RE: The German Language
January 17, 2016 at 5:46 pm
(This post was last modified: January 17, 2016 at 5:48 pm by Redbeard The Pink.)
(January 17, 2016 at 5:13 pm)Yeauxleaux Wrote:(January 17, 2016 at 5:03 pm)Redbeard The Pink Wrote: Alex is right. Most of our Latin roots came in from Old French because English wasn't considered "pretty" enough compared to French. That kind of language shaming is also part of the reason that even the Germanic parts of English have so many silent letters that weren't there prior to this period (the "u" in the word "build" wasn't always there, for example). They were literally just adding letters to their words to make them prettier on paper like French words.
I think in these cases, it's just because the pronunciation has shifted over time, but the spelling has stayed the same. I know this is the case with words like "five" and "time" for example, which used to be pronounced "feeveh" and "teemeh" in old and maybe middle English. It's just that the "eh" sound on the end is now silent and the "I" sound has shifted.
It could be that "Build" used to actually be pronounced "bwild", especially considering both Dutch and German words for "build" have a u/w sounded letter in them.
There are instances of what you're describing, but "build" used to be spelled "bild" in English, and it's not the only example of words changing spelling under linguistic peer pressure; it was just the most readily recalled.
Verbatim from the mouth of Jesus (retranslated from a retranslation of a copy of a copy):
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you too will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. How can you see your brother's head up his ass when your own vision is darkened by your head being even further up your ass? How can you say to your brother, 'Get your head out of your ass,' when all the time your head is up your own ass? You hypocrite! First take your head out of your own ass, and then you will see clearly who has his head up his ass and who doesn't." Matthew 7:1-5 (also Luke 6: 41-42)
Also, I has a website: www.RedbeardThePink.com
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you too will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. How can you see your brother's head up his ass when your own vision is darkened by your head being even further up your ass? How can you say to your brother, 'Get your head out of your ass,' when all the time your head is up your own ass? You hypocrite! First take your head out of your own ass, and then you will see clearly who has his head up his ass and who doesn't." Matthew 7:1-5 (also Luke 6: 41-42)
Also, I has a website: www.RedbeardThePink.com
