Illustrating the compelling history of how the relatively obscure dialects spoken by tribes from what are now Denmark, the Low Countries, and northern Germany became the most widely spoken language in the world, this book also explores how that language evolved during the last two millennia. Chronologically ordered and divided into six sections covering pre-Roman and Latin influences, the ascent of Old English, and the succession of Middle English, Early Modern, and then Late Modern English to today's global language, this book also explores the history of the printing press, the works of Chaucer, the evolution of —commonly known as —and the magisterial , to the use of slang in today's speech and electronic messaging.