French <ai> vs. <oi>

[colkitto at SPRINT.CA]

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>
> There are examples in English too: the [w] is pronounced in Greenwood,
> inward (but note popular "the innards"), outward, but not in Greenwich
> [grenic], Harwich, Woolwich, Norwich, and other place names in -wich (at
> least for the original place names in England: where these have been
> transferred to elsewhere in the world the [w] may have been reinstated,
> as a spelling pronunciation).
>
> It is heard also in swore, but not in sword [sord]. And there are others.

There's also Berwick [berrik] and Lerwick [lerwik], both of which are
clearly from different dialects.  Might the French forms not have a similar
explanation?

Robert Orr


> In French [we] became [wa] after the Revolution. But the [e] that remained
> after the unstable [w] was lost remained [e] and was eventually mostly
> respelled -ai- with the spelling reform you mention. Eighteenth century
> "il avoit" [il ave] became "il avait", but the pronunciation did not
> change. In the fourteenth century, however, it would have been [il avwet].
>
> Perhaps others have noticed the instability of post consonantal [w] in
> other languages. It would be good to get further confirming data.
>
> Best wishes,
> John
>
>
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> John Hewson, FRSC                               tel: (709)737-8131
> Henrietta Harvey Professor Emeritus             fax: (709)737-4000
> Memorial University of Newfoundland
> St. John's NF, CANADA A1B 3X9
>
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>