Episode 182: World of Confusion

About this episode

This episode explores the spread of English in the early 1600s and the confusion that arose as it encountered new languages and cultures.

In the early 1600s, English began to spread around the world as speakers searched for new trading partners and new places to settle. Through that process, English become an international language, but as English speakers encountered people and languages in distant places, they sometimes became confused. That confusion and uncertainty shaped the English language during this period. In this episode, we explore early English loanwords from North America, Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and the first English trading post in India. TRANSCRIPT: EPISODE 182

People in this episode

Host: Kevin Stroud

Topics covered

• English language
• loanwords
• trading
• colonialism
• Shakespeare
• cultural exchange

Keywords

• English language
• loanwords
• Shakespeare
• The Tempest
• trading post
• India
• North America

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: The Tempest

Places: North America, India

More episodes of The History of English Podcast

• Episode 189: Stressed Out · April 30, 2026 · 1h 23m
• Episode 188: Old England and New England · February 27, 2026 · 1h 24m
• Episode 187: Islands and Sea · December 31, 2025 · 1h 13m
• Episode 186: A Dutch Treat · October 31, 2025 · 1h 26m
• Episode 185: Spelling Says a Lot (Part 2) · September 1, 2025 · 1h 18m
• Episode 184: Spelling Says a Lot (Part 1) · July 15, 2025 · 1h 21m