Middle English language

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Map of England and surrounding regions during the Middle English period, divided by bold black lines into major dialect areas: Northern, West Midland, East Midland, South Western, and South Eastern. Red lines mark language boundaries with Celtic languages-Scots Gaelic, Welsh, and Cornish-along the edges of Scotland, Wales, and Cornwall.

Compare Middle English and modern English readings of the opening lines of The Canterbury Tales

Middle English language: References & Edit History

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Article History

Type	Description	Contributor	Date
	Modified link of Web site: Humanities LibreTexts - Middle English Literature.	Emily Rodriguez	Sep 17, 2026
	Add new Web site: Humanities LibreTexts - Middle English Literature.	Emily Rodriguez	Feb 26, 2026
	Add new Web site: Austin Peay State University - An Introduction to Middle English (PDF).	Gloria Lotha	May 17, 2025
	Add new Web site: California State University Northridge - About Middle English Grammar (PDF).	Yamini Chauhan	Feb 06, 2025
	Add new Web site: The University of Kansas - Histories of the English Language - Middle and Early Modern English: From Chaucer to Milton.	Grace Young	Jul 26, 2024
	Add new Web site: Pressbooks - An Open Companion to Early British Literature - Middle English Literature in the 14th and 15th Century.	Gloria Lotha	Apr 05, 2024
	Add new Web site: University of Warwick - Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies - A Guide to Middle English.	Gloria Lotha	Jan 25, 2024
	Add new Web site: Academia - Middle English: Language contact.	Gloria Lotha	Oct 13, 2023
	Add new Web site: Harvard University - The English Language Today, Yesterday, Tomorrow - Middle English Basic Pronunciation and Grammar.	Gloria Lotha	Jun 23, 2023
	Links added.	The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica	Mar 17, 2023
	Add new Web site: British Library - Middle English.	Gloria Lotha	Jan 12, 2023
	Add new Web site: Humanities LibreTexts - Middle English Literature.	Aakanksha Gaur	Oct 21, 2022
	Add new Web site: The University of Texas at Arlington - Department of English - Middle English History.	Emily Rodriguez	Mar 28, 2016
	Added new Web site: Harvard University - The Geoffrey Chaucer Website.	John Higgins	Jun 26, 2006
	Article revised.	The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica	Feb 16, 2001
	Article added to new online database.	The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica	Jul 20, 1998