27. Middle English Noun

Old English complex classification of nouns was based on differences in declension, in endings that were added to them in various forms; as the endings were levelled, the grounds for distinguishing the very classes become insignificant. The category of gender was lost. The category of number was preserved. If we have a look into the Old English nominal paradigms, we’ll see that the plural ending originally were: -as ( of the a-stems masculine, r-stems masculine); 0 (a-stems neuter, some r-stems); -u (neuter a-stems, i-stems, s-stems, some r-stems ); -a (o-stems, u-stems); -e (masculine i-stems, some root stems); -an (n-stems). Due to the reduction of the unstressed vowels all these came to:-es, -0, -e or -0, -en

So finally we have -es, -en, which becomes a competing ending. Ending -es was invariably added to form the plural form of numerous borrowings(two felawes; the chambres and the stables; fresshe floures )

Several nouns retain their Old English plural with the mutated vowel (such as man - menn, foot -feet, gOOSe - geese etc.;). Some former -n-stems still retain their suffix as a marker of the plural form: Thou seist, that oxen, asses, hors, and houndes...< you see that oxen, asses, horses and hounds...);

from hise even ran the water doun... (from his eyes the water ran down)

The nouns naming some domestic animals such as sheep, swyn, hors retained their old uninflected plurals. The plural of child developed in a unique way - it retained its suffix of the former -s- stems (it was -r- through rhotacism) and additionally got the -en suffix - children.

Case

The number of cases was reduced from Old English four to two, the Nominative and the Genitive. The ending -es of the a-stems nouns, which were the most numerous group, becomes predominant; it irradiates not only to the singular but also to the plural. In Middle English only some nouns have a distinct paradigm of four forms: man – menn; mannes – mennes; nama – namen; names - (namene) names

In other cases the context resolved the ambiguity:he hadde a fyr-reed cherubynnes face (he had fire-red cherub’s face)

at the kvnges court ( at the king’s court)

His lordes sheep (his lord’s sheep) a wvdwes sone (a widow’s son) waspes nest (wasps’ nest) daves light (day’s light)

sette the foxes tavles alle on fire (and set the foxes’ tails all on fire) at his beddes heed (at the head of his bed)

28. Pronouns in Middle English

All pronouns in Middle English with the exception of the personal ones lose the categories of gender and case, some lose their number.

We find the forms I or ich, with the growing frequency of the first variant, thou (just new spelling of Old English ðū), he (no visible changes); the feminine pronoun is found in variants he/she. Hit is reduced to it. We and ye in the plural did not change and neither did us and you. Scandinavian they/them penetrate into the language; but not simultaneously. By the end of the 14th the pronoun they was well established in the language, while the objective case of Old English pronoun hem persists.

The paradigm of personal pronouns now is :

Sg. N. ich/1 thou he she hit/it

D. me thee him hir him/hit/it

PI. N. we ye hi/they

D. us you hem/them

The tendency to use ye in addresing one person is already spreading.

A new class of pronouns appears - possesive pronouns:

1st person Singular min, myn /my plural: our

2nd person thin, thyn/thyyour

3rd person hir/her, his plural: hire/their

Only the context shows the real gender of the pronoun - when referring to living beings, it is masculine and neuter when it points to a lifeless thing

Demonstrative pronouns retain the category of number only (that - tho, thos; this - thes/thise), case and gender forms disappeared, and so the reduction in the number of forms of this class of pronouns is really significant - from 17 to two: ‘’This Palamon, whan he tho wordes herde’’ (This Palamon, when he heard those words...)

Interrogative pronouns change phonetically, the aspiration is weakened and in spelling the letters h and w change place: who what, whos whos, whom what.

The instrumental case of hwy changed into the adverb why.

Reflexive pronouns are formed from the possessive pronoun my/thy or the objective case of the third person personal pronoun him/hir/hem/them + self- himselfe, hirself, hemselven (later myself ourselves, yourself and themselves replaced native hemselven)

ǣʒðer, ǣtc, swilc, sum, ǣniʒ, nān changed their phonetic form and give the present- day either, each, such, any, none. Definite pronoun the same borrowed from Scandinavian replaces sē ilca, though occasionally we may find that ilke too, more often reduced to the form thilke. The article before the pronoun varies with the demostrative pronouns this and that. A new part of speech appears - the article. The pronoun was the real marker of the case of the noun. This, probably led to overuse of the demonstrative pronouns in Old English, and to weakening of their deictic function. In Middle English this weakened form of the demonstrative pronoun which signalled only the definiteness of the noun was supplemented by the weakened form of the numeral ān (one) and now was used to render the meaning of indefiniteness, a person or thing unknown or unmentioned. This part of speech contains only two words - the from reduced ðata and an, a from the numeral ān.

29.Middle English Adjective The paradigm of the adjective in Middle English is simplified drastically. The endings become scarce. The category of gender is lost, for the nouns no longer have it. The adjective no longer agrees with the noun in case, the only remaining endings being - the plural form having the ending -e and the remains of the weak declension, the weak form (the one preceded by an article) -e : young kniht /the younge kniht; younge knihtes/the younge knihtes smale fowles maken melodie (small birds sing /make melody) ( strong,plural); a voice he had as smal as has a goot (he had as small voice like that of a goat) (strong, singular)

But some of the adjectives had the very ending -e as a result of levelling of the vowels at the and, and so such adjectives as grene were already unchangeable; in the plural the strong and the weak forms also coincided.

The forms of the suffixes of the degrees of comparison were reduced ~er, -est :glad - gladder – gladdest; greet - gretter – grettest

His voys was murier (his voice was merrier...)

Lucifer, brightest of aungels alle (Lucifer, the brightest of all angels)

Some adjectives retained a mutated vowel they had had in Old English: old - elder – eldest; long - lenger – lengest; strong - stregner –strengest

The eldeste lady of hem alle spak (the lady, the oldest of them all, spoke).

Some preserve former suppletivity, and their degrees of comparison look like this: good - bettre - best ;muchel - more - most, mest

She may have bettre fortune than yow semeth (She may have better fortune that it seems to you)

Some adjectives, especially of foreign origin, are found in a form that came into wider usage only later, that is they may be associated with the adverb moore/most

Moore delicaat, moore pompous of array, Moore proud was nevere emperour than he... (There never was an emperor more delicate, more pompous in clothing and more proud...).