Conversational English in 1586

In this video, I explore a 1586 work by Jacques Bellot, and what it can tell us about 'street English' in the early modern period.

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[RichardTheFourth]

Sounds like a modern-day Swede speaking English after learning it from an Irishman

[djitidjiti]

"Let us have a reckoning". Gotta remember that one next time I'm at Aldi

[jasonwateano]

I love how the whole video is just some random footage of some grass.

[HANKTHEDANKEST]

I love this sort of thing. Just a French lad trying to help his fellow French refugees, and accidentally creates a brilliant primer on honest-to-goodness 16th c. street English, not the "proper" stuff taught at school. I'm sure Mr. Bellot would've been pleased to see us finding such utility in his humble phrasebook, all these centuries later.

[nunyabiznez]

My great grandfather, a former native of Galway, born 140 years ago, used "tis" a lot. He also would pronounce a lot of words with extra syllables and then skip entire words if he thought you would think them implied by context. "Tis fine moranin, tain't na rain in sight." is an example. Or "ga fetcha me slippers lad, under bed." would be another. He died in 1964. He learned Irish from birth and spoke it exclusively until he was in his teens when he found it necessary to learn English to transact business in the nearest town, Loughrea.

[timoloef]

I love that old "how is it with you?" ... literally how it's said in the Netherlands and Norway

[MURDERPILLOW.]

I hear people speaking like this normally when i hide in the bushes to hear people talk

[AbhNormal]

I'm honestly amazed at how comprehensible this is. I had expected much more Middle-English era words and grammar to be present, especially in the middle of the Great Vowel Shift, but now I'm happy that, were I to acquire a time machine, I could have a pint with the lads 400 years ago 😂

[kerridwynntheacegoblin]

Totally using ‘shall we have a reckoning’ when paying for something

[pipipip]

I found the phrase right at the end of this video really interesting, “what is of the clock?” “it is two of the clock” and explains why we say 2 o’clock now.

[vitamins-and-iron]

“god be wy” looks like how someone might type “god be with you” over text lol

[dmitrigheorgheni]

'What do you lack?' sounds like my late grandmother, who lived in the Appalachian mountains, when asking if we wanted seconds at the dinner table. This is a fascinating book! Thanks for the excellent video.

[Sweetthang]

THIS IS WHY THE INTERNET IS GREAT. It brings me joy that you share this for free. I commend you.

[sionnachs_workshop]

I'm a simple man. I see a video about conversational English in 1586 and I click

[MacNab]

*Working with a crew of hillbillies in western North Carolina years ago.* The boss comes over the radio: "Hey, Buster, how much d'you lack on that job?" Buster, visibly frustrated, answers, "I don't lack none of it". The boss goes silent for a moment, gritting his teeth at the pun. "Damn it, Buster..."

[anarchodolly]

We still routinely greet people with "How..." in the north-east. "How lad, ya alreet?"

[z.l.burington]

Listening to that haggle conversation was incredible. I was cast back in time. Thank you.

[SFforlife]

I may not sell them so.

Farewell then.

Haha love how haggling is still the same even all these years later.

[C_In_Outlaw]

7:22 lmao he said “farewell, then”
😂😂
That made me laugh idk why. I wish haggling like this was available everywhere

[StarkRG]

I like how this is pretty much how conversational or utilitarian language books are written today. Everyday dialogues, sometimes a bit stilted, and often presented in the same three columns: the language to be learned, the meaning in your own language, and a transliteration of the new language in your own phonetics.