Wordsmiths and Warriors: The English-Language Tourist's Guide to Britain

摘要

David and Hilary Crystal are linguists attempting a historical chronology of the English language via a physical journey around linguistically significant places in Britain. In the introduction, David Crystal describes them as "language tourists". This book is, in one go, a history of the English language, a travelogue of Britain and a history book. Language change came about through wordsmiths (Shakespeare as noted by David Crystal, invented and reimagined words which have remained in common use ever since), but also invading armies brought their own culture and customs to Britain which also had a significant effect on the development of modern English.