87-1025: This article is about the human name. For other uses, see Alexandra (disambiguation) . Alexandra Pronunciation / ˌ æ l ɪ ɡ ˈ z æ n d r ə , - ˈ z ɑː n -/ AL -ig- ZA(H)N -drə Gender Female Language(s) From the Greek Alexandra , the female form of Alexandros , from alexein meaning "to ward off, keep off, turn away, defend, protect" and aner meaning "man" Name day August 30 Origin Meaning "Defender, protector of mankind" Other names See also Alejandra , Aleksandra, Alissandra, Alessandra, Oleksandra, Alexandrine , Alex , Alexa , Alexis , Cassandra , Kassandra , Lexi , Lexie , Lexa , Alessia , Alessiya, Alesiya, Olesia, Olesiya, Olessiya, Sandra , Sandrna, Sandrine , Sally , Sandy , Sendy, Shandy, Sasha , Shura, Xandra , Ksandra. The name Alexandria
174-546: A mixed language or a creole —a theory called the Middle English creole hypothesis . Although the great influence of these languages on the vocabulary and grammar of Modern English is widely acknowledged, most specialists in language contact do not consider English to be a true mixed language. English is classified as a Germanic language because it shares innovations with other Germanic languages including Dutch , German , and Swedish . These shared innovations show that
261-635: A 2012 official Eurobarometer poll (conducted when the UK was still a member of the EU), 38 percent of the EU respondents outside the countries where English is an official language said they could speak English well enough to have a conversation in that language. The next most commonly mentioned foreign language, French (which is the most widely known foreign language in the UK and Ireland), could be used in conversation by 12 percent of respondents. A working knowledge of English has become
348-794: A character from the anime/manga franchise Strike Witches Alexandra Mack, a.k.a. Alex Mack, titular lead character in the popular television series The Secret World of Alex Mack Alexandra Nuñez, a.k.a. Alex Nuñez, character in the Canadian television drama Degrassi: The Next Generation Alexandra Margarita Russo, a.k.a. Alex Russo , character in the Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place , played by Selena Gomez Alexandra Vause, a.k.a. Alex Vause , imprisoned drug dealer and love interest to protagonist to Piper Chapman in Netflix's Orange Is The New Black Aleksandra Billewicz ,
435-768: A character from the game Mystic Defender Alexandra , Nikita character Alexandra, the main antagonist in The Wildwood Chronicles Alexandra the Royal Baby Fairy, character in the British book series Rainbow Magic Alexandra "Alex" Bailey, a main character in Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories Alexandra Borgia , an Assistant District Attorney in Law & Order, played by Annie Parisse Alexandra Brooks DiMera, a.k.a. Lexie Carver , character in
522-893: A character in Deluge by Henryk Sienkiewicz Aleksandra 'Zarya' Zaryanova, a Russian weightlifter turned soldier in the video game Overwatch Alexandra "Lex" Foster, the main protagonist of Team StarKid ' s Black Friday (musical) See also [ edit ] Alexander Alexandria (given name) References [ edit ] ^ Alexándra , Ancient Greek : [aleksándra] Modern Greek : [aleˈksanðra] ^ Hanks, Patrick ; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). A Dictionary of First Names . Oxford paperback reference. Oxford University Press . p. 52. ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1 . OCLC 67869278 . Retrieved 5 May 2019 . ^ Ἀλέξανδρος . Liddell, Henry George ; Scott, Robert ; A Greek–English Lexicon at
609-651: A distinct language from Modern English and is virtually impossible for 21st-century unstudied English-speakers to understand. Its grammar was similar to that of modern German: nouns, adjectives, pronouns, and verbs had many more inflectional endings and forms , and word order was much freer than in Modern English. Modern English has case forms in pronouns ( he , him , his ) and has a few verb inflections ( speak , speaks , speaking , spoke , spoken ), but Old English had case endings in nouns as well, and verbs had more person and number endings. Its closest relative
696-484: A foreign language, make up the "expanding circle". The distinctions between English as a first language, as a second language, and as a foreign language are often debatable and may change in particular countries over time. For example, in the Netherlands and some other countries of Europe, knowledge of English as a second language is nearly universal, with over 80 percent of the population able to use it, and thus English
783-638: A group of West Germanic dialects spoken by the Anglo-Saxons . Late Old English borrowed some grammar and core vocabulary from Old Norse , a North Germanic language . Then, Middle English borrowed vocabulary extensively from French dialects , which are the source of approximately 28% of Modern English words , and from Latin , which is the source of an additional 28% . As such, though most of its total vocabulary comes from Romance languages , Modern English's grammar, phonology, and most commonly used words in everyday use keep it genealogically classified under
870-520: A more standard version of English. They have many more speakers of English who acquire English as they grow up through day-to-day use and listening to broadcasting, especially if they attend schools where English is the medium of instruction. Varieties of English learned by non-native speakers born to English-speaking parents may be influenced, especially in their grammar, by the other languages spoken by those learners. Most of those varieties of English include words little used by native speakers of English in
957-688: A number of other Anglic languages, including Scots and the extinct Fingallian dialect and Yola language of Ireland. Like Icelandic and Faroese , the development of English in the British Isles isolated it from the continental Germanic languages and influences, and it has since diverged considerably. English is not mutually intelligible with any continental Germanic language, as it differs in vocabulary , syntax , and phonology . However, some of these, such as Dutch or Frisian, do show strong affinities with English, especially with its earlier stages. Unlike Icelandic and Faroese, which were isolated,
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#17328488179721044-679: A requirement in a number of occupations and professions such as medicine and computing. English has become so important in scientific publishing that more than 80 percent of all scientific journal articles indexed by Chemical Abstracts in 1998 were written in English, as were 90 percent of all articles in natural science publications by 1996 and 82 percent of articles in humanities publications by 1995. International communities such as international business people may use English as an auxiliary language , with an emphasis on vocabulary suitable for their domain of interest. This has led some scholars to develop
1131-407: A rich inflectional morphology and relatively free word order to a mostly analytic pattern with little inflection and a fairly fixed subject–verb–object word order . Modern English relies more on auxiliary verbs and word order for the expression of complex tenses , aspects and moods , as well as passive constructions , interrogatives , and some negation . The earliest form of English
1218-744: A significant minority speaks English. The countries with the most native English speakers are, in descending order, the United States (at least 231 million), the United Kingdom (60 million), Canada (19 million), Australia (at least 17 million), South Africa (4.8 million), Ireland (4.2 million), and New Zealand (3.7 million). In these countries, children of native speakers learn English from their parents, and local people who speak other languages and new immigrants learn English to communicate in their neighbourhoods and workplaces. The inner-circle countries provide
1305-447: A verb ending ( present plural): From the 8th to the 11th centuries, Old English gradually transformed through language contact with Old Norse in some regions. The waves of Norse (Viking) colonisation of northern parts of the British Isles in the 8th and 9th centuries put Old English into intense contact with Old Norse , a North Germanic language. Norse influence was strongest in the north-eastern varieties of Old English spoken in
1392-552: Is Old Frisian , but even some centuries after the Anglo-Saxon migration, Old English retained considerable mutual intelligibility with other Germanic varieties. Even in the 9th and 10th centuries, amidst the Danelaw and other Viking invasions, there is historical evidence that Old Norse and Old English retained considerable mutual intelligibility, although probably the northern dialects of Old English were more similar to Old Norse than
1479-459: Is also undergoing change under the influence of American English, fuelled by the strong presence of American English in the media and the prestige associated with the United States as a world power. As of 2016 , 400 million people spoke English as their first language , and 1.1 billion spoke it as a secondary language. English is the largest language by number of speakers . English
1566-603: Is also widely used in media and literature, and the number of English language books published annually in India is the third largest in the world after the US and UK. However, English is rarely spoken as a first language, numbering only around a couple hundred-thousand people, and less than 5% of the population speak fluent English in India. David Crystal claimed in 2004 that, combining native and non-native speakers, India now has more people who speak or understand English than any other country in
1653-407: Is an official language of countries populated by few descendants of native speakers of English. It has also become by far the most important language of international communication when people who share no native language meet anywhere in the world. The Indian linguist Braj Kachru distinguished countries where English is spoken with a three circles model . In his model, Kachru based his model on
1740-528: Is called Old English or Anglo-Saxon ( c. 450–1150 ). Old English developed from a set of West Germanic dialects, often grouped as Anglo-Frisian or North Sea Germanic , and originally spoken along the coasts of Frisia , Lower Saxony and southern Jutland by Germanic peoples known to the historical record as the Angles , Saxons , and Jutes . From the 5th century, the Anglo-Saxons settled Britain as
1827-487: Is different from Wikidata All set index articles Alexandra (disambiguation) Alexandra is the feminine form of the given name Alexander. Alexandra may also refer to: English language English is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family , whose speakers, called Anglophones , originated in early medieval England on the island of Great Britain . The namesake of
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#17328488179721914-527: Is often arbitrarily defined as beginning with the conquest of England by William the Conqueror in 1066, but it developed further in the period from 1150 to 1500. With the Norman conquest of England in 1066, the now-Norsified Old English language was subject to another wave of intense contact, this time with Old French , in particular Old Norman French , influencing it as a superstrate. The Norman French spoken by
2001-424: Is routinely used to communicate with foreigners and often in higher education. In these countries, although English is not used for government business, its widespread use puts them at the boundary between the "outer circle" and "expanding circle". English is unusual among world languages in how many of its users are not native speakers but speakers of English as a second or foreign language. Many users of English in
2088-427: Is similar, though itself means "land, place of Alexander". This article contains special characters . Without proper rendering support , you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols . Alexandra ( Ancient Greek : Ἀλεξάνδρα ) is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander ( Ancient Greek : Ἀλέξανδρος , Aléxandros ). Etymologically ,
2175-517: Is spoken by communities on every continent and on islands in all the major oceans. The countries where English is spoken can be grouped into different categories according to how English is used in each country. The "inner circle" countries with many native speakers of English share an international standard of written English and jointly influence speech norms for English around the world. English does not belong to just one country, and it does not belong solely to descendants of English settlers. English
2262-777: Is the third person pronoun group beginning with th- ( they, them, their ) which replaced the Anglo-Saxon pronouns with h- ( hie, him, hera ). Other core Norse loanwords include "give", "get", "sky", "skirt", "egg", and "cake", typically displacing a native Anglo-Saxon equivalent. Old Norse in this era retained considerable mutual intelligibility with some dialects of Old English, particularly northern ones. Englischmen þeyz hy hadde fram þe bygynnyng þre manner speche, Souþeron, Northeron, and Myddel speche in þe myddel of þe lond, ... Noþeles by comyxstion and mellyng, furst wiþ Danes, and afterward wiþ Normans, in menye þe contray longage ys asperyed, and som vseþ strange wlaffyng, chyteryng, harryng, and garryng grisbytting. Although, from
2349-736: Is the wife of the Russian billionaire Andrey Melnichenko Aleksandra Perišić (born 2002), Serbian taekwondo practitioner Aleksandra Prijović (born 1995), Serbian pop-folk singer Aleksandra Przegalińska (born 1982), Polish futurist Aleksandra Ranković (born 1980), Serbian volleyball player Aleksandra Shchekoldina (born 2002), retired Russian gymnast Aleksandra Stepanović (born 1994), Serbian volleyball player Aleksandra Vukajlović (born 1997), Serbian handball player Aleksandra Wozniak (born 1987), Canadian tennis player Aleksandra Ziółkowska-Boehm (born 1949), Polish writer Fictional characters [ edit ] Alexandra,
2436-943: The Anglic languages in the British Isles , and into the Frisian languages and Low German /Low Saxon on the continent. The Frisian languages, which together with the Anglic languages form the Anglo-Frisian languages , are the closest living relatives of English. Low German/Low Saxon is also closely related, and sometimes English, the Frisian languages, and Low German are grouped together as the North Sea Germanic languages, though this grouping remains debated. Old English evolved into Middle English , which in turn evolved into Modern English. Particular dialects of Old and Middle English also developed into
2523-479: The Augustinian canon Orrm , which highlights the blending of both Old English and Anglo-Norman elements in English for the first time. In Wycliff'e Bible of the 1380s, the verse Matthew 8:20 was written: Foxis han dennes, and briddis of heuene han nestis . Here the plural suffix -n on the verb have is still retained, but none of the case endings on the nouns are present. By the 12th century Middle English
2610-537: The Danelaw area around York, which was the centre of Norse colonisation; today these features are still particularly present in Scots and Northern English . The centre of Norsified English was in the Midlands around Lindsey . After 920 CE, when Lindsey was incorporated into the Anglo-Saxon polity, English spread extensively throughout the region. An element of Norse influence that continues in all English varieties today
2697-532: The European Free Trade Association , Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) set English as their organisation's sole working language even though most members are not countries with a majority of native English speakers. While the European Union (EU) allows member states to designate any of the national languages as an official language of
Alexandra - Misplaced Pages Continue
2784-743: The Perseus Project ^ ἀλέξειν in Liddell and Scott ^ ἀνήρ in Liddell and Scott . ^ Tablet MY V 659 (61). "The Linear B word a-re-ka-sa-da-ra" . Palaeolexicon. Word study tool of ancient languages . "MY 659 V (61)" . DĀMOS Database of Mycenaean at Oslo . University of Oslo . Raymoure, K.A. "a-re-ka-sa-da-ra-qe" . Deaditerranean. Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B . Chadwick, John (1999) [1976]. The Mycenaean World . New York: Cambridge University Press. [REDACTED] Name list This page or section lists people that share
2871-641: The United Nations at the end of World War II , English had become pre-eminent and is now the main worldwide language of diplomacy and international relations. It is one of six official languages of the United Nations. Many other worldwide international organisations, including the International Olympic Committee , specify English as a working language or official language of the organisation. Many regional international organisations such as
2958-511: The palatalisation of consonants that were velar consonants in Proto-Germanic (see Phonological history of Old English § Palatalization ). The earliest varieties of an English language, collectively known as Old English or "Anglo-Saxon", evolved from a group of North Sea Germanic dialects brought to Britain in the 5th century. Old English dialects were later influenced by Old Norse -speaking Viking invaders and settlers , starting in
3045-558: The "outer circle" countries are countries such as the Philippines , Jamaica , India , Pakistan , Singapore , Malaysia and Nigeria with a much smaller proportion of native speakers of English but much use of English as a second language for education, government, or domestic business, and its routine use for school instruction and official interactions with the government. Those countries have millions of native speakers of dialect continua ranging from an English-based creole to
3132-596: The 8th and 9th centuries. Middle English began in the late 11th century after the Norman Conquest of England, when a considerable amount of Old French vocabulary was incorporated into English over some three centuries. Early Modern English began in the late 15th century with the start of the Great Vowel Shift and the Renaissance trend of borrowing further Latin and Greek words and roots, concurrent with
3219-595: The Angles. English may have a small amount of substrate influence from Common Brittonic, and a number of possible Brittonicisms in English have been proposed, but whether most of these supposed Brittonicisms are actually a direct result of Brittonic substrate influence is disputed. Old English was divided into four dialects: the Anglian dialects ( Mercian and Northumbrian ) and the Saxon dialects ( Kentish and West Saxon ). Through
3306-512: The British Empire in the 1950s and 1960s, former colonies often did not reject English but rather continued to use it as independent countries setting their own language policies. For example, the view of the English language among many Indians has gone from associating it with colonialism to associating it with economic progress, and English continues to be an official language of India. English
3393-22141: The Diocletianic persecutions Alexandra Aikhenvald (born 1957), Russian–Australian linguist Alexandra Aldridge (born 1994), American ice dancer Alexandra Allred (born 1965), American author and fitness instructor Alexandra Anghel (born 1997), Romanian freestyle wrestler Alexandra Ansanelli , American ballet dancer Alexandra Anstrell (born 1974), Swedish politician Alexandra Araújo (born 1972), Brazilian–born Italian water polo player Alexandra Arce (born 1977), Ecuadorian engineer and politician Alexandra Aristoteli (born 1997), Australian rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Asimaki (born 1988), Greek water polo player Alexandra Bachzetsis (born 1974), Greek–Swiss choreographer and visual artist Alexandra Backford (1942–2010), Aleut–American painter Alexandra Badea (born 1998), Romanian handballer Alexandra Balashova (1942–1969), Russian ballet dancer and choreographer Alexandra Barré (born 1958), Hungarian–born Canadian sprint kayaker Alexandra Barreto (born 1975), American actress Alexandra Bastedo (1946–2014), English actress Alexandra Beaton (born c. 1994 ), Canadian actress Alexandra Bellow (born 1935), Romanian–American mathematician Alexandra Benado (born 1976), Chilean politician and football player Alexandra Béres (born 1976), Hungarian bodybuilder and curler Alexandra Berzon (born 1979), American investigative reporter and journalist Alexandra Beukes , South African politician Alexandra Beverfjord (born 1977), Norwegian journalist, crime fiction writer, and newspaper editor Alexandra Bezeková (born 1992), Slovakian sprinter Alexandra Boltasseva (born 1978), Russian engineer and physicist Alexandra Borbély (born 1986), Slovakian–Hungarian actress Alexandra Botez (born 1995), American–Canadian chess player and Twitch streamer Alexandra Bounxouei (born 1987), Laotian–Bulgarian actress, model, and singer Alexandra Boyko (1916–1996), Russian tank commander Alexandra Bracken (born 1987), American author Alexandra Bradshaw (1888–1981), Canadian–American art professor and watercolor artist Alexandra Branitskaya (1754–1838), Russian courtier Alexandra Braun (born 1983), Venezuelan actress, model, and beauty queen Alexandra Breckenridge (born 1982), American actress, model, and photographer Alexandra Brewis Slade (born 1965), New Zealand-American anthropologist Alexandra Brooks (born 1995), English footballer Alexandra Bruce (born 1990), Canadian badminton player Alexandra Brushtein (1884–1968), Russian and Soviet writer, playwright, and memoirist Alexandra Buch (born 1979), German mixed martial artist Alexandra Bugailiskis (born 1956), Canadian diplomat Alexandra Bujdoso (born 1990), Hungarian–German sabre fencer Alexandra Bunton (born 1993), Australian basketball player Alexandra Burghardt (born 1994), German bobsledder and sprinter Alexandra Burke (born 1988), British singer Alexandra W. Busch (born 1975), German Roman archaeologist Alexandra Byrne (born 1962), English costume designer Alexandra Cardenas (born 1976), Colombian composer Alexandra Carlisle (1886–1936), English actress and suffragist Alexandra Carpenter (born 1994), American ice hockey player Alexandra Caso (born 1987), Dominican volleyball player Alexandra Cassavetes , American actress and filmmaker Alexandra Castillo (born 1971), Chilean–Canadian actress and dancer Alexandra Chalupa (born 1976 or 1977), American lawyer and pro–Ukrainian activist Alexandra Chambon (born 2000), French rugby player Alexandra Chando (born 1986), American actress Alexandra Charles (born 1946), Swedish nightclub owner Alexandra Chasin (born 1961), American experimental writer Alexandra Chaves (born 2001), Canadian actress and dancer Alexandra Chekina (born 1993), Russian cyclist Alexandra Cheron (1983–2011), Dominican–American actress, businesswoman, model, and socialite Alexandra Chidiac (born 1999), Australian footballer Alexandra Chong , Jamaican entrepreneur Alexandra Chreiteh (born 1987), Lebanese author Alexandra Coletti (born 1983), Monégasque alpine skier Alexandra Cousteau (born 1976), French environmental activist and filmmaker Alexandra Cunha (born 1962), Mozambican–born Portuguese marine biologist Alexandra Cunningham (born 1972 or 1973), American playwright, screenwriter, and television producer Alexandra Curtis (born 1991), American beauty queen Alexandra Čvanová (1897–1939), Ukrainian–born Czech operatic soprano Alexandra Daddario (born 1986), American actress Alexandra Dahlström (born 1984), Swedish actress Alexandra Dane (born 1940), South African–born English actress Alexandra Danilova (1903–1997), Russian ballet dancer Alexandra Dariescu (born 1985), Romanian pianist Alexandra Dascalu (born 1991), French volleyball player Alexandra Daum (born 1986), Austrian alpine skier Alexandra David-Néel (1868–1969), French explorer and spiritualist Alexandra Davies (born 1977), English–born Australian actress Alexandra de la Mora (born 1979), Mexican actress Alexandra Dementieva (born 1960), Russian artist Alexandra Denisova (1922–2018), Canadian ballet dancer Alexandra Deshorties (born 1975), French–Canadian operatic soprano Alexandra Dimoglou (born 1981), Greek Paralympic track and field athlete Alexandra Dindiligan (born 1997), Romanian handballer Alexandra DiNovi (born 1989), American actress Alexandra Dinu (born 1981), Romanian actress and television presenter Alexandra Diplarou (born 1981), Greek volleyball player Alexandra Dobolyi (born 1971), Hungarian politician Alexandra Dowling (born 1990), English actress Alexandra Duckworth (born 1987), Canadian snowboarder Alexandra Duel-Hallen , American electrical engineer Alexandra Dulgheru (born 1989), Romanian tennis player Alexandra Dunn (born 1967), American lawyer Alexandra Eade (born 1998), Australian artistic gymnast Alexandra Elbakyan (born 1988), Kazakhstani computer programmer Alexandra Eldridge (born 1948), American painter Alexandra Engen (born 1988), Swedish cross country cyclist Alexandra Eremia (born 1987), Romanian rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Ermakova (born 1992), Russian rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Escobar (born 1980), Ecuadorian weightlifter Alexandra Feigin (born 2002), Bulgarian figure skater Alexandra Feracci (born 1992), French karateka Alexandra Finder (born 1977), German actress Alexandra Fisher (born 1988), Kazakhstani athlete Alexandra Flood (born 1990), Australian operatic soprano Alexandra Fomina (born 1975), Ukrainian volleyball player Alexandra Försterling (born 1999), German amateur golfer Alexandra Föster (born 2002), German rower Alexandra Fouace (born 1979), French archer Alexandra Fuentes (born 1978), Puerto Rican actress and radio host Alexandra Fusai (born 1973), French tennis player Alexandra Gage, Viscountess Gage (born 1969), British lecturer Alexandra Pavlovna Galitzine (1905–2006), Russian princess Alexandra Gallagher (born 1980), English artist Alexandra Gardner (born 1967), American composer Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg (born 1982), English–South African artist Alexandra Goujon (born 1972), French political scientist Alexandra Gowie (born 1990), South African–born Hungarian–Canadian ice hockey player Alexandra Grande (born 1990), Peruvian karateka Alexandra Grant (born 1973), American visual artist Alexandra Gripenberg (1857–1913), Finnish activist, author, and newspaper publisher Alexandra Gummer (born 1992), Australian soccer player Alexandra Hagan (born 1991), Australian rower Alexandra Hargreaves (born 1980), Australian rugby player Alexandra Harrison (born 2002), French ice hockey player Alexandra Hasluck (1908–1993), Australian author and historian Alexandra Hedison (born 1969), American actress, director, and photographer Alexandra Heidrich , German canoeist Alexandra Helbling (born 1993), Sri Lankan–born Swiss Paralympic athlete Alexandra Heminsley (born 1976), British journalist and writer Alexandra Henao , Venezuelan cinematographer and director Alexandra Herbríková (born 1992), Slovakian–Czech ice dancer Alexandra Hernandez (born 1981), French singer and songwriter Alexandra Hidalgo , Venezuelan–American documentarian Alexandra Hildebrandt (born 1959), German human rights activist Alexandra Mary Hirschi (born 1985), Australian social media personality and vlogger Alexandra Hoffman (born 1987), American beauty queen Alexandra Hoffmeyer (born 1988), American ice hockey player Alexandra Höglund (born 1990), Swedish football player Alexandra Holden (born 1977), American actress Alexandra Hollá (born 1994), Slovakian football player Alexandra van Huffelen (born 1968), Dutch politician Alexandra Ashley Hughes (born 1985), Canadian singer and songwriter Alexandra Hulley (born 1997), Australian athlete Alexandra Hurst (born 1994), Northern Irish soccer player Alexandra Huynh (born 1994), Australian soccer player Alexandra Ianculescu (born 1991), Romanian–Canadian speed skater Alexandra Ievleva (born 1987), Russian figure skater Alexandra Issayeva (born 1982), Kazakhstani volleyball player Alexandra Ivanovskaya (born 1989), Russian beauty queen and model Alexandra Jackson (born 1952), Irish–English swimmer Alexandra Jiménez (born 1980), Spanish actress Alexandra Jóhannsdóttir (born 2000), Icelandic football player Alexandra Johnes (born 1976), American documentary film producer Alexandra Joner (born 1990), Norwegian dancer and singer Alexandra Jupiter (born 1990), French volleyball player Alexandra Kalinovská (born 1974), Czech modern pentathlete Alexandra Kamieniecki (born 1996), Polish figure skater Alexandra Kamp (born 1966), German actress and model Alexandra Kapustina (born 1984), Russian ice hockey player Alexandra Kasser (born 1967), American attorney and politician Alexandra Kavadas (born 1983), Greek football player Alexandra Kehayoglou (born 1981), Argentine textile artist Alexandra Kenworthy (born 1932), American voice actress Alexandra Keresztesi (born 1983), Hungarian–born Argentine sprint canoer Alexandra Kerry (born 1973), American filmmaker Alexandra Killewald (born 1983), American sociology professor Alexandra Kiroi-Bogatyreva (born 2002), Australian Olympic rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Kim (1885–1918), Russian–Korean revolutionary political activist Alexandra Kleeman (born 1986), American writer Alexandra Kluge (1937–2017), German actress Alexandra Koefoed (born 1978), Norwegian sailor Alexandra Kolesnichenko (born 1992), Uzbekistani tennis player Alexandra Kollontai (1872–1952), Russian politician Alexandra Konofalskaya (born 1986), Belarusian sand animation artist Alexandra Korelova (born 1977), Russian equestrian Alexandra Korolkova (born 1984), Russian typeface designer Alexandra Kosinski (born 1989), American long-distance runner Alexandra Kosteniuk (born 1984), Russian chess grandmaster Alexandra Kotur , American fashion journalist Alexandra Kropotkin (1887–1966), Russian–American writer Alexandra Krosney , American actress Alexandra Kunová (born 1992), Slovakian figure skater Alexandra Kutas (born 1993), Ukrainian model Alexandra Lacrabère (born 1987), French handballer Alexandra Lamy (born 1971), French actress Alexandra Langley (born 1992), English badminton player Alexandra Lapierre , French author Alexandra Maria Lara (born 1978), Romanian–German actress Alexandra Larochelle (born 1993), Canadian writer Alexandra Larsson (born 1986), Swedish–Argentine model Alexandra Lazarowich , Cree–Canadian director and producer Alexandra Lebenthal (born 1964), American businesswoman Alexandra Leclère , French director and screenwriter Alexandra Lehti (born 1996), Finnish singer, known as Lxandra Alexandra Leitão (born 1973), Portuguese law professor and politician Alexandra Lemoine (born 1928), French artistic gymnast Alexandra Lencastre (born 1965), Portuguese actress Alexandra Lethbridge (born 1987), Hong Kong–born English photographer Alexandra Levit (born 1976), American writer Alexandra Lisney (born 1987), Australian cyclist and rower Alexandra London (born 1973), French actress Alexandra Longová (born 1994), Slovakian archer Alexandra López (born 1989), Spanish soccer player Alexandra Louis (born 1983), French lawyer and politician Alexandra Lúgaro (born 1981), Puerto Rican attorney, businesswoman, and politician Alexandra Lukin (born 1998), New Zealand field hockey player Alexandra Lunca (born 1995), Romanian soccer player Alexandra Lydon , American actress Alexandra Măceșanu (2003–2019), Romanian murder victim Alexandra Makovskaya (1837–1915), Russian landscape painter Alexandra Manly (born 1998), Australian cyclist Alexandra Mařasová (born 1965), Czech alpine skier Alexandra Mardell (born 1993), English actress Alexandra Marinescu (born 1982), Romanian artistic gymnast Alexandra Marinina (born 1957), Russian writer Alexandra Martin (born 1968), French politician Alexandra Marzo (born 1968), Brazilian actress and screenwriter Alexandra Mavrokordatou (1605–1684), Greek intellectual Alexandra Mazur (born 1986), Russian beauty queen Alexandra Meissnitzer (born 1973), Austrian alpine ski racer Alexandra Mendès (born 1963), Canadian politician Alexandra Merkulova (born 1995), Russian rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Micu , Romanian fashion model Alexandra Miller (born 1973), American businesswoman and politician Alexandra Milton (born 1967), French artist and illustrator Alexandra Mîrca (born 1993), Moldovan archer Alexandra Mitroshina (born 1994), Russian journalist Alexandra Mitsotaki (born 1956), Greek activist and entrepreneur Alexandra Moreno (born 2000), Spanish racing cyclist Alexandra Morgenrood (born 1940), Zimbabwean diver Alexandra Morrison , Canadian photographer Alexandra Morton (born 1957), American conservation activist and marine biologist Alexandra Mousavizadeh (born 1970), Danish economist Alexandra Mueller (born 1988), American tennis player Alexandra Muñoz (born 1992), Peruvian volleyball player Alexandra Munteanu (born 1980), Romanian alpine skier Alexandra Najarro (born 1993), Canadian figure skater Alexandra Nancarrow (born 1993), Australian tennis player Alexandra Ndolo (born 1986), German–born Kenyan épée fencer Alexandra Nechita (born 1985), Romanian–American cubist painter and philanthropist Alexandra Nekvapilová (1919–2014), Czech alpine skier Alexandra Neldel (born 1976), German actress Alexandra Nemich (born 1995), Kazakhstani synchronized swimmer Alexandra Nereïev (born 1976), French painter and sculptor Alexandra Nessmar (born 1994), Swedish racing cyclist Alexandra Newton , South African pharmacology professor Alexandra Niepel (born 1970), British tennis player Alexandra Nikiforova (born 1993), Russian actress Alexandra Obolentseva (born 2001), Russian chess player Alexandra Ocles (born 1979), Ecuadorian educator and politician Alexandra Oliver (born 1970), Canadian poet Alexandra Olsson (born 1998), Finnish handballer Alexandra Opachanova (born 1989), Kazakh rower Alexandra Oquendo (born 1984), Puerto Rican volleyball player Alexandra Ordolis (born 1986), Greek–Canadian actress Alexandra Osborne (born 1995), Australian tennis player Alexandra Panova (born 1989), Russian tennis player Alexandra Papageorgiou (born 1980), Greek hammer thrower Alexandra Park (born 1989), Australian actress Alexandra Parks (born 1984), English singer-songwriter Alexandra Pascalidou (born 1970), Greek–Swedish author and columnist Alexandra Paschalidou-Moreti (1912–2010), Greek architect Alexandra Patsavas (born 1968), Greek–American music supervisor Alexandra Pelosi (born 1970), American documentarian and journalist Alexandra Penney , American artist, author, and journalist Alexandra Perper (born 1991), Moldovan tennis player Alexandra Petkovski , Canadian composer Alexandra Petrova (1980–2000), Russian beauty queen and model Alexandra Picatto (born 1983), American accountant and child actress Alexandra Pierce (1934–2021), American composer and pianist Alexandra Piscupescu (born 1994), Romanian rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Podkolzina (born 1985), Russian–American tennis player Alexandra Podryadova (born 1989), Kazakhstani judoka Alexandra Polivanchuk (born 1990), Swedish deaf swimmer Alexandra Pomales (born 1995), American actress Alexandra Popp (born 1991), German soccer player Alexandra Potter (born 1970), English author Alexandra Poulovassilis , Greek–English computer scientist Alexandra Powers , American actress Alexandra Pringle (born 1953), British publisher Alexandra Quinn (born 1973), Canadian pornographic actress Alexandra Radius (born 1942), Dutch ballet dancer Alexandra Raeva (born 1992), Russian curler Alexandra Raffé (born 1955), Canadian film and television producer Alexandra Ramniceanu (born 1976), French film producer and screenwriter Alexandra Rapaport (born 1971), Swedish actress Alexandra Razarenova (born 1990), Russian triathlete Alexandra Recchia (born 1988), French karateka Alexandra Reid (born 1989), American rapper and singer Alexandra Rexová (born 2005), Slovakian blind alpine skier Alexandra Richards (born 1986), American artist and model Alexandra Richter (born 1967), Brazilian actress Alexandra Rickham (born 1981), Jamaican–born English Paralympic sailor Alexandra Ridout (born 1998), English jazz trumpeter Alexandra Ripley (1934–2004), American writer Alexandra Roach (born 1987), Welsh actress Alexandra Robbins , American author, journalist, and lecturer Alexandra Roche, Lady Roche (born 1934), British philanthropist Alexandra Rochelle (born 1983), French volleyball player Alexandra Rodionova (born 1984), Russian bobsledder Alexandra Rojas (born 1995), American activist and political commentator Alexandra Rosenfeld (born 1986), French beauty queen and model Alexandra Rotan (born 1996), Norwegian singer and songwriter Alexandra Rout (born 1993), New Zealand figure skater Alexandra Rozenman (born 1971), Russian–born American graphic designer, illustrator, and painter Alexandra Rutherford , Canadian psychology professor Alexandra Rutlidge (born 1988), English water polo player Alexandra Saduakassova (born 2002), Kazakh sport shooter Alexandra Sahlen (born 1982), American soccer player Alexandra Salmela (born 1980), Slovakian author Alexandra Salvador (born 1995), Canadian–born Ecuadorian soccer player Alexandra Savior (born 1995), American singer and songwriter Alexandra Schepisi , Australian actress Alexandra Schörghuber (born 1958), German entrepreneur Alexandra Sharp (born 1997), Australian basketball player Alexandra Shevchenko (born 1988), Ukrainian radical feminist activist Alexandra Shimo , Canadian writer Alexandra Shipp , American actress and singer Alexandra Shiryayeva (born 1983), Russian beach volleyball player Alexandra Shiva , American documentarian Alexandra Shulman (born 1957), English journalist Alexandra Sicoe (1932–2019), Romanian sprinter Alexandra Sidorovici (1906–2000), Romanian politician Alexandra Silber , American actress, educator, singer, and writer Alexandra Silk (born 1963), American pornographic actress Alexandra Silocea (born 1984), Romanian–born French pianist Alexandra Silva (born 1984), Portuguese computer scientist Alexandra Slade , American actress Alexandra Smirnoff (1838–1913) Finnish pomologist Alexandra Sobo (born 1987), Romanian volleyball player Alexandra Socha (born 1990), American actress Alexandra Sokoloff , American novelist and screenwriter Alexandra Soler (born 1983), French artistic gymnast Alexandra Solnado , Portuguese writer Alexandra Sorina (1899–1973), Belarusian actress Alexandra Soumm (born 1989), Russian–born French violinist Alexandra Sourla (born 1973), Greek equestrian Alexandra Stan (born 1989), Romanian singer Alexandra Stepanova (born 1995), Russian ice dancer Alexandra Stevenson (born 1980), American tennis player Alexandra Stewart (born 1939), Canadian actress Alexandra Stréliski (born 1985), Canadian composer and pianist Alexandra Styron , American author and professor Alexandra Subțirică (born 1987), Romanian handballer Alexandra Suda (born 1981), Canadian art historian Alexandra Takounda (born 2000), Cameroonian soccer player Alexandra Talomaa (born 1975), Swedish songwriter Alexandra Tavernier (born 1993), French hammer thrower Alexandra Techet , American marine engineer Alexandra Tegleva (1894–1955), Russian nursemaid Alexandra Tessier (born 1993), Canadian rugby player Alexandra Thein (born 1963), German politician Alexandra Tilley (born 1993), Scottish alpine ski racer Alexandra Timoshenko (born 1972), Ukrainian rhythmic gymnast Alexandra Tolstaya (1884–1979), Russian secretary and
3480-537: The Early Modern period includes the works of William Shakespeare and the translation of the Bible commissioned by King James I . Even after the vowel shift the language still sounded different from Modern English: for example, the consonant clusters /kn ɡn sw/ in knight , gnat , and sword were still pronounced. Many of the grammatical features that a modern reader of Shakespeare might find quaint or archaic represent
3567-578: The English Language , which introduced standard spellings of words and usage norms. In 1828, Noah Webster published the American Dictionary of the English language to try to establish a norm for speaking and writing American English that was independent of the British standard. Within Britain, non-standard or lower class dialect features were increasingly stigmatised, leading to the quick spread of
Alexandra - Misplaced Pages Continue
3654-543: The English-speaking inner circle countries outside Britain helped level dialect distinctions and produce koineised forms of English in South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. The majority of immigrants to the United States without British ancestry rapidly adopted English after arrival. Now the majority of the United States population are monolingual English speakers. English has ceased to be an "English language" in
3741-676: The Germanic branch. It exists on a dialect continuum with Scots and is then most closely related to the Low Saxon and Frisian languages . English is an Indo-European language and belongs to the West Germanic group of the Germanic languages . Old English originated from a Germanic tribal and linguistic continuum along the Frisian North Sea coast, whose languages gradually evolved into
3828-739: The NBC soap opera Days of Our Lives Alexandra Cabot , an Assistant District Attorney in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, played by Stephanie March Alexandra "Alex" Cahill, character in the 1990s television series Walker, Texas Ranger Alexandra Cross, a.k.a. Lexy Cross, a character in the USA/Syfy TV series, Chucky , based on the Child's Play media franchise Alexandra Danvers, a.k.a. Alex Danvers , Kara Danvers' sister in Supergirl Alexandra Dunphy, a.k.a. Alex Dunphy , character in
3915-550: The Roman economy and administration collapsed . By the 7th century, this Germanic language of the Anglo-Saxons became dominant in Britain , replacing the languages of Roman Britain (43–409): Common Brittonic , a Celtic language , and British Latin , brought to Britain by the Roman occupation. At this time, these dialects generally resisted influence from the then-local Brittonic and Latin languages. England and English (originally Ænglaland and Ænglisc ) are both named after
4002-490: The Union, in practice English is the main working language of EU organisations. Although in most countries English is not an official language, it is currently the language most often taught as a foreign language . In the countries of the EU, English is the most widely spoken foreign language in nineteen of the twenty-five member states where it is not an official language (that is, the countries other than Ireland and Malta ). In
4089-758: The United Kingdom by marriage to Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom Alexandra the Maccabee (63 BCE – 28 BCE), only child of Hyrcanus II, King of Judaea Duchess Alexandra of Oldenburg (1838–1900), eldest child of Duke Constantine Frederick Peter of Oldenburg Alexandra [ edit ] Alexandra of Antioch ( fl. 4th century ), Greek noblewoman and the sister of Calliopius of Antioch Alexandra of Lithuania ( d. 1434 ), duchess consort of Masovia Alexandra of Rome ( d. 314 ), Christian saint and martyr of
4176-592: The United Nations , the European Union , and many other international and regional organisations. It has also become the de facto lingua franca of diplomacy, science , technology, international trade, logistics, tourism, aviation, entertainment, and the Internet . English accounts for at least 70% of total speakers of the Germanic language branch, and as of 2021 , Ethnologue estimated that there were over 1.5 billion speakers worldwide. Old English emerged from
4263-407: The base from which English spreads to other countries in the world. Estimates of the numbers of second language and foreign-language English speakers vary greatly from 470 million to more than 1 billion, depending on how proficiency is defined. Linguist David Crystal estimates that non-native speakers now outnumber native speakers by a ratio of 3 to 1. In Kachru's three-circles model,
4350-449: The basis for the required controlled natural languages Seaspeak and Airspeak, used as international languages of seafaring and aviation. English used to have parity with French and German in scientific research, but now it dominates that field. It achieved parity with French as a language of diplomacy at the Treaty of Versailles negotiations in 1919. By the time of the foundation of
4437-400: The beginning, Englishmen had three manners of speaking, southern, northern and midlands speech in the middle of the country, ... Nevertheless, through intermingling and mixing, first with Danes and then with Normans, amongst many the country language has arisen, and some use strange stammering, chattering, snarling, and grating gnashing. John Trevisa , c. 1385 Middle English
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#17328488179724524-638: The consensus of educated English speakers around the world, without any oversight by any government or international organisation. American listeners readily understand most British broadcasting, and British listeners readily understand most American broadcasting. Most English speakers around the world can understand radio programmes, television programmes, and films from many parts of the English-speaking world. Both standard and non-standard varieties of English can include both formal or informal styles, distinguished by word choice and syntax and use both technical and non-technical registers. The settlement history of
4611-2322: The daughter of Michael Wager Alexandra Wallace (born 1975 or 1976), American news media executive Alexandra Walsham (born 1966), English–Australian historian Alexandra Waluszewski (born 1956), Swedish professor and organizational theorist Alexandra Waterbury , American ballet dancer and model Alexandra Wedgwood (born 1938), English architectural historian Alexandra Wejchert (1921–1995), Polish–Irish sculptor Alexandra Wenk (born 1995), German swimmer Alexandra Wescourt (born 1975), English actress Alexandra Wester (born 1994), Gambian–born German long jumper Alexandra Williams , American rugby player Alexandra Wong (born 1956), Hong Kong activist Alexandra Worden (born 1970), American genome scientist and microbial ecologist Alexandra Worisch (born 1965), Austrian synchronized swimmer Alexandra Zabelina (1937–2022), Soviet fencer Alexandra Zaharias (born 1929), American ballet teacher Alexandra Zapruder (born 1969), American author and editor Alexandra Zaretsky (born 1987), Israeli ice dancer Alexandra Zarini (born 1985), Italian–American daughter of Patricia Gucci Alexandra Zazzi (born 1966), Italian–born Swedish chef, journalist, and television presenter Alexandra Zertsalova (born 1982), Kyrgyz swimmer Alexandra Zhukovskaya (1842–1899), Russian–German lady-in-waiting Alexandra Zimmermann , English conservation scientist Alexandra Zvorigina (born 1991), Russian ice dancer Aleksandra [ edit ] Aleksandra Antonova , various people Aleksandra Avramović (born 1982), Serbian volleyball player Aleksandra Crnčević (born 1987), Serbian volleyball player Aleksandra Crvendakić (born 1996), Serbian basketball player Aleksandra Cvetićanin (born 1993), Serbian volleyball player Aleksandra Dimitrova (born 2000), Russian chess master Aleksandra Dulkiewicz (born 1979), Polish lawyer Aleksandra Klepaczka (born 2000), Polish beauty pageant titleholder Aleksandra Adamovna Kolemina-Bacheracht (1854–1941), Polish novelist Aleksandra Krunić (born 1993), Serbian tennis player Aleksandra Maltsevskaya (born 2002), Russian chess master Aleksandra Melnichenko (born 1977), Serbian billionaire, former singer, and model who
4698-476: The development of English was influenced by a long series of invasions of the British Isles by other peoples and languages, particularly Old Norse and French dialects . These left a profound mark of their own on the language, so that English shows some similarities in vocabulary and grammar with many languages outside its linguistic clades —but it is not mutually intelligible with any of those languages either. Some scholars have argued that English can be considered
4785-467: The distinct characteristics of Early Modern English. In the 1611 King James Version of the Bible, written in Early Modern English, Matthew 8:20 says, "The Foxes haue holes and the birds of the ayre haue nests." This exemplifies the loss of case and its effects on sentence structure (replacement with subject–verb–object word order, and the use of of instead of the non-possessive genitive), and
4872-401: The early period of Old English were written using a runic script . By the 6th century, a Latin alphabet was adopted, written with half-uncial letterforms . It included the runic letters wynn ⟨ ƿ ⟩ and thorn ⟨ þ ⟩ , and the modified Latin letters eth ⟨ ð ⟩ , and ash ⟨ æ ⟩ . Old English is essentially
4959-539: The educational reforms of King Alfred in the 9th century and the influence of the kingdom of Wessex , the West Saxon dialect became the standard written variety . The epic poem Beowulf is written in West Saxon, and the earliest English poem, Cædmon's Hymn , is written in Northumbrian. Modern English developed mainly from Mercian, but the Scots language developed from Northumbrian. A few short inscriptions from
5046-684: The elite in England eventually developed into the Anglo-Norman language . Because Norman was spoken primarily by the elites and nobles, while the lower classes continued speaking English, the main influence of Norman was the introduction of a wide range of loanwords related to politics, legislation and prestigious social domains. Middle English also greatly simplified the inflectional system, probably in order to reconcile Old Norse and Old English, which were inflectionally different but morphologically similar. The distinction between nominative and accusative cases
5133-408: The expanding circle use it to communicate with other people from the expanding circle, so that interaction with native speakers of English plays no part in their decision to use the language. Non-native varieties of English are widely used for international communication, and speakers of one such variety often encounter features of other varieties. Very often today a conversation in English anywhere in
5220-710: The growing economic and cultural influence of the United States and its status as a superpower following the Second World War has, along with worldwide broadcasting in English by the BBC and other broadcasters, caused the language to spread across the planet much faster. In the 21st century, English is more widely spoken and written than any language has ever been. As Modern English developed, explicit norms for standard usage were published, and spread through official media such as public education and state-sponsored publications. In 1755, Samuel Johnson published his A Dictionary of
5307-479: The history of English was Early Modern English (1500–1700). Early Modern English was characterised by the Great Vowel Shift (1350–1700), inflectional simplification, and linguistic standardisation. The Great Vowel Shift affected the stressed long vowels of Middle English. It was a chain shift , meaning that each shift triggered a subsequent shift in the vowel system. Mid and open vowels were raised , and close vowels were broken into diphthongs . For example,
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#17328488179725394-407: The history of how English spread in different countries, how users acquire English, and the range of uses English has in each country. The three circles change membership over time. Countries with large communities of native speakers of English (the inner circle) include Britain, the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand, where the majority speaks English, and South Africa, where
5481-403: The inner-circle countries, and they may show grammatical and phonological differences from inner-circle varieties as well. The standard English of the inner-circle countries is often taken as a norm for use of English in the outer-circle countries. In the three-circles model, countries such as Poland, China, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Indonesia, Egypt, and other countries where English is taught as
5568-524: The introduction of loanwords from French ( ayre ) and word replacements ( bird originally meaning "nestling" had replaced OE fugol ). By the late 18th century, the British Empire had spread English through its colonies and geopolitical dominance. Commerce, science and technology, diplomacy, art, and formal education all contributed to English becoming the first truly global language. English also facilitated worldwide international communication. English
5655-467: The introduction of the printing press to London. This era notably culminated in the King James Bible and the works of William Shakespeare . The printing press greatly standardised English spelling, which has remained largely unchanged since then, despite a wide variety of later sound shifts in English dialects. Modern English has spread around the world since the 17th century as a consequence of
5742-486: The language is the Angles , one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to Britain . It is the most spoken language in the world, primarily due to the global influences of the former British Empire (succeeded by the Commonwealth of Nations ) and the United States . English is the third-most spoken native language , after Standard Chinese and Spanish ; it is also the most widely learned second language in
5829-431: The languages have descended from a single common ancestor called Proto-Germanic . Some shared features of Germanic languages include the division of verbs into strong and weak classes, the use of modal verbs , and the sound changes affecting Proto-Indo-European consonants, known as Grimm's and Verner's laws . English is classified as an Anglo-Frisian language because Frisian and English share other features, such as
5916-559: The name [ edit ] Royalty [ edit ] Alexandra of Russia (disambiguation) , various grand duchesses and royal consorts Empress Alexandra (disambiguation) , various empresses Alexandra Feodorovna (Alix of Hesse) (1872–1918), last empress consort of Russia by marriage to Nicholas II, Emperor of Russia . She is mentioned in the song "Rasputin" . Princess Alexandra (disambiguation) , various princesses Queen Alexandra (disambiguation) , various queens Alexandra of Denmark (1844–1925), queen consort of
6003-467: The name is a compound of the Greek verb ἀλέξειν ( alexein ; meaning 'to defend') and ἀνήρ ( anēr ; GEN ἀνδρός , andros ; meaning 'man'). Thus it may be roughly translated as "defender of man" or "protector of man". The name Alexandra was one of the epithets given to the Greek goddess Hera and as such is usually taken to mean "one who comes to save warriors". The earliest attested form of
6090-2134: The name is the Mycenaean Greek 𐀀𐀩𐀏𐀭𐀅𐀨 ( a-re-ka-sa-da-ra or / aleksandra /), written in the Linear B syllabic script. Alexandra and its masculine equivalent, Alexander, are both common names in Greece as well as countries where Germanic , Romance , and Slavic languages are spoken. Variants [ edit ] Alejandra, Alejandrina ( diminutive ) ( Spanish ) Aleksandra (Александра) ( Albanian , Bulgarian , Estonian , Latvian , Lithuanian , Macedonian , Polish , Russian , Serbo-Croatian ) Alessandra ( Italian ) Alessia (Italian) Alex (various languages) Alexa ( English , Romanian , Spanish ) Alexandra ( English , German , Dutch , French , Swedish , Norwegian , Danish , Icelandic , Greek , Portuguese , Romanian , Czech , Slovak , Hungarian , Catalan , Spanish , Italian , Russian , Ukrainian , Ancient Greek , Greek Mythology ) Alexis (English) Alexandra, Alexa, Alexis, Sandra, Sandy, Sasha ( Indonesian ) Aliaksandra ( Belarusian ) Alikhandra /اليخاندرا ( Egyptian ) Alissandra/Alyssandra ( Sicilian , Greek ) Allie (English) Ally (English) Alya (Russian) Ālēkjāndrā / আলেকজান্দ্রা ( Bengali ) Αλεξάνδρα (Greek) Leska ( Czech ) Lesya ( Ukrainian ) Lexa (English) Lexie (English) Lexine (English) Lexi (English) Lexy (English) Oleksandra (Ukrainian) Sacha ( French ) Sanda ( Romanian ) Sandie (English) Sandra ( Danish , Dutch , English, Polish, Estonian , Italian, Finnish , German , Icelandic , Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian , Portuguese, Romanian , Russian, Spanish, Serbo-Croatian, Slovene , Swedish) Sandy (English) Sascha (German) Sasha (Russian, Belarusian , Ukrainian, English, Spanish) Saskia (Slavic) Saundra (English, Scottish ) Saša (Czech, Serbo-Croatian, Slovak , Slovene) Saška (Serbian) Shura (Russian) Sondra (English) Szandra ( Hungarian ) People with
6177-513: The popular television series Modern Family Alexandra Eames , a detective in Law & Order Criminal Intent, played by Kathryn Erbe Alexandra Finch, sister of Atticus Finch in the 1960 novel To Kill A Mockingbird Alexandra Garcia, a character in the anime and manga series Kuroko's Basketball Alexandra Grey, a.k.a. Lexie Grey , character in the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy Alexandra Vladimirovna Litvyak, a.k.a. Sanya V. Litvyak ,
6264-426: The prestige varieties among the middle classes. In modern English, the loss of grammatical case is almost complete (it is now only found in pronouns, such as he and him , she and her , who and whom ), and SVO word order is mostly fixed. Some changes, such as the use of do-support , have become universalised. (Earlier English did not use the word "do" as a general auxiliary as Modern English does; at first it
6351-657: The reign of Henry V . Around 1430, the Court of Chancery in Westminster began using English in its official documents , and a new standard form of Middle English, known as Chancery Standard , developed from the dialects of London and the East Midlands . In 1476, William Caxton introduced the printing press to England and began publishing the first printed books in London, expanding the influence of this form of English. Literature from
6438-784: The same given name . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alexandra&oldid=1260052608 " Categories : Given names Feminine given names Greek feminine given names Romanian feminine given names Serbian feminine given names English feminine given names French feminine given names Hera Hidden categories: Articles containing Greek-language text Pages with Ancient Greek IPA Pages with Greek IPA Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text Articles containing Mycenaean Greek-language text Articles with short description Short description
6525-464: The sense of belonging only to people who are ethnically English . Use of English is growing country-by-country internally and for international communication. Most people learn English for practical rather than ideological reasons. Many speakers of English in Africa have become part of an "Afro-Saxon" language community that unites Africans from different countries. As decolonisation proceeded throughout
6612-474: The southern dialects. Theoretically, as late as the 900s AD, a commoner from certain (northern) parts of England could hold a conversation with a commoner from certain parts of Scandinavia. Research continues into the details of the myriad tribes in peoples in England and Scandinavia and the mutual contacts between them. The translation of Matthew 8:20 from 1000 shows examples of case endings ( nominative plural, accusative plural, genitive singular) and
6699-455: The study of English as an auxiliary language. The trademarked Globish uses a relatively small subset of English vocabulary (about 1500 words, designed to represent the highest use in international business English) in combination with the standard English grammar. Other examples include Simple English . The increased use of the English language globally has had an effect on other languages, leading to some English words being assimilated into
6786-473: The word bite was originally pronounced as the word beet is today, and the second vowel in the word about was pronounced as the word boot is today. The Great Vowel Shift explains many irregularities in spelling since English retains many spellings from Middle English, and it also explains why English vowel letters have very different pronunciations from the same letters in other languages. English began to rise in prestige, relative to Norman French, during
6873-785: The world may include no native speakers of English at all, even while including speakers from several different countries. This is particularly true of the shared vocabulary of mathematics and the sciences. English is a pluricentric language , which means that no one national authority sets the standard for use of the language. Spoken English, including English used in broadcasting, generally follows national pronunciation standards that are established by custom rather than by regulation. International broadcasters are usually identifiable as coming from one country rather than another through their accents , but newsreader scripts are also composed largely in international standard written English . The norms of standard written English are maintained purely by
6960-539: The world, but the number of English speakers in India is uncertain, with most scholars concluding that the United States still has more speakers of English than India. Modern English, sometimes described as the first global lingua franca , is also regarded as the first world language . English is the world's most widely used language in newspaper publishing, book publishing, international telecommunications, scientific publishing, international trade, mass entertainment, and diplomacy. English is, by international treaty,
7047-422: The world, with more second-language speakers than native speakers. English is either the official language or one of the official languages in 59 sovereign states (such as India , Ireland , and Canada ). In some other countries, it is the sole or dominant language for historical reasons without being explicitly defined by law (such as in the United States and United Kingdom ). It is a co-official language of
7134-438: The worldwide influence of the British Empire and the United States. Through all types of printed and electronic media in these countries, English has become the leading language of international discourse and the lingua franca in many regions and professional contexts such as science, navigation , and law. Its modern grammar is the result of a gradual change from a dependent-marking pattern typical of Indo-European with
7221-1520: The youngest daughter of Leo Tolstoy Alexandra Touretski (born 1994), Swiss freestyle swimmer Alexandra Trică (born 1985), Romanian volleyball player Alexandra Trofimov (born 1999), Romanian soccer player Alexandra Trusova (born 2004), Russian figure skater Alexandra Truwit (born 2000), American Paralympic swimmer Alexandra Tsiavou (born 1985), Greek rower Alexandra Tüchi (born 1983), Austrian bobsledder Alexandra Tydings (born 1972), American actress Alexandra Udženija (born 1975), Serbian–Czech politician Alexandra Vafina (born 1990), Russian ice hockey player Alexandra Valetta-Ardisson (born 1976), French politician Alexandra Vandernoot (born 1965), Belgian actress Alexandra Vasilieva (born 1995), Russian figure skater Alexandra Vela , Ecuadorian lawyer and politician Alexandra Verbeek (born 1973), Dutch sailor Alexandra Viney (born 1992), Australian Paralympic rower Alexandra Vinogradova (born 1988), Russian volleyball player Alexandra Völker (born 1989), Swedish politician Alexandra von der Weth (born 1968), German operatic soprano Alexandra von Dyhrn (1873–1945), German author and genealogist Alexandra von Fürstenberg (born 1972), Hong Kong–born American entrepreneur, heiress, and socialite Alexandra Voronin (1905–1993), Russian wife of Vidkun Quisling Alexandra Vydrina (1988–2021), Russian linguist Alexandra Wager (born c. 1950 ), American child actress and
7308-405: Was adopted in parts of North America, parts of Africa, Oceania, and many other regions. When they obtained political independence, some of the newly independent states that had multiple indigenous languages opted to continue using English as the official language to avoid the political and other difficulties inherent in promoting any one indigenous language above the others. In the 20th century
7395-511: Was fully developed, integrating both Norse and French features; it continued to be spoken until the transition to early Modern English around 1500. Middle English literature includes Geoffrey Chaucer 's The Canterbury Tales , and Thomas Malory 's Le Morte d'Arthur . In the Middle English period, the use of regional dialects in writing proliferated, and dialect traits were even used for effect by authors such as Chaucer. The next period in
7482-500: Was lost except in personal pronouns, the instrumental case was dropped, and the use of the genitive case was limited to indicating possession . The inflectional system regularised many irregular inflectional forms, and gradually simplified the system of agreement, making word order less flexible. The transition from Old to Middle English can be placed during the writing of the Ormulum . The oldest Middle English texts that were written by
7569-533: Was only used in question constructions, and even then was not obligatory. Now, do-support with the verb have is becoming increasingly standardised.) The use of progressive forms in -ing , appears to be spreading to new constructions, and forms such as had been being built are becoming more common. Regularisation of irregular forms also slowly continues (e.g. dreamed instead of dreamt ), and analytical alternatives to inflectional forms are becoming more common (e.g. more polite instead of politer ). British English
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