The origins of English

A Speller’s Companion by Brown and Brown

My son bought me a book in York called A Speller’s Companion published by Brown and Brown. What a fascinating little book this has proved to be. It provides information about the origins of the spelling of many of the places in the UK and also of many words that have been incorporated into modern English over time.

The contributors to the English language and names off UK cities, towns and villages are as follows:

1. Celtic British who spoke a dialect called Brythonic and were known as Brythons (now spelt Britons). The Celtic British lived in the UK (excluding Ireland) about 400 years BC.
2. In about 350 BC, Celts from Southern France settled in Ireland and their dialect was Goidelic (now spelt Gaelic). These Gaelic Celts later crossed to Scotland and the Isle of Man. Scotland derives its name…