[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
The Dutch language has gone through spelling reform. But even so, not
all letters have single sounds, and not all sounds have single
spellings. What I have noticed, though, is that every case I've seen
in which one sound appears to have several spellings, there is some
local dialect of Dutch somewhere that pronounces the two spellings
differently.
So the persence of local variations in pronunciation is a barrier to
further regularization of spelling.
This is a general feature of all languages.
I'm sure the same would be true of English, although I suspect the
situation could be much better than it is now.
It is the cause of much of the spelling irregularity in English.
English started out as a collection of mutually unintelligible
dialects, which gradually merged. There used to be commentary
on the "land of eggen" and the "land of eyyen" (the "g" in "egg"
being pronounced variously as a modern "g" or as a "y", compare
with german "Ei"). In various dialects, these words were
pronounced as indicated
through thruf throokh thrau throw
rough ruf rookh rau row
bough buf bookh bau bow
enough eenuf eenookh eenau eenow
kh = german "ach Laut" or Scottish "loch"
ou = as in "house"
ow = as in "know"
ee = as in "meet"
The pronunciation "eenow" can still be found.
When the dialects merged, some words came from one dialect,
others came from other dialects. So, the spelling, although
at one time consistent, is no longer.
And then there's the Battle of Hastings.
Mike
--
p="p=%c%s%c;main(){printf(p,34,p,34);}";main(){printf(p,34,p,34);}
This message made from 100% recycled bits.
You have found the bank of Larn.
I can explain it for you, but I can't understand it for you.
I speak only for myself, and I am unanimous in that!
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