Since we lack a linguistics thread, and since adding one would seem nonsensical just for the infrequent posts I'll make, I'll adapt them to various other threads.
From now on my main study will deal with linguistics and such. One of the things I've discovered recently I thought I'd share with ye.
As the title suggests, our language has increasingly diluted over the years. Various definitions and words have either merged, or been forgotten entirely. Even more nonsensical is when we create new ones to make up for the absence of older ones. The latter of which concerns me most today.
Let us compare, if you will, the differences between Middle English and Modern English with Personal Pronouns. Specifically the second person ones. Pay close attention and watch what happened during the transition. These are from wikipedia, just search for the words "you" and "ye".
Now compare to:Second you you yours you you yours
Obviously a lot of that seems unnecessary, and indeed becomes confusing when actually used (especially pronounced). The more experienced of you might notice something on the wikipedia page. "you" and "ye" are now the same officially. The rest we can do without (arguably, though I fancy "thy"). An example of this:Second thou thee thy ye you your"ye" is the second person plural of "thou" or modern day singular "you". In English, it's customary to add an "s" or a similar suffix for plural forms, and in other languages it's common to use an entirely different word altogether. What we see here is a complete lack of both, and instead of a plural form that follows suite with our grammar, we get "You".Thou wouldst merely prefer to speak like a pirate. Unfortunately for thee, thou willst find "ye" used less frequently in practice than thou'dst like.
Does this make sense? Not any whatsoever. To the point where a majority of English dialects have REINVENTED a plural for the word "you". Most of you are familiar with southern dialects incarnation (y'all). Other countries and places that speak English also have similar abominations (Yous guys, etc).
So why, then, have we stopped using "ye" and then did a 359 to find its ugly cousins? Nobody knows why. I've done a fair amount of searching, and even those interested don't know. Yet this provides an example of our language diluting (Aka: "The words are dying." according to a comical colleague). Removal of original words, and their replacement by words that don't make sense, or the simple removal (which is sometimes worse).
What can we do to combat this? DO NOT make up new words. Do not be satisfied with the ridiculous dialects you were born into. Venture out into the great unknown and pull back needed words like "ye" into common use. Unfortunately the latter part sometimes requires extensive studies into "old" words and grammar. Yet, from now on, I'm going to reintegrate old and useful words into my grammar. Both because they make sense, and because the "modern" versions are retarded.