Comments on: Knight versus Night

By: Webmaster-Translations

Webmaster-Translations — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:35:27 +0000

Bravo…!!!
What a perfectly scientific explanation.
Keep your thinking hat always on.

Webmaster-Translations:
freetranslationblog.blogspot.com

By: Alek Storm

Alek Storm — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 01:45:14 +0000

Why the “k” disappeared from the “kn” consonant cluster isn’t “just another mystery of language”; it’s very simple. The /k/ sounds is a velar plosive, while /n/ is an alveolar nasal. They are produced, roughly, in opposite sides of the mouth. One of them had to go.

By: Lotus root, cheesy grits, yoga, & juice! | Say Yes to Salad

Lotus root, cheesy grits, yoga, & juice! | Say Yes to Salad — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 21:34:19 +0000

[...] P.S. Did you know that Shakespeare gave the English language almost 2,000 new words?? [...]

By: Maggie

Maggie — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:37:05 +0000

Ah, thanks for the info

Tricky question… I know it was sometime in the Middle Ages. “Whereabout” is from 1300 so it was probably before then. “Whatsoever” is from 1250; “somewhat” is from 1200. (I just got those from etymonline.) The switch happened to align the spelling with other switches – ch, ph, sh, th. More here – http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-WHSOUND.html

By: Lauren

Lauren — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:19:14 +0000

The /hw/ hasn’t completely disappeared from English. In many Southern American dialects, the wh-question words, whale, and others retain the /h/ phoneme with historical accuracy. I don’t know at wHich point the “h” and “w” graphs switched places in the orthography, though. Do you know, per chance?

By: A Day in the Life… | Say Yes to Salad

A Day in the Life… | Say Yes to Salad — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 22:29:18 +0000

[...] I did manage to tear myself away from Dexter and the frozen fruit for a few minutes to write about why we have silent k’s (like knight, knee, etc…). Click for more. [...]

By: Dori

Dori — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:22:02 +0000

Fascinating! I love this! What about mnenomic?! m-nemonic??