Review: The Multilingual Origins of Standard English. Edited by Laura Wright (original) (raw)

or more than a century, readers interested in the history of English have been informed that the origin of Standard written English is to be found in a 15th century variety called 'Chancery Standard,' originated in the East (or Central) Midlands and adopted by the King's Office of Chancery in London. Wright, whose substantial academic contribution mostly focuses on the standardisation of English and medieval mixed-language texts (2018; 2011; 2000; 1996 among others), tackles this issue with a new publication featuring the contributions of nineteen historical linguists. As stated by the editor herself in the Introduction to the volume, the purpose of this work is to "show why the current textbook explanations of the origins of Standard English are incorrect" (3) and, as the title suggests, to point out the role of multilingualism in the development of the language. As a matter of fact, recent scholarship acknowledges the influence of the multilingual context typifying late Medieval Britain, but "authors of chapters in