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In page Great Vowel Shift:

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The causes of the Great Vowel Shift are unknown[1]: 68  and have been a source of intense scholarly debate; as yet, there is no firm consensus. The greatest changes occurred during the 15th and 16th centuries, and their origins are at least partly phonetic.

  • Population migration: This is the most accepted theory[citation needed]; some scholars have argued that the rapid migration of peoples to the southeast of England from the east and central Midlands of England[2] following the Black Death produced a clash of dialects that made Londoners distinguish their speech from the immigrants who came from other English cities by changing their vowel system.[3]
  • French loanwords: Others argue that the influx of French loanwords was a major factor in the shift.[4]