A History of the French Language [Paperback]

Peter Rickard (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 041510887X | ISBN-13: 978-0415108874 | Publication Date: May 1, 1989 | Edition: 2

This well-established and popular book provides students with all the linguistic background they need for studying any period of French literature. For the second edition the text has been revised and updated throughout, and the two final chapters on contemporary French, and its position as a world language, have been completely rewritten. Starting with a brief description of the Vulgar Latin spoken in Gaul, and the earliest recorded forms of French, Peter Rickard traces the development of the language through the later Middle Ages and Renaissance to show how it became standardized in a near modern form in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`Should be compulsory reading for any serious practitioner of French, either amateur or professional. Not merely will many things become clear for the first time but it will be a very enjoyable experience.' - Times Educational Supplement

`Lucid, scholarly and unpedantic ... a remarkable work of synthesis.' - Modern Language Review

About the Author

Peter Rickard is at Emmanuel College, Cambridge.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 2 edition (May 1, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 041510887X
• ISBN-13: 978-0415108874
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,204 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very interesting and detailed history for those with some training in linguistics, November 6, 2007

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A History of the French Language (Paperback)

Peter Rickard's A HISTORY OF THE FRENCH LANGUAGE was first published in 1974 with a second edition appearing in 1989. Please note that although this Amazon listing describes the second edition, I read the first edition and my review is based on that.

Rickard was Drapers Professor of French at Cambridge and in this 174-page text he brings us from the earliest days when the speech of France was but a collection of vulgar Latin dialects to the modern standard language. Along the way, he shows how sound change spurred morphological change, how literary production down through time reflects the evolution of the language, and what polemics authorities engaged in on language standardization.

I should mention that this a not a book for those with some French who want to learn how to read earlier texts. The reader of A HISTORY OF FRENCH ideally has some training in Latin and in basic linguistics (phonology and morphology). I'd recommend reading W. Sidney Allen's Vox Latina before Rickard's history, in order to have a better understanding of the pronunciation of late Latin.

My only real complaint about Rickard's history is that discussion of diaspora French is missing. Once the various dialects of France have formed a standard language, his focus rests entirely on that standard language and its registers in France. African French, which I find quite fascinating, is in no way covered. Neither is Quebec French, which is simply inexplicable.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very interesting and detailed history for those with some training in linguistics, November 6, 2007

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Peter Rickard's A HISTORY OF THE FRENCH LANGUAGE was first published in 1974 with a second edition appearing in 1989. Note that this Amazon listing and my review describe the first edition.

Rickard was Drapers Professor of French at Cambridge and in this 174-page text he brings us from the earliest days when the speech of France was but a collection of vulgar Latin dialects to the modern standard language. Along the way, he shows how sound change spurred morphological change, how literary production down through time reflects the evolution of the language, and what polemics authorities engaged in on language standardization.

I should mention that this a not a book for those with some French who want to learn how to read earlier texts. The reader of A HISTORY OF FRENCH ideally has some training in Latin and in basic linguistics (phonology and morphology). I'd recommend reading W. Sidney Allen's Vox Latina before Rickard's history, in order to have a better understanding of the pronunciation of late Latin.

My only real complaint about Rickard's history is that discussion of diaspora French is missing. Once the various dialects of France have formed a standard language, his focus rests entirely on that standard language and its registers in France. African French, which I find quite fascinating, is in no way covered. Neither is Quebec French, which is simply inexplicable.

3.0 out of 5 stars Great information, dry presentation, January 15, 2012

By 

mel - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A History of the French Language (Kindle Edition)

The title of this review says it all. There is a lot of great information in this book but the second you read it, you instantly forget the entire page you just read because it is written so dryly.