Laguna State Polytechnic UniversitySan Pablo City Campus

Brgy. Del Remedio, San Pablo City

EngM19 – Introduction to Stylistics

ARCHAIC WORDS

Or

ACHAISMS(Research Paper)

PREPARED BY:ANGELES, Maria Monica M.

BSEd 4-S

SUBMITTED TO:Mr. Alexander dela Vega

ARCHAIC WORDS/ARCHAISMS

Languages continually go through changes which results in the development in the

varieties of language. Most users of the language are not aware of these changes as they are

happening. These changes become more dramatic after long periods of time. William

Shakespeare and Geoffrey Chaucer works, for example, differ from the modern English language

that most of the readers prefer a translation of their works into modern English language.

In the classification of English vocabulary, archaic words or archaisms are one from

various groups of words on stylistic function which are being used by writers. Archaisms came

from the Greek word “arkhaismos” which means “copy the ancients” or “give an archaic air to”.

Archaisms are the usage of a form of writing or speech from an earlier time that is no longer

used in the present.

As the language continues to develop, its word stock also goes through an increasing

state of change. In each progress of literary language, more or less apparent changes in the

meaning or usage can be find, and for some instance, a total disappearance of a particular unit

from the language. Archaisms have three stages in the aging process of words and they are as

follows:

Obsolescent – the beginning aging process of a word. Words of this kind become seldom

used.

Obsolete – these are the words that have already gone entirely out of use but are still

being recognized by the community.

Archaic Proper – these are the words which are no longer being recognized in modern

English. They are the words in Old English which are either completely dropped out of

the language or have changed in their appearance and have become unrecognizeable.

Historic words are being erroneously classified as archaic words. Archaic words are words

which are no longer in general use but still encountered for stylistic function. Historic words, on

the other hand, never disappear from the language, thus, words of these types cannot be

considered as archaic.

Most frequently, words that fall on archaisms are being used in poetry, science and

technology, ritual writings, geography, law, and speeches. It is said that archaisms can be divided

into two: the literary archaisms and the lexical archaisms. Literary archaism seeks to evoke style

of older speeches and writings. The usage of words, which are no longer in the common use, fall

under the lexical archaism. Different rituals and literary uses in the literature of the old help

archaisms kept alive.

Science and technology is one of the factors of the generation of words because of

continuous discoveries and inventions. For instance, the usage of the word “wireless” instead of

“radio” for the generation of British citizens during the World War II – association of these

words kept the both words alive in the speaking community but, in fact, the word “radio” is an

older word which is a obviously of archaism.

Another example of archaism is to evoke the former age means through old place names that

could convey a political or emotional subtext or when many don’t recognize the new official

name – just like “Persia” rather than “Iran”. A famous example is the airline name, “Cathay

Pacific”. It uses the archaic name “Cathay” which now known as “China.”

Compound adverbs and prepositions found in the writing of lawyers – like the words

heretofore, hereunto, thereof – are also examples of archaisms. In some phraseologies, most

especially in religious contexts, archaic elements that are not used in ordinary speech in any

other context are being retained: "With this ring I thee wed."

Archaisms are also used in the dialogue of historical novels so as to draw out the flavor of the

period. Others use archaisms to add a humorous effect and may count as inherently funny words.

Archaisms are mostly misunderstood which leads to changes in the usage. An example can

be found in the phrase "the odd man out". This originally came from the phrase "to find the odd

man out", where the verb "to find out" has been split by its object "the odd man", meaning the

item which does not fit.

SOURCES: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaism; www.durov.com/study/STYLISTICS-826.doc; Microsoft Encarta 2007