Word sharing and dialects: Dialects generally borrow from dialects

A. Doublets. This means that a language may get two words from one, borrowing different versions of it from two dialects. Chant was borrowed from standard French’s verb chanter, “to sing.” But cant, in the sense of platitudinous talk, was borrowed from Norman French’s version of the same verb, canter.

B. Different dialects, different borrowings. Scots English took on some Dutch words that dialects to the south did not. Thus, Standard English has such words as cruise and easel, but Scots has such words as callan, “lad,” and cowk, “to retch.” Because the Norse-speaking Viking invaders settled in what became Scotland, Scots also has a stronger Norse imprint than Standard English, such as til for “to,” gie for “give,” and richt for “right.”

Thus, it is ordinary for languages to share words, and far beyond the level of obvious exoticisms, such as sushi and taco. Often, the borrowings help to trace the movement of peoples and the history of their languages.