4.7.6. Italian and Spanish Loanwords

Italian loanwords belong mainly:

1. to the sphere of arts, e.g.

violin, opera, piano, libretto, sonata, tempo, bass, solo, ballerina, studio, cupola, portico, balcony, parapet, terracotta, majolica;

2. the military sphere, e.g.,

generalisimo, squadron, stiletto;

3. physical features of an area, e.g.

volcano, lava, , granite;

4. occurrences and way of life, e.g.

manifesto, ballot, carnival, garb, macaroni, madonna, casino, bandit, zero, manage, bankrupt.

From Spanish and Portugese came many words connected with the American and other colonies:

1. names of plants, e.g.

potato, tomato, cocoa, tobacco, banana, maize;

2. names of animals, e.g.

alligator [′æligeitə], cobra [′koubrə], mustang [′mлstæŋ];

3. names of races, e.g.

negro, mulatto [mju: ′lætou];

4. local features, e.g.

hammock, canoe [kə′nu:], lasso [′læsou], sombrero, guitar, toreador, picador;

5. trade, e.g.

cargo, embargo, controband, port, sherry, Madeira;

6. the navy, e.g.

armada [α׃ ′mα׃də], flotilla [flou′tilə], capsize [kæp′saiz];

7. and other spheres, e.g.

guerilla [gə′rilə], barricade [bæri′keid], tank, hurricane [′hлrikən]

4.7.7. Russian Loanwords

In the XVI-XVII cc. with the development of English-Russian political and economic relations a number of Russian words were borrowed. They include:

1. names of social relations and state institutions, e.g.

boyar, Cossack, muzhik, voivoda, tsar, duma, ukase;

2. a system of measures and money, e.g.

verst, altyn, pud, rouble, copeck;

3. names of everyday things, e.g.

telega, balalaika, samovar, vodka, kvas

4.8. The Expansion of English

During the NE period English has spead far beyond the borders of England. It is spoken now in Scotland, Ireland, Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and other countries.

Some linguists (Otto Jespersen, in particular) try to explain the expansion of English by its properties, namely by more progressive analytical structure, and exceptional vigour that helped it to come victorious in its rivalry with other languages.

In fact, the expansion of English, like that of French, Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch can be accounted for by only historical (economic and political) reasons. Once England was one of the first and mightiest countries and colonial empires, and English was imposed upon the peoples of numerous colonies.

In 1603 Scotland and Ireland were brought under the English crown.

In 1620 the ship «Mayflower» with the first English settlers from London and the counties close to it (Suffolk, Norfolk and Essex) came to America and the colonization of the New World began. These settlers occupied territories on the Atlantic coast, now known as New England (the states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusets, Conneticut and Rhode Island).

In the XVIII c., England occupied Canada, India and Australia. And everywhere English was implanted after much fighting with the local population and the suppression of its language and culture.

In most countries, English has preseved its essential features with but slight variation of pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, so that the relations, say, between the national languages of England and the United States or the Australian Commonwealth are those of variants of the same language. It is customary to speak of American English, Canadian English, Australian English, etc.