Theiling Online    Sitemap    Conlang Mailing List HQ   

Re: USAGE: [a] vs [A]

From:Christophe Grandsire <christophe.grandsire@...>
Date:Saturday, June 14, 2003, 19:18
En réponse à Christian Thalmann :


>Well, French and Italian both have a very clear [a] as their >sole A sound. French used to have an [A] too, but lost it >about a century ago.
Wow! Are you trying to make me look older than I am?! The /a/ vs. /A/ opposition was still in existence when I was a child!! It disappeared during my childhood, and I can clearly remember a time when everyone still used it. So "one century ago" is a bit much. Make it 20 years ago and you'll be closer to the truth. And note that I have never lived in an area especially archaic linguistically. Rather the contrary.
>Personally, I have no problem with [a] vs [A], since my Swiss >German idiolect distinguishes them as separate phonemes.
Me neither, since I used to use them during my childhood. I may mix them a bit when I try to pronounce them, but I don't have a problem distinguishing them. Christophe Grandsire. http://rainbow.conlang.free.fr You need a straight mind to invent a twisted conlang.