Cumbria is the UK county with the highest number of Michelin-starred restaurants, with seven in this classification in the Great Britain and Ireland Michelin Guide of 2021. Traditional Cumbrian cuisine has been influenced by the spices and molasses that were imported into Whitehaven in the 18th century. The Cumberland sausage (which has a protected geographical status) is a well-recognised result of this. Other regional specialities include Herdwick mutton and the salt-marsh raised lamb of the Cartmel peninsula. Dialect influences Celtic Cumbria was Celtic speaking until the Viking invasion, if not later (Cymry) Little English spoken in Cumbria; relatively sparsely populated until 12th/13th centuries The invading Angles and Saxons forced the indigenous Celtic peoples back to the western highlands of Cumbria, Wales and Cornwall, with little linguistic consequence, apart from a residual scattering of place-names. Northwest – possibility of direct influence from Irish Gaelic across Irish Sea via Whitehaven until 10th century Celtic influence/kingdoms may have confirmed perception of difference between the north–south Linguistic interaction between Celts and English underrated: effectively Celtic influence marked the beginnings of a linguistic divide between English and other West Germanic dialects. Lexis – Celtic influence left specifically on the sound pattern of sheep-scoring numerals of Cumbrian and West Yorkshire Loss of inflections may be explained by contact with Celtic tribes and inter-marriage. Anglo-Saxon/Viking Earliest Anglo-Saxon settlements in the east of England. Took over 200 years to establish a frontier in the west where the displaced British had settled Morphology – Old Northumbrian (little evidence) signs of loss of inflexions long before southern dialects below the Humber, precede Viking settlements and dialect contact situation Scandinavian/Norse/Dane Lack of extent of Old English written evidence Main attacks/raids on the North-East coast at Lindisfarne and Jarrow in 793/ 794 Settlement patterns (Danes) contributed to emerging differences over time between Northumberland. Durham and Yorkshire dialects Norwegian settlers via Ireland to Isle of Man, Mersey estuary (901) and the Cumbrian/ Lancashire coasts (900-50) – dialectal differences (Danes/ Norwegians) often lumped together in standard histories – MUST have confirmed emerging dialectal differences east and west of the Pennines Danelaw – land of north and east of land ruled under Danish law and Danish customs (978-1016) Scandinavian influences vocabulary – common words gradually diffused/ entered word stock (borrowings) which survive in regional use – ‘fell’ hillside, ‘lug’ ear, ‘loup’ jump, ‘aye’ yes Influence on grammatical structure - Middle English texts reveal that present