History of English - Spelling - Essay Example

History of English- Spelling xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Name xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Course xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Lecturer xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Date QA The OE is sound and letter is finds its entry to the English alphabet from Latin. The letter was borrowed to make it possible for native OE to have a sound symbol for the sound /y/. the letter was renamed VI (/u:i:/) after its analysis as a V atop an I in the first grammatical treatise. The letter boasts as the only one in the alphabet that is not related to the French and the other romantic languages. The vocalic sound has a varied development both phonetically and graphically in the various dialects in the ME period. The derived sound of the old /y(:)/ has undergone a series of changes to /i,i:/ in the greater Midlands. The letter is mainly represented in the texts as . In some cases, the letter has seen its evolution from /y(:) to /ε, e:/ this specifically in the Kent dialect (McArthur 1992). The OE sound in some parts of the Wales has been strongly preserved as it still maintains its graphical representation form from to . According to Hogg (2006) after the analysis of written evidence, the changes of the letter /y(:) > /e(:) prior to the 10th century is barely represented in the texts. Theses modifications are thought to have occurred at an earlier stage as the Kentish pronounced [e] whenever they saw a [y]. This implies that the [y] would have been seen as a symbol for the sound [e] during the premature stages as the traditional spelling was strongly preserved. Other instances witnessed the letter being used in places of the vowel [a] as in the word “yfter” “after” (Hoggs 2006). The letter also found its entry into the English alphabet via the Roman influence. At the point of its articulation, the sound [i] is represented at the highest position of the tongue. It is thus a high front vowel. During the Great Vowel Shift stage that occurred in the 15th and 16th century, the vowel [i:] changed to [ai] as represented in the words (eis to ice) thus forming the diphthong. This is largely seen as the merger between [ai] and [ei] occurs in all the dialects in the present day English. This is represented in the words (vein – vain). The sound can highly appear in its long forms [i:] as represented in the words (been, feel, queen). In this cases the form is represented in writing as . The letter is also represented as in the forms of words like (busy, business) and in the forms of merger to form a long as represented in the words (easy , tease). The letter appears to replace the letter if an inflection is added to it in the cases of words like (fishy- fishily, merry – merrily). It must be noted that the is replaced by the in cases where the is preceded by a consonant (McArthur 1992). The consonant sound y is usually a /j/ defined as a palatal approximate. This is evident in the words (year, yet). This is as a result of its influence by the ME letter yogh (Ȝȝ) which represented /j/. The letter is often considered to be a vowel as it sometimes takes the form of the vowel letters. This is always characterized by the letters that are surrounding it be it in the middle at the end or in the beginning. In this mode, the letter appeared as an upsilon Greek letter. This was borrowed by the Romans in the form of the letter V. this form represented the sound /u/ and the variant consonantal /w/. The letter was in the OE represented as a vowel but has seen witnessed most of its exit from the dialectical accents in English. was in instances used instead of the letter as in the words hyll (hill). In the PED the letters do take different forms as at times in form of vowels for instance which is pronounces as as in the cases of the words (business, busy). In these cases the is often taken as a vowel as in the word (busy [bizi] and burry [bεri]). The pronunciation of words that have been derived from the old English having the letter often correspond to particular pronunciations that have the influence of the standard English. In some cases in the OE, was used in place of as in the word (blyscan- blush) and instead of as in the word (lyft – left) (Lass 1987). In the PDE the long /i/ or /y/ often has the sound of /e:/ as represented in the words (seem and been) and their short forms often sound like as represented in the words (sit, lady and bit). The can also take the forms of the sounds /aı/ as represented in the words fly /flaı/ and try /traı/. In addition, the letter can take the form of /j/ as represented in the words (yacht, you and yellow). It is the letter in the English alphabet that has the most number of times as used in the form of a vowel (D, G Scragg 1974). The cases for words ending in y apply that their grammatical function will automatically change. In some cases the letter is represented as only if the letter that precedes it is a consonant as the cases illustrated below. It however has to be realized that there are exceptions to this as in the word day- daily. The y still changes to i even if the letter preceding it is a vowel. The letter also never doubles in the case a suffix is added to it. Y also replaces –ie if the suffix –ing is being added to it. This is witnessed as represented in the words (die – dying, lie – lying, tie – tying) (Elliot 1959). Word before addition of suffix Word after the addition of the suffix Busy Business Lazy Laziness Lazy Lazily Merry Merrily QB. 1) The syllabaries and alphabets that are used in the English today are designed to symbolize speech sounds. It must be realized that although the writer and the speaker are meant to say and mean the same thing, the writing system was not created for the language. The shaping of the spelling shows it was based on another language which has not been used in speech for a long period of time. The three elements in this language which are the speaker, listener and the writer are in conflict. The alphabet writing of English system is based typically on the borrowed Roman alphabet that was brought into the Anglo-Saxon by the Christian missionaries. The letter [y] for instance was borrowed from Latin for the OE to have a symbol that represents the sound /y/. it is als orealized for instance that the borrowed letter [h] from the french often lacks sense in its use as it is often silent in most words yet it appears in their word formation for example in the word (honest) (Anderson 1992). The system is based on the principles that are to represent the utterance segments. These segments are mainly at the level of the consonant and the vowels through a form of written characters. One of the written characters represents a particular sound segment whose crucial sound stream elements are captured by marks of a linear sequence which in most cases can be sounded out. Much of the captured sound is aimed at prompting lexical recognition while other writing forms are representations of the linguistic units like the words, syllables and a mix of these (D. Scragg 1974). The Roman alphabet is typically designed for a language comprising of phonological systems that are different and cannot adapt for the English writing. This is evident as in the first usage of the alphabet witnessed the introduction of new symbols to handle the extra sounds that are not present in the Roman spelling. This included the addition of the / ӕ/ which was represented by the ligature [a] and [e] thus being able to form a single ash character that is not present in Latin. The runic characters /ᶞ/ an /ϸ/ were later replaced with digraphs inform of two letter symbols like the [th], [gh] and the [sh] which do not have usual values but are instead used to represent single sounds. The alphabetical system thus lacks the fixed norm of a written representation as the symbols keep changing over time depending on what the scholars’ definition to him/her as the true representation and dialect variations (D. G. Scragg 1974). b) The stated problems are often underestimated as the language is often protected from change for the purposes of prestige and conservation of its history. The different dialects that have arisen are aimed at making the language and spelling to be in less conflict with the spelling as they strive to incorporate words and spelling formations that suit their needs. Many words with spellings that in less conflict are finding their way in to the English language fro instance the word (computer) that is simply in direct relationship with the common language use. 2) Four courses have been identified by studies into the reformation of the English spelling. To begin with, developments into the reformation of the English spelling system has witnessed the inclusion of new alphabetical letters into the existing alphabet to have 42 and 45 letters by Isaac Pitman and James pitman. The later was developed to enable new learners have an easier time in learning the language. This was aimed at increasing the efficiency during the initial teaching. Secondly, other reform proponents propose the complete supplementation of the existing alphabet table through the use of the diacritical marks like (éntrance, entránce)that are to be placed over and under or even next to a particular letter which will aid in the indication of its pronunciation (Bell 2004 ). Thirdly, other reformers suggest the simplification of the spelling through the utilization of diagraphs and or new combination of letters that are to represent certain vowels, diphthong sounds and consonants. Fourthly, the American reform strategized the change of words through grouping and then extending it to other group words and has the acceptance of the reform dictate the course. Other reforms suggested the use of colors to denote certain sounds of printed words. The color coding reform was proposed by Caleb Gattengo and Alex Bannatyne as a means of instructional methodologies and strategies for beginners in a reading session as represented in the diagram below. Each vowel letter is associated with a short, unstressed, and  long sound ltr Alternatives A  ask, ago, aah/are, out E  el, the, her, vein, they I  it, eel, aisle/ eye O  pot, awe, owe,oil U  up, hook, hoop, use (Work cited from http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/vangogh/555/Spell/color-code.html) The sixth reformers suggest the total replacement of the whole Roman alphabet symbols with others which will not have any visual relationship with the present alphabet. These spelling reforms are classified in three modes which include the; i) The Roman alphabet will undergo standardization where each letter will be assigned and each diagraph is selected to represent the sounds that the single letters that are available do not represent a single sound. ii) The roman alphabet is supplemented by assigning single letters that are of an invariable value to each of the 23 letters and devising 18 new letters iii) Supplementing the Roman alphabet by the creation and availing wholly new 41 characters throughout the world. This is to be made available and represented in six forms which include the augmented alphabet, diactric marks, digraphic alphabets, word simplification, coding system according to color, and the non Roman alphabet (Lindgren 1969 ). The figure below gives an example of an augmented alphabet. (Work cited from http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Sample_page_from_AAC_communication_book.png) The spelling reform is to have great benefits according to the reformists. The augmented alphabet would present one with a specific relationship between the symbols and the sounds without further addition of unnecessary letters or diacritics. The phonemic alphabets will in this case be based on the diagraphic spellings. Secondly, most of the traditional symbols presently used will be retained but an additional new familiarity and understanding pattern will be developed by those who have knowledge of the spelling that is presently used (D. Scragg 1974). Thirdly more consistent spelling sounds will be allowed in the new spelling system and thus still be of great use to those who are reading and writing. In addition, the augmented alphabet is able to retain most of the alphabetical spelling that are being used in the present while at the same time adding usable characters using the logical principle thus not starting on a totally new alphabet that is unfamiliar. Lastly, the less use of characters proposed by the augmented alphabet is able to save time and costs of reproduction materials. This is similar to the digraphic proposed alphabet only that the later is able to produce less technological and psychological disturbances (Sturtevant 1917). This will have it better placed to be widely and easily accepted by the public in general as compared to the former. The digraphic alphabet produces a sense of continuity from the past thus; a great level of characters from the Roman alphabet will be included in its alphabet. This will have a good starting foundation as the proposed alphabet will not be starting from a totally new and non familiar alphabet (Lindgren 1969). Bibliography Anderson, John M. Exceptionality and non-specification in the historyof English phonology. In Matti Rissanen, O. Ihalainen, T. Nevalainen & I.Taavitsainen (eds.) History of Englishes: new methods and interpretations in historical linguistics. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 1992. Bell, Masha. Understanding English Spelling. Cambridge: Pegasus, 2004 . Elliott, Ralph W. V. Runes: An introduction. Manchester : Manchester University Press, 1959. Hogg, R and Denison, D. A History of the English Language. Cambridge : Cambridge Unversity press. , 2006. Lass, Roger. The Shape of English: structure and history. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1987 . Lindgren, Harry. Spelling Reform: A New Approach. Sydney: Alpha Books, 1969 . Scragg, D.G. A history of English spelling . Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1974. Scragg, Donald G. A History of English Spelling. Manchester. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1974. Sturtevant, E.H. Linguistic change: an introduction to the historica lstudy of language . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1917. Web sites http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Sample_page_from_AAC_communication_book.png http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/vangogh/555/Spell/color-code.html Read More

The consonant sound y is usually a /j/ defined as a palatal approximate. This is evident in the words (year, yet). This is as a result of its influence by the ME letter yogh (Ȝȝ) which represented /j/. The letter is often considered to be a vowel as it sometimes takes the form of the vowel letters. This is always characterized by the letters that are surrounding it be it in the middle at the end or in the beginning. In this mode, the letter appeared as an upsilon Greek letter. This was borrowed by the Romans in the form of the letter V.

this form represented the sound /u/ and the variant consonantal /w/. The letter was in the OE represented as a vowel but has seen witnessed most of its exit from the dialectical accents in English. was in instances used instead of the letter as in the words hyll (hill). In the PED the letters do take different forms as at times in form of vowels for instance which is pronounces as as in the cases of the words (business, busy). In these cases the is often taken as a vowel as in the word (busy [bizi] and burry [bεri]).

The pronunciation of words that have been derived from the old English having the letter often correspond to particular pronunciations that have the influence of the standard English. In some cases in the OE, was used in place of as in the word (blyscan- blush) and instead of as in the word (lyft – left) (Lass 1987). In the PDE the long /i/ or /y/ often has the sound of /e:/ as represented in the words (seem and been) and their short forms often sound like as represented in the words (sit, lady and bit).

The can also take the forms of the sounds /aı/ as represented in the words fly /flaı/ and try /traı/. In addition, the letter can take the form of /j/ as represented in the words (yacht, you and yellow). It is the letter in the English alphabet that has the most number of times as used in the form of a vowel (D, G Scragg 1974). The cases for words ending in y apply that their grammatical function will automatically change. In some cases the letter is represented as only if the letter that precedes it is a consonant as the cases illustrated below.

It however has to be realized that there are exceptions to this as in the word day- daily. The y still changes to i even if the letter preceding it is a vowel. The letter also never doubles in the case a suffix is added to it. Y also replaces –ie if the suffix –ing is being added to it. This is witnessed as represented in the words (die – dying, lie – lying, tie – tying) (Elliot 1959). Word before addition of suffix Word after the addition of the suffix Busy Business Lazy Laziness Lazy Lazily Merry Merrily QB. 1) The syllabaries and alphabets that are used in the English today are designed to symbolize speech sounds.

It must be realized that although the writer and the speaker are meant to say and mean the same thing, the writing system was not created for the language. The shaping of the spelling shows it was based on another language which has not been used in speech for a long period of time. The three elements in this language which are the speaker, listener and the writer are in conflict. The alphabet writing of English system is based typically on the borrowed Roman alphabet that was brought into the Anglo-Saxon by the Christian missionaries.

The letter [y] for instance was borrowed from Latin for the OE to have a symbol that represents the sound /y/. it is als orealized for instance that the borrowed letter [h] from the french often lacks sense in its use as it is often silent in most words yet it appears in their word formation for example in the word (honest) (Anderson 1992). The system is based on the principles that are to represent the utterance segments. These segments are mainly at the level of the consonant and the vowels through a form of written characters.

One of the written characters represents a particular sound segment whose crucial sound stream elements are captured by marks of a linear sequence which in most cases can be sounded out.

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