Episode 188: Old England and New England
Summary
This episode explores the 1629 King James Bible’s role in distinguishing letters J and V, alongside the emergence of contractions like "it's" and "don't." It details the Puritan migration to the Massachusetts Bay Colony, driven by religious persecution and economic hardship in East Anglia. The host explains how these settlers established town-centric communities, naming places after their English homes, which created lasting linguistic ties, such as the non-rhotic accent, between New England and southeastern England.
Topics discussed
Introduction: Mass migration to Massachusetts Bay Colony
The King James Bible and the separation of I/J and U/V
Puritan dissent, economic hardship, and the push for migration
Founding of Massachusetts Bay, New Hampshire, and Maine
New contractions: it's, doesn't, and the origin of y'all
Robert Cotton's library and the political power of Magna Carta
The Great Migration: demographics, town founding, and place names
Linguistic links: Non-rhoticity and vowel shifts from East Anglia
Dialect features: Tarnation, vowel confusion, and 'do' as otherwise
Shared vocabulary: Housen, teeter-totter, and rural speech patterns
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