie, but most of all and by law in the midst of Edward the third, and then began the English to recouer and grow in more estimation than before; notwithstanding that among our artificers, the most part of their implements, tooles and words of art reteine still their French denominations euen to these our daies, as the language it selfe is vsed likewise in sundrie courts, bookes of record, and matters of law; whereof here is no place to make any particular The helpers of our English toong. rehearsall. Afterward also, by diligent trauell of Geffray Chaucer, and Iohn Gowre, in the time of Richard the second, and after them of Iohn Scogan, and Iohn Lydgate monke of Berrie, our said toong was brought to an excellent passe, notwithstanding that it neuer came vnto the type of perfection, vntill the time of Quéene Elizabeth, wherein Iohn Iewell B. of Sarum, Iohn Fox, and sundrie learned & excellent writers haue fullie accomplished the ornature of the same, to their great praise and immortall commendation; although not a few other doo greatlie séeke to staine the same, by fond affectation of forren and strange words, presuming that to be the best English, which is most corrupted with externall termes of eloquence, and sound of manie syllables. But as this excellencie of the English toong is found in one, and the south part of this Iland; so in Wales the greatest number (as I said) retaine still their owne ancient language, that of the north part of the said countrie being lesse corrupted than the other, and therefore reputed for the better in their owne estimation and iudgement. This also is proper to vs Englishmen apt to learne any forren toong. Englishmen, that sith ours is a meane language, and neither too rough nor too smooth in vtterance, we may with much facilitie learne any other language, beside Hebrue, Gréeke & Latine, and speake it naturallie, as if we were home-borne in those countries; & yet on the other side it falleth out, I wot not by what other meanes, that few forren nations can rightlie pronounce ours, without some and that great note of imperfection, especiallie the French men, who also seldome write any thing that sauoreth of English trulie. It is a pastime to read how Natalis Comes in like maner, speaking of our affaires, dooth clip the names of our English lords. But this of all the rest dooth bréed most admiration with me, that if any stranger doo hit vpon some likelie pronuntiation of our toong, yet in age he swarueth so much from the same, that he is woorse therein than euer he was, and thereto peraduenture halteth not a litle also in his owne, as I haue séene by experience in Reginald Wolfe, and other, whereof I haue iustlie maruelled.
The Cornish toong. The Cornish and Deuonshire men, whose countrie the Britons call Cerniw, haue a speach in like sort of their owne, and such as hath in déed more affinitie with the Armoricane toong than I can well discusse of. Yet in mine opinion, they are both but a corrupted kind of Brittish, albeit so far degenerating in these daies from the old, that if either of them doo méete with a Welshman, they are not able at the first to vnderstand one an other, except here and there in some od words, without the helpe of interpretors. And no maruell in mine opinion that the British of Cornewall is thus corrupted, sith the Welsh toong that is spoken in the north & south part of Wales, doth differ so much in it selfe, as the English vsed in Scotland dooth from that which is spoken among vs here in this side of the Iland, as I haue said alreadie.
Scottish english. The Scottish english hath beene much broader and lesse pleasant in vtterance than ours, because that nation hath not till of late indeuored to bring the same to any perfect order, and yet it was such in maner, as Englishmen themselues did speake for the most part beyond the Trent, whither any great amendement of our language had not as then extended it selfe. Howbeit in our time the Scottish language endeuoreth to come neere, if not altogither to match our toong in finenesse of phrase, and copie of words, and this may in part appeare by an historie of the Apocripha translated into Scottish verse by Hudson, dedicated to the king of that countrie, and conteining sixe books, except my memorie doo faile me.
Thus we sée how that vnder the dominion of the king of England, and in the south parts of the realme, we haue thrée seuerall toongs, that is to saie, English, British, and Cornish, and euen so manie are in Scotland, if you accompt the English speach for one: notwithstanding that for bredth and quantitie of the region, I meane onelie of the soile of the maine Iland, it be somewhat lesse to see to than the other. For in the The wild Scots.
Redshanks.
Rough footed Scots. north part of the region, where the wild Scots, otherwise called the Redshanks, or rough footed Scots (because they go bare footed and clad in mantels ouer their saffron shirts after the Irish maner) doo inhabit,
Irish Scots.
Irish speech. they speake good Irish which they call Gachtlet, as they saie of one Gathelus, whereby they shew their originall to haue in times past béene fetched out of Ireland: as I noted also in the chapiter precedent, and wherevnto Vincentius cap. de insulis Oceani dooth yéeld his assent, saieng that Ireland was in time past called Scotia; "Scotia eadem (saith he) & Hibernia, proxima Britanniæ insula, spatio terrarum angustior, sed situ fœcundior; Scotia autem à Scotorum gentibus traditur appellata, &c." Out of the 14. booke of Isidorus intituled Originum, where he also addeth that it is called Hybernia, because it bendeth toward Iberia. But I find elsewhere that it is so called by certeine Spaniards which came to seeke and plant their inhabitation in the same, wherof in my Chronologie I haue spoken more at large.
In the Iles of the Orchades, or Orkeney, as we now call them, & such coasts of Britaine as doo abbut vpon the same, the Gottish or Danish speach is altogither in vse, and also in Shetland, by reason (as I take it) that the princes of Norwaie held those Ilands so long vnder their subiection, albeit they were otherwise reputed as rather to belong to Ireland, bicause that the verie soile of them is enimie to poison, as some write, although for my part I had neuer any sound experience of the truth hereof. And thus much haue I thought good to speake of our old speaches, and those fiue languages now vsuallie spoken within the limits of our Iland.