Выявление различий между американским и британским вариантами английского языка и причины из возникновения

МУНИЦИПАЛЬНОЕ БЮДЖЕТНОЕ

ОБРАЗОВАТЕЛЬНОЕ УЧЕРЕЖДЕНИЕ

ОДИНЦОВСКАЯ ГИМНАЗИЯ №13

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Научно-исследовательская работа по английскому языку

«Выявление различий между американским и британским вариантами английского языка и

причины их возникновения»

Выполнила:

Орехова Любовь Григорьевна

Учитель английского языка

Одинцовской гимназии №13

Одинцово

2019

Table of contents:

Introduction...............................................................................................................1

The main part.............................................................................................................1

1. The questionnaire............................................................................................3

2. The reasons of occurrence of the differences..................................................4

3. The main differences.......................................................................................3

• Grammar.....................................................................................................2

  1. Nouns....................................................................................................2

  2. Verbs.....................................................................................................3

  3. Use of time............................................................................................3

  4. Use of the definite article......................................................................3

  5. Other differences...................................................................................3

• Vocabulary..................................................................................................3

• Pronounciation...........................................................................................3

• My own observation...................................................................................3

Conclusion.................................................................................................................3

Bibliographic list.......................................................................................................3

Annex........................................................................................................................3

Introduction.

Urgency:

I believe the topic I have chosen is relevant, as the differences between these varieties of English often lead to certain difficulties in understanding between native speakers of American and British English. English learners should also take into account these differences to avoid misunderstanding on the part of the native speaker of a different variety of English.

Purpose:

To identify the main differences between American (hereinafter AmE) and British (hereinafter BrE) English and the reasons for their appearance, and understand if they influence on understanding between people

Objectives:

1)To identify the causes of differences

2)To identify the differences themselves (grammatical, lexical, orthoepic)

3)To conduct a survey

4)To draw conclusions

Objects of research: British and American English

Hypothesis:

There is a number of differences Between American and British English that have arisen in consequence of some reasons and affect the understanding between people, and they can complicate it to some extent

English is currently the international language, it means that English, used during negotiations, is the language of settlement agreements, but above all English is the language of international relations not only between states but also between people. In many schools, English is taught as a foreign language, so many use their knowledge of this language when traveling abroad. It should be noted that in English, as in other languages, there were internal differences that divided English into many dialects, and the most significant, in my opinion, dialects are American and British English, which some even consider different languages. That is why I decided to find out what the reasons were for the appearance of such a difference between languages and what differences exist between these two dialects.

The main part.

The questionnaire

Before I began to understand the essence of the issue of identifying differences in these varieties of English, I had decided to conduct a survey. I asked the students of my class: "How do you think, which dialect should be studied at school: British or American?" 26 students chose the option "British" (87%), 4 students chose the option "American" (13%) (you can see the survey results in the chart below)

I also asked some of the respondents to explain their choice. Those who chose “British English” said that they found that dialect classical and full, adding that it is an original English, that is why it must be more grammatically correct. Those who chose “American English” believe that it is more popular now, while British English can be called obsolete.

My survey convinced me that there is need to reflect on this issue, as there is really a lot of debate about it. If we analyze the explanations of the respondents' choice, we can see that they indirectly were able to conclude, that those who know British English and those who know American English are problematic to understand each other, since the first is, let's say, the standard of the English language, and the second is its popularized and more accessible version

The reasons of occurrence of the differences

In my opinion, American English must be definitely different from British, and it is so. Firstly, it is newer than British, but American dialect took all the basics from his “elder brother”, that is why they are similar. But there is much slang and words that have so dissimilar meanings from original words (such words are often used in everyday speech among pepole of different subcultures, profession, etc.) in American English, while British English stays classical,usually “very serious and calm”.

As strange as it sounds, deviations between American and British English gave rise to jokes. For example, one of Bernard Shaw's characters says that the UK and the US are "two countries separated by a common language." In the Centreville Ghost, Oscar Wilde wrote that "everything is the same with America now, except, of course, language" (1888). In 1877, the English phonetist Henry Sweet suggested that within a century speakers of American, Australian and British English would not be able to understand each other, but I think he was partly right: the understanding has not disappeared, but it has become a little difficult because of the existing differences.

Originally, English appeared in America thanks to the British colonists, the first of whom arrived in Jamestown in 1607. English spread to other territories colonized by the British Empire. By 1921, its population was about 470-570 million people, or a quarter of the world's population at that time.

Over the past 400 years, the forms of English used in America (especially in the US) and in the UK have changed slightly. This led to the emergence of new forms known as American English and British English. Differences between them affect pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, some rules of spelling, punctuation, phraseology and design dates and numbers. Thus, differences in these areas began to influence the mutual understanding of the American and British variants. For example, some words of one variant may have a different meaning or not be used at all in another. in 1828 he published "American dictionary of the English language” , on which more than 20 years worked Noah Webser, American linguist and lexicographer. In the dictionary, numerous norms of American English were fixed, and Noah Webster himself sought to create a language as different as possible from British English due to the desire to strengthen the independence of the United States.

According to the information above, we can say that the main reasons for the differences between American and British English can be considered natural reasons (the spread of English over a large area due to mass immigration and colonization, the growth of the population speaking English) as well as reasons from outside, which include the creation of an "American English dictionary" and the desire to create a new language

The main differences

Grammar

Nouns:

There is a special group of nouns which is called ''collective nouns'' (for example, team, community, committee) , which expresses the concept of a group of persons or some objects, but it can be used both in the singular and in the plural, it depends on the meaning they carry. In British English, such nouns are used in both plural and singular forms, with different meanings being conveyed, as we can see from the following examples:

(1)This community was founded in the 90s of the 20th century (in this case, we mean the community — as a whole)

(2)This community were invited to make a really important choice at the last meeting (each individual member of the community must be considered here)

In American English, these nouns are more often used in the singular form (This community was entered to make), but the speaker may add a personal plural pronoun to indicate that each member of the group / community, etc., is acting independently. In this case, the example (2) discussed above will have the form below:

This community was encouraged to make their really important choice at the last meeting

This difference exists among all nouns denoting sets (collective nouns) - both in common (team) and in their own (names of sports teams, music groups, etc.)

When forming complex nouns in American English, the construction verb+noun is used, in the British version, the construction verb(ing)+noun

Verbs:

There are a number of verbs whose past tense and past participle form can have both correct ( Formed with the-ed ending) and incorrect (special form) (hereinafter "past participle" will be replaced by " v3'') (look at table 1)

In British English, both forms are used equally. In American English, irregular forms are rare and almost unused (with the exception of burnt-v3 from burn; leapt-v3 from leap; dreamt-v3 from).

If we use past participle as an adjective (for example, learned rule), the form can be arbitrary. However, it is worth paying attention to the following words.

The word learned in the sense of "learned" stands in the correct form in both British and American English. Similarly with verbs dwell and kneel, we only use wrong forms with these verbs -dwelt and knelt

In American English, depending on the use of one or another (correct/incorrect) form of past participle, the meaning may change, as, for example, in the case of the verb light-to illuminate, where its (v3) lit is given the meaning "подоженный", and (v3) lighted – ''освещенный''

Use of times:

In British English, Present Perfect is used to describe recent events, appropriate markers are used at the same time (already, just, yet). In American English it is possible to express this information with Past Simple using the same markers. For example:

I have just left home (Present Perfect) – I just left home (Past Simple)

Similarly, sometimes the Past Perfect is replaced by Past Simple in American English in purpose of making a speech easier. We can also say that it takes less time to use simple time, that is why people can transmit information faster

Use of the definite article:

While the British necessarily use the definite article "the" in some expressions (like "play the guitar"), when referring to numbered highways (the A14) and talking about the date (the 25th of May), the Americans often omit it ( there is similar construction for dates, such as these: May twenty-fifth or May 25).

However, the use of a certain article in some phrases causes a well-known misunderstanding between speakers of American and British English. For example, different in meaning in British English phrases in future and in the future( ''впредь'' and ''когда-либо в будущем'' ), while Americans express both meanings by the common "in the future".

Other differences:

• Traditionally, talking about future the British have used ''shall'' (with pronouns I, we) and will (with all other pronouns), in American English is extremely rare.

• When using additions to verbs, both the verb with the particle to and the gerund can follow the verb. In this case, the gerund is more common in the following cases:

in American English - after verbs start, begin, omit, enjoy ;

in British English - after verbs love, like, intend

• When saying that one "have something", the British like using the "strong" turn of phrase "have got", the Americans are more willing to use the ''weak" verb " have". However, it does not affect the meaning of what is said.

• Use of the word "got"

In both British and American English, the word is used to express ''necessity

of doing something'' and ''belonging'', but the British use Present Perfect, while the Americans use Past Simple.

Compare:

I got to go (AmE) – I've got to go (BrE)

I got a cosy room (AmE) – I've got a cosy room (BrE)

Vocabulary

American English is definitely different from classical British, but it is not something of a "new language". However, in addition to the grammatical differences of these varieties of English, there is a huge amount of lexical ones that should be considered on specific examples.

For a start, I suggest you consider cases where only the writing of words is different, and the meaning remains unchanged. (look at table 2)

Such endings of British English words as -our and -tre in American English are replaced by -or and -er respectively (look at picture 1)

Nevertheless the biggest part of vocabulary differences represent those cases when one words conveys the same meaning in different dialects.

The most famous illustration of lexical differences is a pair of words pants (Men) - trousers (BrE). The British word “pants” means “underwear”, so you should be careful using these words not to be in an awkward position.

The American word “subway” won't cause much trouble, however, if one asks British where the subway is, it is highly likely that, the British will send you towards the nearest tunnel, not understanding why you need to go there.

I think a lot of Americans have a hard time traveling in Britain, because in London, for example, their favourite food is called different from what they've got used to. Here their lovely “chips” become “French fried potatoes”, “candies” become “sweets”.

Let's look at the phrase: “ I got a flat”. Those who study at school know that the word “flat” means the one Americans call “apartment” . But the latter can say such phrase with a sense of regret. The thing is that this sentence can mean both “I've bought a flat” and “There is a hole in the tire, so the wheel of my car has deflated”

There is another difference between British and American English, connected with the word flat , although it is not so critical and does not greatly disturb the understanding between the speakers of these varieties of English. The fact is that Americans often use ''apartment'', but ''flat'' can be found quite often.

Also the order of the names of the floors of buildings is interesting in American and British English (look at picture 2)

There have been compiled many tables containing lists of words that differ in American and British English (such as you can see in table 3).

Pronounciation

The orthoepic differences between British and American English seem to me to be among the most obvious of all differences. I think that even a person who knows English even at a below average level will notice that the British and Americans pronounce some words differently. Consider the following sounds.

Vowel:

BrE [ɑ:] AmE [æ], [æ:] (after, ask )

BrE [ɔ] AmE [ɑ] (hot, problem)

BrE [ju:] AmE [u:] (stupid, student)

Different as the emphasis in the words, for example: in British English words such as ballet , debris , address , detail are pronounced as follows, respectively (stressed syllable in bold): [ˈbæleɪ]; [ˈdeɪbriː]; [əˈdrɛs]; [ˈdiːteɪl]

In American English these words are pronounced differently: [bæˈleɪ]; [dəˈbri]; [ˈæˌdrɛs]; [dɪˈteɪl]

The sound [R]

A striking speech characteristic of Americans is the exaggerated pronunciation of the sound [R] in all positions. In the British version, it most often falls out. The sound of the mute [R] is preserved only at the beginning of the word (look at table 4)

Also you can often hear as Americans spell such words as “beautiful” where they change sound [t ] to sound [r ]

My own observation

Actually, I can say that modern Russian teenagers are always inside, let's say, “bilingual habitat”. We listen to English songs, watch a lot of series in English. The most pleasant thing is the fact that teenager watch them in original language. It allows us to learn English and train our skill of understanding information by ear.

I must mention that both American music and films and etc. are near the most popular in the world now. That gives us opportunity to say that American English has a huge influense on those learning the language. People internalize plenty of americanisms they will use then. Such words become more usual and it may cause some problems while studying classical British English and a mess with understanding meanings of what they hear and say. So we can see, that there is misunderstanding between those who speaks American English and those who speaks British English.

Americans like to simplify, so where the British would say «It's half past seven», Americans will say simply «It's seven thirty». American English is more simple, and it is an advantage when one have to explain a lot of information. It might be difficult to grasp the idea of the speech, but it is a perfect practice of “hearing” the language too.

All these ideas don't mean that I found the problem of popularization of American English really serious, on the contrary, I find it useful when people can absorb both this dialects. If they succeed, there won't be any problems about misunderstanding I was talking about above. But this problematic question exists now.

Conclusion

Based on all the information above, we can conclude that due to a number of reasons many differences between American and British English appeared, and therefore my hypothesis is correct, it means that the aim of the work has been achieved. Many differences in various areas of language structure do contribute to misunderstandings between their speakers.

We can draw the following conclusions:

1. The differences between American and British English arose as a result of: numerous migrations from Europe to America; the desire of individual historical figures to create a new (or maximally different from the British English) language to strengthen the independence of America

2. There is variance in such sphears as grammar, vocabulary and pronounciation between these two dialects

3. As we see from the example, these differences can complicate understanding among people, but not so critically

This work can be used in English lessons in order to familiarize pupils with the topic set out in it

Bibliographic list

https://www.ph4.ru/eng_irregular.php?ts=t&al=a

https://preply.com/blog/2014/12/09/grammaticheskie-razlichiya-amerikanskogo-i-britanskogo-anglijskogo/

http://engblog.ru/british-vs-american-vocabulary

http://englishgu.ru/amerecan-english-vs-british-english/

https://studfiles.net/preview/2061459/page:3/

http://begin-english.ru/article/osobennosti-proiznosheniya-uk-vs-usa/

https://skyeng.ru/articles/chem-otlichayutsya-amerikanskij-i-britanskij-anglijskij

Annex to the project

Table 1

Infinitive	Past Simple (V2)	Past Participle (V3)	Translation
learn	learnt/learned	learnt/learned	учить, узнавать
spell	spelt/spelled	spelt/spelled	произносить (писать) по буквам
spill	spilt/spilled	spilt/spilled	разлить
spoil	spoilt/spoiled	spoilt/spoiled	портить
get	got	got/gotten	получать

Table 2

BrE	AmE	Translation
Analyse	Analyze	Анализировать
Сentre	Center	Центр
Pretence	Pretense	Притворство

Picture 1.

Picture 2

Table 3

British English	American English	Translation
Mum	Mom	Мама
Sweets	Candy	Конфеты
Biscuit	Cookie	Печенье
Postman	Mailman	Почтальон
Post	Mail	Почта
Postbox	Mailbox	Почтовый ящик
Holiday	Vacation	Каникулы
Form	Grade	Класс

Table 4

	BrE	AmE	Перевод
сarpetner	[ˈkɑːp(ə)ntə]	[ˈkɑːrp(ə)ntər]	плотник
reader	[ˈriːdə]	[ˈriːdər]	читатель
star	[stɑː ]	[stɑː r]	звезда