LL-L "Phonology" 2003.09.03 (05) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 03.SEP.2003 (05) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) N=Northumbrian
S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic V=(West)Flemish Z=Zeelandic (Zeêuws)
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From: Sandy Fleming [sandy at scotstext.org]
Subject: "Phonology"

> From: jannie.lawn <jannie.lawn at ntlworld.com>
> Subject: LL-L "Phonology" 2003.09.02 (01) [E]
>
> I think that the dropped initial 'h' only features in certain parts of the
> UK, and certainly not in Cambridge, just as it features in
> certain parts of
> the Netherlands.  (I remember my dad talking about it on some occasions.)
> Checked also with my husband, who comes from Norwich, UK, and he
> definitely
> says 'a  hotel'.
>
> So, there we go.  Maybe the British will know more about specific areas
> where they drop the initial 'h'.  From memory, I think it may be more the
> North-West of the country, but I may be wrong.

Consistently dropped 'h' used to be considered a specifically Cockney
(London) phenomenon, but has now spread by road and train to all major
cities in England (not Wales or Scotland) except Newcastle and the South
West. It's never been considered particularly educated, but of course these
days educated people from working-class backgrounds will speak this way.
Another phonological process observed in roughly the same sample of the
populace (presumably because it, too, originated in London) is /T/ -> /f/
and /D/ -> /v/ which affects all words except the articles and indicatives
(eg the, these, those &c still pronounced as before). Hence the British
sitcom "Steptoe and Son" where Harold refers to his father as "Favver" and
his father refers to him as "Arold". Perhaps this is why the Americans
thought a remake was in order :)

> From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Phonology
>
> Sandy (above):
>
> This sound fascinates me (as you may have noticed already).  I am only now
> slowly beginning to distinguish it from /f/ [f] when I do not look at the
> speaker (such as when listening to the CDs accompanying Wir Colin's Scots
> textbook).  But perhaps I then only distinguish these two sounds
> because of
> context, i.e. I know the words and their spelling.

Of course many speakers around Aberdeenshire do pronounce it /f/ - maybe
sometimes /f/ is what's actually on the tape!

> Sandy again:
>
> I wonder if this is a case of "breaking," as in Frisian (e.g.
> _ean_ > _ian_,
> _ien_, _jan_, etc.).  Note "earth" < OE _eorðe_.  Might Scots _aits_ and
> _ane_ be derived from an Old English dialect that had something like
> *_eātes_ instead of _ātes_, and *_eāne_ instead of _āne_?  What
> about French
> _herbe_ > _herb_.  Reanalysis as */earb/?  My point is that there must be
> some reason why only some words have this [j-].  Note Westerlauwer Frisian
> _ien_ 'one'.

There's this seems to me to be widespread but variable amongst Scots
dialects. On this list Colin Wilson has said he pronounces "ane" as "e:n"
while I pronounce it /jIn/, and yet we both pronounce "uise/uize" with a /j/
(/jIs/, je:z/ in my case).

My feeling is that some could possibly be explained as breaking, but others
not:

uize/yaize
ane/yin
ae/yae
ance/yince
aiblins/yiblins
airth/yirth
ale/yill
aits/yits

I suppose that "uise/uize" are a different case as the /j/ is also
pronounced in English, while the others are Scots - perhaps it's mainly an
/e:/ -> /jI/ process.

Sandy
http://scotstext.org/

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