The following reflection is based on the text “Words: Native and

Borrowed” and it is focused on the main contents covered in it, giving a

brief analysis of the importance of the process of word formation in the

English language.

Firstly, the text gives us a detailed and chronological development of the

English language through time. As we all know, languages have changed

through the course of time, given to a natural process of evolution which

has made English the language we are learning nowadays. Changes in

the language are reflected in terms of pronunciation, spelling, usage,

grammar, meaning and vocabulary which is one of the main reasons

why some words have become ‘extinct’. As we have seen in many

courses at university, especially literature, the transition from Old

English to Middle English and finally to Modern English has made

important changes in the language which are reflected on literature.

There are lot of words in the English language that are somehow related

to other languages, which is explained by processes such as borrowings,

derivations and creations of new words, and this is reality we can

observe even in our university context because most of the time, we

tend to ‘borrow’ words which we have heard from a teacher or

classmate and then it becomes part of our vocabulary.

I have to admit that even though we had already seen where the English

language comes from, it was very interesting to read about the Indo-

European language in detail because it gave me a much more complete

idea of the origin of some of the modern languages in the world.

I believe it is crucial to know the history of the language and how it has

developed through time for we as future English teachers are going to

show our students a different culture, because a language is not only

related to the language itself but to the whole belonging culture.

Camila Cuevas Araneda.