Middle English (1150–1500): How the Norman Conquest Doubled the English Vocabulary in 150 Years
The Norman Conquest of 1066 is the single largest vocabulary event in English history. Within 150 years, French became the language of the English court, church, and law — and English speakers absorbed over 10,000 French words, permanently changing the character of the language. Middle English is where the split personality of modern English was born: Germanic words for everyday life, French and Latin words for refinement, power, and abstraction.