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The History of English Podcast

The History of English Podcast

By: Kevin Stroud
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The Spoken History of a Global Language World
Episodes
  • Episode 183: The Fabric of Our Lives
    May 13 2025
    In the early 1600s, cotton fabrics made in India were in high demand throughout Asia and Africa. When the English and Dutch arrived in India and Japan, they realized how popular the fabric was, and they soon began to ship it back to northern Europe. In this episode, we explore how the 'cotton craze' of the 1600s shaped the modern world, and shaped the English language. We also examine the end of the Shakespearean period and the second English dictionary.
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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • Episode 182: World of Confusion
    Mar 18 2025
    In the early 1600s, English began to spread around the world as speakers searched for new trading partners and new places to settle. Through that process, English become an international language, but as English speakers encountered people and languages in distant places, they sometimes became confused. That confusion and uncertainty shaped the English language during this period. In this episode, we explore early English loanwords from North America, Shakespeare's The Tempest, and the first English trading post in India. TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 182
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    1 hr and 16 mins
  • Episode 181: Heaven and Earth
    Jan 30 2025
    The invention of the telescope in the early 1600s laid the foundation for the scientific revolution, but it also disrupted the traditional view of the universe and led to a conflict with the Catholic Church. Meanwhile, the Anglican Church completed a translation of the Bible that became known as the King James or Authorized version. In this episode, we look at how these simultaneous developments changed the modern world and shaped the English language. TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 181
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    1 hr and 21 mins

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Brilliant!

I stumbled across this podcast 3 years ago and have been completely addicted ever since. Equal parts linguistics and history. Wonderful story telling and easily absorbable!

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