Norman French
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
The Old French dialect spoken in Normandy at the time of the conquest of England and spoken by the dominant class in the latter country for some two centuries after the conquest.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Norman French” mean?
The Old French dialect spoken in Normandy at the time of the conquest of England and spoken by the dominant class in the latter country for some two centuries after the conquest.
Is “Norman French” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.