fortis and lenis

[Fred Shapiro]

On Mon, 11 Sep 2000, Herb Stahlke wrote:

> Does anyone know of earlier uses of the terms than Webster's, in
> English or elsewhere?

The earliest English-language usage I can find in a few seconds of
research is the following:

1887 _Modern Language Notes_ II. 92  If we were only rid of the terms
_lenis_, _fortis_, _media, _tenuis_, _hard_ and _soft_!  They cover the
deep-seated error.  The sound represented by the symbol _b_ in the eyes of
all civilized nations except certain Germans is a sonant lip-stop; whether
this be strong (_fortis_) or weak (_lenis_), whether long or short, it
always remains sonant.

Fred Shapiro


-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred R. Shapiro                             Editor
Associate Librarian for Public Services     YALE DICTIONARY OF QUOTATIONS
  and Lecturer in Legal Research            Yale University Press,
Yale Law School                             forthcoming
e-mail: fred.shapiro at yale.edu