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Re: Optimum number of symbols

From:Mike S. <mcslason@...>
Date:Tuesday, May 21, 2002, 23:33
> [snip] > >structures, I think the simplicity and efficiency of the phonemic > >system easily trumps all contenders. > > English???
I believe you are knocking down a strawman here. No one would suggest that English orthography is the ideal model of a phonemic system. It might be questioned whether it is a phonemic system at all. I would argue that it a combination of phonemic and morphemic approaches. It borrows or inherits words in their original phonemic representation from various ages and places, and usually, instead of transliterating them, locks them orthographically as morphemic units. At the same time, strong, sometimes obvious clues as to pronunciation do persist. Whatever the benefits or shortcomings of this combinational approach, they have little or no bearing as criticisms of a true phonemic system. Regards

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Thomas R. Wier <trwier@...>