home milestones sources gallery word parts word parts comparisons A peaceful invasion of Britain occurred about 600 AD, when Christian missionaries from Rome arrived, bringing the Latin language to the island for a second time. In this period Latin had a profound effect on the development of English, in several ways.

First, English began to absorb many Latin words into its vocabulary, especially words related to religion and the church, such as angel, disciple, and priest. Modern English contains more than 400 words which have survived from this period.

In addition, the stories of the Bible introduced words from China, India, and other cultures far from Britain. From this source exotic words like lion, camel, and cedar entered the English vocabulary.

Finally, under the influence of Latin and the church, Old English began to develop its own capacity for expressing abstract ideas. Britons began to combine existing English words in new ways to describe new concepts, such as gospel and heaven.