Yags and other onomastic peculiarities

[Richard Coates]

----------------------------Original message----------------------------
The strategy of replacing the /r/ of a name truncated to end in /r/ with
/z(@)/ isn't restricted to names with stressed /ae/ in the UK. I've heard:

Jeremy > Jez
Miriam > Miz
Laurence > Loz (conflict, Larry!)

The generalization seems to involve a short V in V1 position.

It seems to be in competition with a much rarer tendency to replace the /r/
with /l/, as in:

Terence > Tel (unless restricted to football managers - I've heard Tez too)
Derek > Del

Now I come to think of it, all the people I know so called are over about 55!
Maybe there's an age factor.

On the age front, when is the first /r/ > /z/ that people know of? I am aware
of someone with the surname Harriman being called /haez@/ and another with the
surname Farrar /faez/ around 1960-4.

Richard Coates

--
Richard Coates
School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences
University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QH, UK

Tel.: +44 (0)1273 678030 (secretary Jackie Gains)
Fax:  +44 (0)1273 671320
Email: richardc at cogs.susx.ac.uk

Website: www.cogs.susx.ac.uk/users/richardc/index.html