Of the 500 or so most frequently used English words today, most are native to Old English (450-1100) ("and", "have", "you", "that", "is"). If you have Real Audio on your browser, you can listen to some Old English audio files. If you don't have it and you want it, you can download the free RealPlayer program. Many other words can be traced back to Middle English (1100-1450). If you have never had the pleasure of reading some Chaucer, why not take a look at the Cook's Tale. If you have time, you might find it quite interesting to visit an etymology site that offers the history of some popular and interesting words. And, for those of you who have always wondered about the history and meaning of the days, click Days . As we will be eventually looking a calendar customs, you might also visit a site that discusses the history and society interests associated with the Calendar. The following list offers a simple breakdown by country of origin of a few word you are likely familiar with.
From French: government, nation, parliament, attorney, judge, jury, sue, crime, escape, curfew, saint, pray, mercy, religion
From Greek: drama, comedy, tragedy, scene, botany, physics, zoology, atomic (as well as many root words: thermo, phobia...
From Latin: convention, animal, bonus, maximum, alumnus, quorum, exit, scientific, orthography, advantage, debt, violent, canary
From Vikings: they, their, them, scatter, scare, scrape, skirt, skin, sky
From Celtic: Whiskey, ass, bin, flannel, clan, slogan
From Dutch: buoy, freight, leak, pump, yacht
From Italian: opera, sonata, piano, balcony, corridor, ballot
From Arabic: alcohol, algebra, assassin, sugar, zero, magazine
From American Indian: pony, squash, chipmunk, moose, raccoon, skunk, hickory, moccasin, totem, powwow
From Spanish: alligator, cigar, cockroach, guitar, mosquito, adobe, canyon, lariat, mesa, patio, ranch
