A few weeks ago, the United Kingdom and its citizens were marked by an unprecedented event: the death of Queen Elizabeth II, at the age of 96. That event, followed by the succession to the throne of Carlos III, led the entire world to focus on a monarchical regime with many controversies in its history.
For these reasons, the linguistic experts of Babbela premium language learning platform, deciphered the monarchy-related terms most often heard in the media.
And it is that the British monarchy is full of curiosities. For example, from a linguistic point of view, the royal family is distinguished by the way they speak.
The English accent commonly considered more “posh” is characterized, for example, by the pronounced pronunciation of the letter h at the beginning of a word (such as “hat”) or by the letter r which, on the contrary, is omitted at the end of words such as “car”.
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Lexicon of the British Monarchy
Babbel explains the terms that have been heard the most in the media:
commonwealth
A traditional English term. It refers to a political community founded for the common good in the fifteenth century. It was in 1923, after the decolonization of the British Empire, that the Commonwealth became the most well-known political system today. Made up of 53 international member states, Elizabeth II was the head of the Commonwealth.
Accession
Accession means the acquisition of a position of power rank. It can be used to evoke ascending the throne but also the assumption of the role of “ruler of the country”. Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne took place in 1952: therefore, Queen Elizabeth II remained queen for 70 years.
Succession
Succession represents the order in which members of the royal family are in line to take the throne. In most cases, succession goes to whoever was born first. Thus, the British line of succession begins with Charles, Prince of Wales, who has now become king.
Abdication
To abdicate the throne is to withdraw and absolve oneself from royal duties and monarchical power.
jubilee
The jubilee is the official celebration of the anniversary of the king’s or queen’s coronation or accession to the throne. This word comes from the Old French jubile, which meant “birthday, celebration, or rejoicing.”
“The term jubilee is a great example of how our language travels and evolves over time. The French term jubilee itself comes from the Hebrew word yôvēl which designates a ram’s horn used as a trumpet for religious celebrations. Although this word has referred to various celebrations over time, it is mainly associated with the anniversary of a coronation,” explains Babbel Live teacher Malcolm Massey. “As with wedding anniversaries, the word is often used in conjunction with special terms indicating the length of the reign, such as this year’s Platinum Jubilee, which marked the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession.” .
peer titles
Historically, these were the titles given to members of the royal family, or peers to indicate their rank and status within the royal circle, when they became “peers of the realm”. This meant that a person had a royal title granted by the Queen or inherited by birth.
Letters Patent
Members of the Royal Family become Peers of the Realm after receiving an official letter, called a Letter Patent, written and signed by the Queen or King herself.
Queen consort
The title of queen consort is given to the wife of a king who has married into the royal family. Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla, has legally become queen consort following the accession to the throne of Charles.
reigning queen
This is the correct term for Elizabeth II, because unlike the queen consort, the queen regnant ascended the throne by birthright. This means that she is a queen in her own right, possessing all the powers of a monarch.
Earl or Count
This is the third highest title of nobility, second only to Duke.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
*with information from Babbel
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