re: #378 wheat-dogghazi-mailgate

English has changed so much in the last 1,000 years, that few of us today could understand Anglo-Saxon. Its “mongrelization” started in a small way with the Viking occupation, but really got into swing with the Norman Conquest. It accelerated with the Age of Exploration and colonialism.

Meanwhile, Chinese has changed so little in that same time span that most educated Chinese can read poems from 1,000 years ago.

English would look very strange with only native words. I’m sure everyone here is familiar with Poul Anderson’s Uncleftish Beholding.