Re: CHAT: "Nik"names :) (was Re: Middle Initials)
| From: | Andreas Johansson <and_yo@...> |
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| Date: | Monday, February 26, 2001, 17:23 |
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Ray wrote:
> >After 1066, French of course became in primary written language, and
>French
> >of course relies on "c" and "qu" for /k/. So presumeably we have to blame
>the
> >late-medieval british writers and printers for the electic mix of c's and
> >k's in modern English.
>
>No, no - you are guilty of an anachronism (tho even modern French has some
>words where /k/ is written {k}, e.g. képi, kilo). {k} was used in Old
>French spellings; one finds, e.g. /k@/ variously spelled as _que_ or _ke_,
>/kEl/ as _quel_ or _kel_, /ki/ as _qui_ or _ki_' _keus_ = a cook; _kanque_
>= Quant que etc.
Hm, wasn't aware of that. I suppose that what little Old French I've seen
may've used "regularized" spellings. BTW the existence of a few words like
_kilo_ hardly voids the statement that modern French relies on "c" and "qu"
for /k/ - they're afterall exceptions and hardly what would be imitated if
somebody was today to use French as the basic of a new orthography.
Andreas
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