I. Introduction
Language is created by human labor, and idioms are the concentrated expression of language characteristics. They come from the production, labor and life experience of ordinary people and are the essence and epitome of language. Language is an arbitrary symbol system, and idioms are established by people in long-term language practice. Language aims at communication, and the origin of idioms is slang and common sayings that are most frequently used in oral communication. Language is the expression of human wisdom, and idioms reflect the rhetoric and expression of language (quite a few of them are wonderful words and phrases of literary masters). Language serves all kinds of human activities, and idioms vividly reflect all aspects of human life. Idioms in a broad sense include figurative phrases, slang, aphorisms, common sayings, proverbs and allusions, which are the crystallization of language development. English has a long history and contains a large number of idioms, which are implicit, humorous, serious and elegant. They are not only concise, but also lively and interesting, which adds a lot of color to the language. Due to the influence of geography, history, religious beliefs and customs, idioms bear the cultural information and characteristics of English-speaking peoples and are closely linked with their cultural traditions. The study of English idioms helps us to master the real language of native English speakers and understand the rich and interesting cultural information hidden behind the language. Second, the historical background implied in English idioms
1, traces of the Romans
In 49 BC, the Roman ruler Pompeii and the Senate plotted against Caesar. At that time, there was a small river Rubicon at the junction of Caesar's territory and Italy. Caesar, desperate, brazenly led the army across the river to fight Pompeii. When crossing the river, he said, "What is done is done." The dice have been rolled, which shows that he has no hesitation. After crossing the river, the ferry was burned, forcing the soldiers to go forward and defeat the enemy.
It is such a historical story that has left several common idioms in English: cross the Rubicon means to take great risks and take decisive actions; Burn one's boat (burn one's own boat) to show one's determination to burn one's boat; What is done is done. (The dice have been rolled) means that things have been decided and cannot be changed.
2. Teutonic conquest
Teutonic people, that is, three Germanic tribes living in northwest Europe, are Angles, Saxons and Jutes. Around 449 AD, they began to conquer England. Their invasion brought great influence to English, and finally formed Anglo-Saxon language, the origin of modern English. The influence of Teutonic conquest on English is comprehensive and decisive, and the shadow of Teutonic conquest can be found in many English idioms. For example, to hit someone's sore spot is to "hurt someone's feelings", and the quick here is "the feeling of flesh and blood" This explanation comes from old Saxon. Go through fire and water, which means "go through fire and water", originated from the medieval conviction law in Anglo-Saxon period.
3. Scandinavian storm
Since 790 AD, Scandinavians have invaded Britain and settled in Britain in large numbers. They speak North Germanic, which is the predecessor of Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian and Icelandic. In the next two hundred years, many words from Scandinavian (North Germanic) infiltrated into English vocabulary. It is estimated that in modern English, there are about 900 words or word-formation elements in Scandinavian languages. The languages of all ethnic groups in Scandinavia have deeply penetrated into English. The most commonly used idiom rain cats and dogs comes from Norse deification: the ancient Scandinavian god is Odin, dogs and wolves symbolize "wind" and cats symbolize "rain", so this idiom means "storm".
4. Normandy landing
In A.D. 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, invaded Britain and established the Normandy Dynasty. This matter has a great influence on Britain. This makes French one of the three sources of modern English. At the same time, French culture has gradually penetrated into British society, affecting English and its idioms. For example, "Back to My Mutton" was originally translated from a French pastoral poem: enthusiastic male and female shepherds fell in love on the pasture, and their horizons were broadened, and finally they had to return to reality and their flocks. Therefore, this idiom means "get back to the actual problem and get down to business". Thirdly, English idioms reflect the characteristics of natural geographical environment. People living in different natural environments will form different cultures. Each culture has different characteristics because of its geographical and climatic characteristics, and idioms contain unique cultural genes.