When faced with the task of learning languages, we often encounter different dialects. For example, Spanish has Catalan and French has Provencal. This is what happened with English. Of course, it cannot be argued that American is a dialect of the British version, but still one is considered the progenitor of the second.
The history of the American language
English came across the ocean to the American continent. In the 17th century, British peasants began to move in colonies to Novaya Zemlya. At that time, there were many nationalities here, respectively, their language was also different. Here are the Spaniards, and the Swedes, and the Germans, and the French, and even the Russians. The first settlement was the city of Jamestown already in 1607. In the neighborhood with them, a dozen years later, the Puritans settled, who had excellent linguistic traditions.
Speakers of different dialects began to spread across the continent, many of which have survived to this day. In the 18th century, settlers from Ireland began to influence the colonists. They began to contribute to the formation of the American language. To the southwest, Spanish speakers are located. Germans settled in Pennsylvania.
Continent neededrebuild, and the situation seemed quite difficult. A huge amount of work had to be done: build houses, raise production, cultivate land, and, in the end, adapt to the new social and economic situation.
In order for everything to work out, communication and interaction were necessary, so one common language was needed. It was English that became the link in this case. But it is worth noting that even in England itself, this language was heterogeneous. Here there were differences between the dialect of the bourgeoisie, peasants, aristocrats, etc.
It is worth recalling that immigration lasted until the 20th century. Of course, it is still observed, but then it was a large-scale event. By the way, despite the fact that the inhabitants tried to adapt to one dialect, they retained their native names. At birth, the child could have been given the German name Rudolf, the Spanish Rodolphe, the Italian Paolo, etc.
It seemed that a common basis for communication was ready, but still, the new settlers were surrounded by a completely different world. They needed to get used to other concepts, customs and priorities. People valued completely different qualities, so the language began to change rapidly. Unknown plants were named after Indian words, animals got Swedish or Dutch roots, food often had a French character.
Some English words have become more precise. Culture also played a big role. The books that Americans read were brought from England. In addition, pro-English groups were created that tried in every possible way to promotethat native and real British language. Of course, now English is understandable to any American and vice versa, nevertheless, there are differences, and they are significant.
Differences from British
If you compare American, English, you can find more similarities than differences in them. They are not radically different from each other, like the languages of the Germanic groups. Of course, we can distinguish Spanish from French, German and English.
If we have not studied in depth American, English, at first hearing we will not be able to distinguish them. If you have been studying English since childhood, but decided to go to America, it would be better, of course, to get acquainted with some features so as not to get into trouble.
According to the story, the peasants brought to America not pure English, but already simplified. Considering that a simple language was necessary for the rebuilding of the state, this option became even more uncomplicated. That is, the main difference is simplicity. Next, we will look in more depth at the difference between US and British speech.
Spelling features
Language researchers began to notice that spelling-wise the American language had indeed become simpler. At one time, the linguist Noah Webster compiled a dictionary in which he fixed the use of words with -or instead of -our. So words like honor began to appear.
The next change was the replacement of -re with -er. That is, metre has already become meter, the same thing happened with theater and center. There have been many such changes. Words have undergone orthographic changes, and therefore those whoonly learns languages, they might think that there is a typo in these options.
The next interesting fact was the phenomenon of synecdoche. Americans began to name something whole by the name of one of the constituents. For example, they call any beetle a "bug", any kind of spruce they call a "pine".
Lexical features
As it has already become clear, the lexical difference arose due to the fact that many elements of the new life did not have a name in English, and they had to be given a name. The second factor was the natural influence of other dialects that arrived on the mainland with their masters. The influence of the Spaniards was especially felt here.
There are now a lot of American words that are very commonly used by the inhabitants, and yet never appear in the English version. Translation from American does not always correspond to British. The most obvious example is the difference between first floor and ground floor (first floor). But here, for example, for the British, the first floor is the second floor, while in America the second floor is the second floor. Without knowing such a nuance, one who has studied the British version since childhood can get into trouble when he comes to America.
There are a lot of such examples. It is much easier for native Russian speakers to learn the American language, since, as already mentioned, it is simpler and uncomplicated. In addition, the translation from the American is more logically perceived.
And of courseHowever, slang has influenced American English. Many words have been accepted by dictionaries and have already taken their “shelf” in the speech component. It is worth saying that in the 20th century there was a merger of English literature and American slang, which once again proved the powerful influence of Americans on the formation of the language.
Grammar features
Another proof that learning American is very easy is the grammatical difference from British. The British love to complicate things, because it is not for nothing that they have such a huge amount of time. But in America they like to speak using only the Simple group. It is very difficult to meet Perfect here. Apparently, as for the Russians, the Americans do not understand the expediency of using this group of tenses.
Despite such an oversight, it is worth noting that in many ways the Americans can be more meticulous than the British. For example, this applies to verbal nouns, the use of shall / will. The use of adverbs with the ending -ly (slowly) - Americans do not use them at all, replacing them with slow. By the way. Americans even managed to avoid irregular verbs, many of them are absolutely correct and do not require additional forms.
Phonetic features
Pronunciation is, of course, different here. Returning to history, it should be mentioned that peasants and ordinary people moved here. They already had a distorted pronunciation, and over time it became completely different from British.
First of all, different stress in words. Secondly, the pronunciation of some words is completely different. Thirdly,even the sounds are pronounced differently, here you can give an example with the sound [r] swallowed by the British, the Americans do not.
Another difference is the intonation. For the English, this is the main tool in the construction of sentences. But in America there are only two options: flat and downward. It is worth noting that, as in the case of vocabulary, Spanish speech has a great influence on phonetics.
Lessons from Pimsler
Pimsler English is aimed at people with different abilities. Some people can learn languages fluently, while others find it difficult. Speaking lessons with Pimsleur take no more than half an hour. The linguist believes that it is precisely such a time, no more, that our brain can function in full and with increased efficiency.
English, according to the Pimsleur method, is divided into three levels, which are, as it were, steps of difficulty. The first is for beginners, the second and third are designed for those who are already familiar with the base.
What to learn?
If you have just started learning languages, the question arose of which one to study: British or American, first determine the goal. If you are going to travel to the USA, accordingly, the American language should be a priority for you. If in London, then take up English.
If you have not yet set yourself the goal of visiting countries, but just want to learn the language from scratch, then you should not go into such details. The main thing is to learn the basics. Also, it will not hurt you to replenish your vocabulary in order to express thoughts.
In principle, there is no difference which one to study: British and American. Practice shows that learning more complex English is much more useful. After all, you will definitely be understood in America, but once in Britain, problems may arise with the American. English is wider and more developed. Having studied it, you will be able to read the classics (Jack London, Shakespeare, etc.) with much greater pleasure. In any case, Russian speakers are doomed to be "strangers", even with perfect knowledge of English and American. Of course, only if they have not lived more than 10 years in the US or England.
