how exactly did the changes from Old High German to Middle High German during the 11th century actually happen and how aware were the people about these things?

Question

From what i read it seems like people at least during the first three or four decades of the 11th century still communicated in Old High German, while a early form of Middle High German, that was already very different compared to OHG, was already established around 1060 AD.

What exactly happened during all these years that made the language change so much and how did people that were alive all these years perceive these things?

In: 54

Answer 1

Go find a recording of English speech from 100 years ago and listen to it. Does it sound different to today’s speech? Now see if you can find recordings from 75, 50, and 25 years ago. You’ll see that while there’s a perceptible change over a century, it’s pretty small when you get to the 25 year gap.

How aware are you right now that the English you speak is transitioning from early 21st century English to mid-22nd century English?