fyjpshakespeare:

OLD ENGLISH

(also known as Anglo-Saxon) sounds like German. It is the language of Beowulf, Cynewulf, and Alfred; spoken in England until around the 13th century. Both written and spoken forms are impenetrable to a modern reader/hearer without further study. It looks like this:

“Hwæt! We Gardena in geardagum, þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon, hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon.”

  MIDDLE ENGLISH

sounds like Welsh, and is easier for a modern person to read than to hear. It is the language of Chaucer, who died in 1400. It looks like this:

“Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote the droghte of Marche hath perced to the roote,”

  EARLY MODERN ENGLISH

sounds like a broad West-country accent, but is largely understandable in both written and spoken forms (especially with modern pronounciation). It is the language of Shakespeare, who wrote around 1600. It looks like this:

“O for a muse of fire that would ascend the brightest heaven of invention!”

FUSTIAN PROSE

is spoken by fantasy characters, and sounds funny interesting. It began to be written in the late 20th century. It looks like this:

“With the bifrost gone, how much dark energy did the All-Father have to muster to conjure you here?”