another query

[sagehen]

on 4/25/08 9:30 AM, Laurence Horn at laurence.horn at YALE.EDU wrote:

> Not on hypercorrection this time, much less gender, but on the
> history of "herbs" in America.  A colleague was asked:
>
>
>> In the phrase "With sudden greens and herbage crown'd," how would
>> "herbage" have been pronounced in 18th century Boston?  More
>> specifically, would the "h" have been pronounced?
>
>
> He couldn't answer reliably; nor can I (although we'd each have a
> 50-50 chance of getting it right). Anyone else?
>
> Thanks,
> LH
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
~~~~~~
I grew up with the "h,"  but I can't say with certainty that my
contemporaries in NE in the '30s  spoke as I did.  My pron. came from both
parents.  Moving to the West Coast in the late '40s  & elsewhere around the
country thereafter I realized that most people said "'erb" nearly
everywhere.  Up here in this border country where Canadian radio & tv are
most of what we hear, I notice that "herb" seems to be standard in Canada.
AM

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org