<sod>One of the most obvious effects of the conquest was the introduction of [[Anglo-Norman language|Anglo-Norman]], a northern dialect of [[Old French]], as the language of the ruling classes in England, displacing [[Old English]]. French words entered the English language, and a further sign of the shift was the usage of names common in France instead of [[Germanic name|Anglo-Saxon names]]. Male names such as [[William (name)|William]], [[Robert]] and [[Richard]] soon became common; female names changed more slowly. The Norman invasion had little impact on [[placenames]], which had changed significantly after earlier [[Norse activity in the British Isles|Scandinavian invasions]]. It is not known precisely how much English the Norman invaders learned, nor how much the knowledge of French spread among the lower classes, but the demands of trade and basic communication probably meant that at least some of the Normans and native English were bilingual.<ref name=Conquest323>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 323–324</ref> Nevertheless, it is known that [[William the Conqueror]] himself never developed a working knowledge of English and for centuries afterwards English was not well understood by the nobility.<ref>Crystal "Story of Middle English" ''English Language''</ref><eod>
<sod>One of the most obvious effects of the conquest was the introduction of [[Anglo-Norman language|Anglo-Norman]], a northern dialect of [[Old French]], as the language of the ruling classes in England, displacing [[Old English]]. French words entered the English language, and a further sign of the shift was the usage of names common in France instead of [[Germanic name|Anglo-Saxon names]]. Male names such as [[William (name)|William]], [[Robert]] and [[Richard]] soon became common; female names changed more slowly. The Norman invasion had little impact on [[placenames]], which had changed significantly after earlier [[Norse activity in the British Isles|Scandinavian invasions]]. It is not known precisely how much English the Norman invaders learned, nor how much the knowledge of French spread among the lower classes, but the demands of trade and basic communication probably meant that at least some of the Normans and native English were bilingual.<ref name=Conquest323>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 323–324</ref> Nevertheless, [[William the Conqueror]] never developed a working knowledge of English and for centuries afterwards English was not well understood by the nobility.<ref>Crystal "Story of Middle English" ''English Language''</ref><eod>