This 1911 text sketches beginnings of dialects in England, the elements of Scandinavian and French influence on them, and their gradual development.

Originally published during the early part of the twentieth century, the Cambridge Manuals of Science and Literature were designed to provide concise introductions to a broad range of topics. They were written by experts for the general reader and combined a comprehensive approach to knowledge with an emphasis on accessibility. Published in 1911, W. W. Skeat's English Dialects from the Eighth Century to the Present Day offers a sketch of the beginnings of dialects in England, the elements of Scandinavian and French influence on them, and their gradual development over a period of twelve hundred years.