Middle English Phonology

Old English Vowels

Middle English Vowels

südhumbrische Verdumpfung

• /ɑ:/ to /ɔ:/ change

• Old English: stān

• Middle English: ston/stone

why words in Middle English with /a:/?

1. French words with similar vowel quality:

• Middle English blame from French blâmer (ModE. to blame)

• Middle English lac from French lac (ModE lake)

2. Old English /ɑ/ was lengthened to /ɑː/:

• Old English bacan – Middle English baken

• Old English lana – Middle English lane

• Old English nama – Middle English name

• Old English tacan – Middle English taken

• Diphthong /eɪ/ in ModE is indication for Middle English /ɑ:/

homorganic sounds

• lengthening of short unstressed vowels if certain consonants followed

• Short vowel was followed by liquid or nasal + homorganic sound

• Homorganic sounds: same place of articulation

  • Examples for homorganic sounds

  - Liquid: /l/ and /d/

  - Nasal: /m/ and /b/, /n/ and /d

• Lengthening did not take place if a third consonant followed: in childrene the two homorganic sounds /ld/ are followed by /r/

Old English Consonants

Middle English Consonants

changes:

• <f – v>: Old English ofer, Middle English over /ɔːvər/

  Old English wīfes, Middle English wives

• <s – z>: Middle English zel /zɛːl/ (Modern English zeal)

  Middle English sele /sɛːl/ (Modern English seal)

• loss of ɣ: broghte → brout

combination of phonemes

<h> in word-initial clusters: <hw>, <hl>, <hn> or <hr>

• Was not pronounced any longer

spelling and pronounciation

• Spelling became fixed from 15th century onwards

• Important influence: printing press

• Since 15th century: hardly any change in the spelling

• From Middle English onwards: major changes in the pronunciation

• This explains the discrepancy between ModE spelling and pronunciation

Modern English speaking = Middle English spelling = Middle English Pronounciation