[PW] ?use and disappearance of the thorn in ye olde North America

[Corinne Florin]

Don't you hate nit-pickers?  Sorry to be one--I want to make sure the writer is aware of the difference between the "thorn" (the "th" pronounced as in "thorn", or unvoiced) and the "eth" ("th" pronounced as in "the", or voiced.)  The eth was a symbol similar to our lower case "d" with a slanted slash through the ascending line, which made it look like the letter "y".  I don't know when the two letters disappeared from our current English, but as an undergrad linguistics major back in the day, I do remember learning the difference between the two "th" sounds.  The correct search term may be of help in the long run.
 
--Corinne> Date: Tue, 20 May 2008 11:45:19 -0400> From: jhenderson at ithaca.edu> To: list at project-wombat.org> Subject: [PW] ?use and disappearance of the thorn in ye olde North America> > A professor is trying to document the use of the Anglo-Saxon letter > "thorn," specifically in English North America. He has basic > information, such as that it had to be replaced by the letter "y" > when the printing presses imported into England didn't have a > "thorn," and that with or without the influence of the printing press > the letter was simplified to resemble a "y" on signs and in > handwriting, as well. He is trying to get as much documentary > evidence as he can to establish when, where, and by who it was used > in the English-speaking areas of North America. For example, he has > discovered that headstones in Massachusetts and Virginia before 1800 > commonly use the open thorn, but after 1800 it abruptly falls out of > use. Before he embarks in an exploration of North American archives > and libraries for old texts and documents, he wondered if someone has > already made a study of North American writing and publishing > practice and where and how long it might have survived in manuscripts > and in the printed word. As a secondary matter, he would also be > interested in discovering if it can be dated when it started to > commonly reappear in pseudo-archaic usages, complete with faulty y- > sound pronunciation.> > He has been looking for some time and hasn't found anything. Some > colleagues of mine in the library have been looking at books on > American language and typography, but they haven't found anything > beyond some general discussion and speculation, and little or nothing > so far that is specific to North America.> > John Henderson> Ithaca College Library> jhenderson at ithaca.edu> > _______________________________________________> Project Wombat> list at project-wombat.org> http://www.project-wombat.org
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