Re: USAGE: No rants! (USAGE: di"f"thong)

On 5/29/06, Henrik Theiling <theiling@...> wrote:
> Here's a poll:
Ooh, polls are fun.

> 1) Do you think English spelling should be reformed?
>
>  [ ] No, it should not be reformed
>  [ ] Yes, it should be reformed, but only slightly
>  [ ] Yes, and we need a whole now spelling
>  [ ] I don't care
Er, none of the above? It _could_ (profitably) be reformed IMO;
however, I don't feel strongly enough about it to use the word
"should" (or "should not").

> 2a) Do you think English spelling is phonemic?
>
>  [ ] Yes
>  [ ] No
>  [ ] I don't know
>  [ ] I don't care
[x] in parts.

(Or does that count as "no"?)

> 2b) Do you think English spelling is phonetic?
>
>  [ ] Yes
>  [x] No
>  [ ] I don't know
>  [ ] I don't care
It's also (partly) etymological, which is occasionally useful. (Though
the usefulness of this device may be overstressed sometimes. But it is
sometimes useful to see connections between e.g. photograph -
photographic - photography, where the sound of the |a| is variously
/A:/(?) - /&/ - /@/ in my 'lect.)

> 3a) Do you think English spelling should be phonemic?
>
>  [ ] Yes
>  [ ] No
>  [ ] I don't care
Same as (1). So, neither "yes" nor "no" fits here. It might be better
if, but I wouldn't say it _should_ be.

> 3b) Do you think English spelling should be phonetic?
>
>  [ ] Yes
>  [x] No
>  [ ] I don't care
>
> 4) Which spelling would you prefer for current 'laugh'?
>
>  [ ] laugh
>  [x] laff
>  [ ] laf
>  [ ] larf
>  [x] __lahf__
>  [ ] I don't care
I would prefer "lahf" since that's better for my 'lect, but could
probably live with "laff" (and lose the /A:/ - /&/ distinction) if
that will make the spelling much more accessible. (Since it's usually
easier to ignore distinctions you make while writing than to make ones
that are unnatural to you.)

> If you only answered 'I don't care' or 'I don't know' up to here,
> rethink whether you are really interested in this poll...
>
> 5) Who is the most important group of people you think of when
>    proposing/rejecting a spelling reform?
>
>  [ ] People who can read already and just want to keep on reading
>      undisturbed.  (This is probably the largest group of living
>      people now).
>
>  [ ] L1 learners of English
>
>  [ ] L2 learners of English [This will be the largest group of people
>      if time is considered and we wait for 100 years.)
>
>  [ ] Myself, I cannot read/write properly/have had problems learning it.
>
>  [ ] _________________
>
> 6) How should one cope with different dialects?
>
>  [ ] By neglecting distinctions made in some dialects.
>  [ ] By considering all distinctions made in dialects.
>  [ ] By using historical state of English and base the spelling on it.
>  [x] By defining a standard dialect and use it regardless of variants.
>  [ ] By using a semantics based writing system.
>  [ ] __________________
>
> 7) Have you thought about or (tried to) invent(ed) a spelling reform
>    yourself?
>
>  [ ] Yes
>  [x] No
>
> 8) Which other lang do think needs a spelling reform?
>
>  [x] Chinese
>  [ ] Danish
>  [x] Faeroese
>  [ ] French
>  [ ] German
>  [ ] Japanese
>  [x] __Cherokee___
>  [x] __Finnish___ (just kidding)
>  [x] __Modern Greek__ (possibly)
Cheers,
--
Philip Newton <philip.newton@...>

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