The 10 Best The History of English Podcast Episodes
1) Episode 135: A House of Cards
In the early 1400s, playing cards made their first appearance in England. Those cards provide evidence of an early form of printing, but it would take another generation for Johannes Gutenberg to inve...Show More
2) Episode 153: Zombie Letters
In early Modern English, writers and printers began to revise the spelling of many English words to reflect their etymological origins. Old letters were revived from the dead to reflect sounds that ha...Show More
3) Episode 132: Food for Thought
In the midst of the English literary revival of the late 1300s, the household chefs of Richard II compiled the first cookbook in the English language. In the episode, we examine the cookbook known as ...Show More
4) Episode 144: A Murder of Crows and Princes
In the second half of the 1400s, there is written evidence of word play and new word formations within English. These new terms included words for the sounds made by animals and collective nouns for v...Show More
5) Episode 137: A Rose By Any Other Name
The rose is one of the most beloved flowers in western Europe, and it has a long association with English royalty. In this episode, we explore the history of English gardens and the use of the rose a...Show More
6) Episode 12: Early Greek, Hittite and the Trojan War (Extended Version)
The first Greek and Hittite civilizations emerge from Indo-European tribes in the eastern Mediterranean. The Greeks adopt an early form of writing and fight the Trojans. An alphabet allows the ancient...Show More
Episode 12: Early Greek, Hittite and the Trojan War (Extended Version)
1:13:06 | Oct 5th, 2012
1 recommendation
7) Episode 106: An Illuminating Development
The 12th and 13th centuries saw the saw the transfer of book production from monasteries to professional bookmakers. In this episode, we look at the birth of the Medieval book trade. We also examine h...Show More
8) Episode 167: The Rhythm of English
All languages have their own rhythm and cadence, and English is no exception. That rhythm has actually shaped the language over time. It contributed to the structure of English poetry, and during the ...Show More
9) Episode 165: Glamorous Grammar
William Bullokar composed the first formal grammar of the English language in 1586. Prior to that point, the concept of grammar had been largely restricted to Latin. Bullokar’s work extended the conce...Show More
10) Episode 161: Y U and I Have a Problem
In this episode, we explore the complicated history of the letters Y, U and I, and we examine how they gave birth to the letters W, V and J. We also look at the Gothic script of the Middle Ages … Cont...Show More