EE Version 2 - Progress Update - 2 March 2014

Greetings,

Just a short one to say that I have finished Book One of the Elizabethan English (EE) Version 2 of the project and will soon be moving on to Book Two. I can say one thing for sure and that is that the EE version of this manual is taking its time and that is good because it means I should be able to do a reasonable job at it. It is most definitely a "process" thing.

1. Remove heading and change it to the standard font and centre it.
2. Read through and edit the section changing the language or at least the words in to words closer to the ones of the period.
3. Formatting 1. Change the font of the entire section to a more period one. Insert Drop Cap for the first letter of the section and make sure the formatting is good. Add headers where required.
4. Ligatures. These are jointed characters used in the original formats of the printed word in the Elizabethan period, the addition of these adds to the "flavour" of the printing present.
5. Formatting 2. Alignment, making sure that the ends of the lines are at least close to even, this involves hyphenation. Follow-on words from the end of each page to the beginning of the next page. These are a feature of many documents of the period.

So, 5 steps to transferring the PDE to the EE versions. Most of this has to be done manually as the formatting is a little tricky and there are some font issues. In essence this is making it so the EE version is taking quite a bit longer than I thought, hence my gap in posting. I am hoping that I will at least have all the singular sections done by the end of the month, and hopefully even a completed version, but that will be a "wait and see" sort of thing.

Cheers,

Henry.

Language Rules Based on Personal Research

Greetings,

What is presented below is my list of rules, actually more accurately conventions, for spelling and word forms in the Elizabethan language. There are some important points which must be made before this is presented in order to clarify what is presented below.

The first point is that I do understand that there is research already done on this particular subject in a more general way. However, this research is clearly focused on the specific time period, dialect and form of the language which is presented, thus I believe that in some ways this presents a clearer picture of this specific part of the language.

The second point is that all of the research presented below is based upon the words presented in my lexicon of the language rather than any external sources. What this means is that this is based on a selection of the language rather than the entirety of it. This means that the rules are more specific to the language presented in the lexicon rather than any part which is not.

The third point is that these rules are, for the most part, presented in note form rather than paragraphs about the elements. This is important as any misunderstandings must be re-read and remembered that they are based upon what is presented.

Finally it is this set of rules and the lexicon on which I will be basing the final project upon which all of the research up to this point in time is based. It is hoped that with this information a reasonably accurate representation of the Elizabethan language of the 1590's will be formed and presented.

Elizabethan Language – Own Research

Foundation

Above all rules below, phonetic spelling of word is greatest consideration, rules then phonetics. The spelling was founded in speaking the words and thus the phonetics are most considered, following this would be the rules below, most of which are founded more in the typesetting of the print than actual spelling.

Most important of all these rules apply to printed works rather than hand-written or spoken texts, hence the importance of typesetting in the rules. Of note is also that this is for the London Dialect of Elizabethan English of the decade of the 1590s.

Use of “S”

General

Capitals always stay as “S”

“s” at end of word, or before punctuation mark e.g. “abus’de”

“Significant” words begin with “s” e.g. “skil” and “skirmiſh” most likely for emphasis

Use “ſ” in middle of word, or at the beginning of the word, not generally at the end

Specific instances of use will follow

Not replaced where “s” is before “f”, i.e. “-sf”

Plurals

Simple case of the addition of “-s” to the end of the root word, very few exceptions to this rule

Plural form of “-f” to “-ves” e.g. “wolf – wolves” remains the same

Plural form of “-y” to “ies” is followed in some circumstances and not others, in some cases the “-y” remains and followed with “-es”, some of this could be due to the “i” to “y” and vice versa convention.

Possessives

Absence of apostrophe to mark ownership

Plural conventions used for the addition of “-s”

No difference between singular and plural ownership indicators

Double “S”

In most instances a double “s” will have both changed to “long s”

Some instances a double “s” the first is changed the second is not i.e. “ſs”

No clear convention as to when the change is or is not made, however it is most common when followed by “-ing” or “-ion” or “-ity” ending

More than likely a typesetting rather than spelling convention

-ness

Two common endings “-nes” and “neſſe”

Both endings may be used on the same word

Typesetting rather than spelling convention

-less

Two common endings “-les” and “leſſe”

Both endings may be used on the same word

Typesetting rather than spelling convention

“S” and “C”

Phonetic spelling, change between “s” and “c” in the spelling is not constant, it is an individual determination

Also instances of additional change in words to accommodate change in spelling e.g. “decide” to “diſcide”.

“S” and “Z”

Both interchangeable in most instances

“s” in modern may be “z” in Elizabethan or vice versa

In most instances the consideration is phonetic rather than a typesetting consideration as there is evidence of other letters changing to accommodate the letter.

“E”

Some words have an extra “e” placed on the end, only after a consonant, possibly to extend the sound of a vowel or vowels in the middle of the word, most likely a typesetting consideration

“E” and “I”

Change from “em-” to “im-” and also “en-” to “in-”, for phonetic considerations

Also evidence of no change in some words with the these beginnings

Some change of “e” and “i” in the middle of words for phonetic change, however this does not always occur, could be typesetting or phonetic cause.

“I” and “Y”

Conventions not solid for the most part, very flexible in the use of the conventions. More likely to be typesetting conventions than spelling conventions

“i” to “y” in middle of word, not always, a vowel before is common

“y” to “i” in middle of word, rare but present

“ie” to “y” at end of word, not always

“y” to “ie” at end of word, not always

“y” to “ye” at end of word, not always

“J” and “I”

“j” to “i” in the middle of words, most instances

Roman numerals – last “i” to “j”

“j” to “i” at beginning of words, most instances, especially where a capital

(more research required: not distinct due to Latin derivation)

“L”

May be doubled where single in modern spelling, applies to middle as well as the end

May be single where doubled in modern spelling, especially in cases where a plural is formed, or ending added. Cases for both middle and end of word.

“U” and “V”

“v” to “u” in the middle of a word e.g. above – aboue

“v” remains unchanged at the beginning of the word

“u” to “v” changed at the beginning of a word

“u” remains unchanged in the middle of a word

The exception is in the title of a piece in which “u” is changed to “v” in the title where it is placed in capitals of any form

“W”

Instances of “vv” instead of “w” very much interchangeable

Typesetting consideration rather than any spelling, ligature or single letter used

Verb Forms

“To Do”

Both “-s” and “-eth” forms used on words

Some verbs may use different endings

Some instances of “-est” rather than “-eth”

Both forms used, newer form is less prevalent than older form, but increasing in presence

Archaic Endings

The archaic forms of verbs are present in the language, but are increasingly losing ground to more modern forms of the words

The form of the language depends in the subject and author

As with many spellings, many of these are dependent on typesetting as much as anything else

“-ed”, “-d” and “-t”

The past tense ending “-ed” may be replaced by “-d”, “-‘d” or “-t”

In some instances it may also be replaced by “-de”

The use of “-t” is mostly phonetic following “sh”, “ch” or “k”

While mostly phonetic there is an element of typesetting consideration present in this convention

Simple addition for past tense of word

Truncated Words

Truncations otherwise unspecified below are to do with spelling conventions of words, or lack thereof in most instances rather than deliberate truncation of words for a purpose.

Use of ~

Truncation using tilde (~) is for the replacement of “n” or “m”

The previous vowel has the tilde above it.

The replacement of “n” is more common than “m”

In the case of a double “m” or “n” the vowel before has the tilde and then it is followed by a single “m” or “n” depending on the word

No definitive choice where there is more than one either “m” or “n” in the word, this is clearly more of a typesetting choice for even lines in the document than any spelling or pronunciation factors

The vowel “i” is not used for vowel for truncation, other vowels all are

The most common vowels are “e” and “o”

Truncation using tilde is used both in the middle of words and also at the end

Use of ‘

Primary truncation is the removal of “e” in “ed” words

Other words truncated, primarily removal of “e”, but also “i” or “v” in “over-“ words

“E” sometimes accompanied by consonant in removal

Primary purpose is typesetting in prose, thus little to do with pronunciation or spelling, however can be used to change pronunciation and rhythm in poems and plays

“-ered” to “-red”

The removal of “e” following a consonant with past tense use e.g. “dismembered” to “dismembred”.

In some cases an apostrophe is used, as previously indicated, but in most cases it is not

This truncation is most likely due to typesetting, but does also change pronunciation

Ending Doubles

Double consonant at end of words in some cases. Short words ending in vowels extended by doubling phonetic compatible consonant. Ending doubles are more typesetting than spelling consideration, extending words in order to keep the ends of the lines even.

I hope that this is of use to people in their own endeavours. I considered cleaning this up and presenting it better, but decided that it is better presented as it is rather than in more formal language. These are rather loose rules of the language and should be used with some knowledge of more formal rules presented in reputable sources. It is only through the examination of the language ourselves that we can really get a feel for it, rather than simply following along with rules and theories presented by others. Needless to say that I will be using the rules presented here along with research already presented to present the language in a close form to what it would have been in the period.

Cheers,

Henry.

Lexicon Complete and Update

Greetings,

The Elizabethan Lexicon which I have been working on as a partner to the language project which is found here, and I have indicated is complete, or at least in its first version. If you are interested in accessing this document for your own personal use it can be accessed here:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/32538238/Lexicon%20V1.pdf

With this part of the project completed for the most part, at least for now, it is possible to examine the words found within the lexicon for commonalities. Through these commonalities "rules" should emerge as to the spellings of them, and also the forms of the words. These can then form "rules" which could allow for the "translation" of Modern to Elizabethan English.

As the language, as indicated in previous posts, was in a process of change these "rules" can only be very general. While these rules may only a general indication as to the form of the words of the language, it is still useful to get an overall understanding of the forms of the words and how they are constructed. Some of these rules have already been indicated in previous posts on this blog, however, I feel it is important that I do my own discovery of the rules as the ones which I have found. These rules will also be more specific to the lexicon as it is presented rather than Early Modern English or Elizabethan English, as broad background reference points.

Once I have more information with regard to these rules and their form and complexity, this will make the decision as to whether I will publish these rules as individual posts or as a single complete post. The second version of the lexicon may also include these rules as part of the reference material found within it. Needless to say, either way that it goes, some form of these rules will be found on these pages.

Cheers,

Henry.

Collection Process

Greetings,

I thought it would be useful to describe my collection technique for the words which I am putting into my lexicon. This will enable people to understand the process of word collection and see that I am not just collecting them from random sources claiming to be from the correct period. The process which follows has four steps involved in it.

The first step is to select the source from which the words are to come. The original stipulation for documents to qualify was that they had to come from the period of Elizabeth I's reign, however I have refined things a little more an am only using sources from the 1590's for a little more focus. In this document selection I aim to get as close to the original document as possible. A pdf format facsimile of the original is the best in this particular instance even if the readability is a little lacking in places.

The second step is to extract the words from the document. A special note needs to be made here that I am only extracting those words which are spelled differently from their modern counter-parts, have a different meaning from their modern counter-parts, or are what would be called "difficult" words, those which for the modern audience would cause issue. These words are first recorded in a hard-copy form, written to paper. First in a book and then on loose-leaf paper. The former for collection, the second to start collation. Once the two hard-copies are made they are then recorded in alphabetical order electronically under the title of the document. This is the longest part of the process.

The third step in the is to integrate these words into the lexicon, remembering to highlight those "difficult" words which have been found in the search. These words are stored alphabetically by the modern word. Once this process has been completed then I look for the definitions of the "difficult" words and those with different meanings additional or separate from their modern ones. These meanings are stored to be added into the lexicon later on.

This is a process which takes quite some time, hence this project continuing as long as it has. It is also for this reason that my updates which have been printed recently have such large gaps between them. Regardless, I hope that due to the time taken with this process that a reasonably accurate recording of the words from the period is made.

Cheers,

Henry.

Elizabethan Orthography

Introduction

            Orthography is more than just spelling, but it is often recognised as the most significant part of the concept. As a result most of this investigation will focus on the spelling element of orthography. This discussion will relate back to the alphabet of the language as the orthography describes the use of the language. The use of the alphabet is important to the formation of words especially with regard to phonetics and pronunciation. As a result of orthography’s relationship to the alphabet the result is that some of the discoveries found in the alphabet will re-emerge in the discussion of orthography.

            Again the subject of printers will emerge as they present the highest volume representation of the language which is accessible. Indeed most of the spelling examples which are available to the reader and researcher in the current period come from printed works as hand-written ones are rare and often inaccessible. The printers will present an effect which was both positive and negative in effect, while their printed word established a standard for spelling; they also changed spellings to suit themselves.

            The discussion will proceed with a general overview of the subject of orthography and then proceed to look at the important impact of the Great Vowel Shift which altered pronunciation and as a result spelling as well. This will be followed by a more in-depth investigation of spelling and the various aspects of this which need to be taken into account. The final part of the discussion will examine what has already been hinted at, the impact of printers and typesetting on spelling.

  

General

What is orthography? Orthography is “practically synonymous with spelling, but refers more especially to the system as a whole” (Lass, 1999:33). Orthography also refers to the way in which words are formed and how this relates to issues such as phonetics and pronunciation. For the most part in this discussion it will be more focussed on spelling.

In the Early Modern Period there were two standards of orthography, a standard for scribes and professionals, second for private correspondence affected by local dialect or regional orthography (Lass, 1999:15). What this meant was that there were two different, at least, sets of spellings of words in the period. With little surprise this was bound to cause issues, especially with the spelling being so closely related to the pronunciation of words. In this all manner of variations had to be considered.

“Towards the end of the sixteenth century, the problem of the orthographical representation of variations of pronunciations became an even more important topic of discussion. Age, class and region were recognised as potential sources of variation;” (Lass, 1999:17)

            The spelling of a word tells the reader how the word should be pronounced, thus with different spellings there would be also different pronunciations. Indeed the reverse could is also true, and this is where dialect is important. Each dialect has its own idiosyncrasies which affect the pronunciation and spelling of the language. Attempts were made in order to remove such idiosyncrasies, and there is evidence of similar orthography present c.1570 and further along, but due to various idiosyncrasies it failed to take hold, but attempt was made (Lass, 1999:26ff). This was evidence of the standardisation of the language, or at least a beginning attempt at such a process. The attempt at standardisation through orthography was influenced by a process which was already in the process from the beginning of the Early Modern Period.

Great Vowel Shift

“Some scholars date the beginning of the Early Modern English period from the effects of the Great Vowel Shift (GVS), a series of sound changes affecting the quality of all Middle English long vowels.” (Nevalainen, 2006:7)

Great Vowel Shift occurred in the Middle English period and resulted in changes in the pronunciation and use of vowels in the English language indeed converting more to a language of its own rather than heavily based upon either French or Latin as it had been previously influenced.  The Elizabethan period was toward the end of the Early Modern English period, meaning that this process had for the most part been completed. The spelling of the Elizabethan period is more reflected in the Modern English due to the completion of this process. Thus much of what is found in Middle English seems to be foreign.

“Present-day English spelling does not reflect the outcome of the sound change because the principles of spelling conventions had largely been fixed before the chain shift was completed.” (Nevalainen, 2006:7)

            The Great Vowel Shift is significant for the Elizabethan period in that it demonstrates the willingness to use language and experiment with how it should sound for the people of the period. This phenomenon also demonstrates the beginning of the language establishing itself as significant and as a language in and of itself. It could even be claimed that this shift was one of the prompts for the examination and experimentation with the language.

Spelling

“it is true to say that most people throughout much of the history of the English language have seemed remarkably unconcerned about niceties of spelling” (Bryson, 2009:116)

            The Elizabethans were no exception in this particular instance. The spelling in the Elizabethan period was a mess (Crystal, 2008:58). There were no real rules established for correct spelling of words during the period and people more or less spelt words as they felt they sounded. It is actually the pronunciation of the words that became the key to establishing a standardised spelling, “we may be pretty confident from spelling evidence or other descriptions that a particular pronunciation was emerging or increasing in the period,” (Mugglestone, 2006:154)

            This pronunciation is directly related to the dialect which is being spoken and while it is a subject which fills an examination of its own, as a dialect becomes more dominant in an area, and thus the pronunciation so too does the spelling move in the same direction. One of the great pressures which assisted this particular process was that of printing which was focussed, for the most part in London, thus as the dialect of London dominates through printing so the language becomes to become more regular.

“throughout the early modern period, English is becoming more familiar to the modern eye, as spelling … becomes more regular, encouraged by the commercial pressures accompanying the introduction and spread of printing.” (Mugglestone, 2006:150)

            The important point here is that it is becoming more regular, the standardised forms of spelling which we are so familiar with in Modern English were an advent of a period beyond the Elizabethan. Even in the time of the great bard Shakespeare, spelling still had not established itself in any form of standard. In the period variations in spelling were something which were expected and part and parcel of the way things were.

“there was no system of standardized spelling at the time he [Shakespeare] was writing; the concept of ‘correct spelling’, with its associated social sanctions, did not clearly emerge until the eighteenth century.” (Crystal, 2008:31)

            What does need to be noted is that even in the process of regularisation the variations in spelling have not disappeared from the language by the end of the Elizabethan period. Thus the idea of the ‘correct spelling’ of a word in the Elizabethan, aside from a vaguely phonetic orientation is essentially absent. While this is the case the words did begin to tend toward a standard and many words of the period can be found which are spelt the same way as in the modern language (Crystal, 2008:60).

            The process of change is something which has to occur for a reason and these reasons are primarily influenced from within and from without, either separately or in combination. In the case of Elizabethan English it was a combination of influences from within and without which would affect the spelling of the words in the language. Several factors influenced the spelling in Elizabethan English: the influence of French on Old English (OE), continental printers bring spellings with them, new foreign words introduced into the language, pronunciation shift in spelling, and finally the influence of spelling reformers (Crystal, 2008:58).

            Some of these factors have already been addressed previously, what needs to be noted is that it is the combination of these influences which makes the result rather than any one individual influence. Locally it was the influence of the reformers attempts to formalise the language and also the printers which had the greatest effect on the language.

“authoritative norms of spelling in English only appear in the practices of printers in the sixteenth century, alongside the writings of the orthoepists and spelling reformers such as Hart and Cheke.” (Mugglestone, 2006:136)

            With the general ideas about spelling and its background addressed, it is possible to address some of the specific spelling idiosyncrasies of the period. These idiosyncrasies allow the reader to approach the language with some very general rules to follow in the understanding of the language. Indeed it is useful to look at the language in comparison to the modern. In reality there are five processes which mark 80% of the difference between the languages: 1. Addition of final “e” (againe); 2. Apostrophe used to replace letter “e” (arm’d); 3. “ie” instead of “y” at end of word (busie); 4. Double instead of single consonants; and 5. use of “ie” or “ee” for phonetic “ee” (neere) (Crystal, 2008:61). Each one of these differences can be related to either typesetting or phonetic reasons. The double consonant had a purpose for being used.

“The usual way of marking a short vowel was to double the following consonant … But a tendency had also emerged to add a final e as well – thus producing such forms as fitte, hadde, sette, and gette.” (Crystal, 2008:60)

            The differences in spelling are related closely with how the alphabet is used and thus the positions of letters in words resulting in differing spelling, even if the different spelling has the same phonetic result. The additional “-e” which appears on some words in Elizabethan texts had at least two reasons, “In EModE, it became generally conventional to distinguish the historically long vowel by adding –e,” (Smith, 2005:126). To present a long vowel is only one reason that the addition was made, there was also a printer’s reason as well, the final “–e” was added for justification of type or decoration (Smith, 2005:126). This is an issue which will be addressed below. The other changes where letters changed but not the phonetic spelling of the word are more and issue with the alphabet rather than the actual spelling. For the most part “u” and “v”, and “i” and “j” were interchangeable (Crystal, 2008:44). This affected the spelling but not the pronunciation. Even in the spelling of personal names there is variation present.

            One of the places where it would be expected that spelling would be an important factor is in the name of the individual and their family. In actual cases in the Elizabethan period this does not seem to be the case. In this instance Shakespeare will be used as an example of this. “More than eighty spellings of Shakespeare’s name have been found,” (Bryson, 2009:116). It could be considered a little self-destructive to have so many different spellings of a name especially if you are, or wanted to be a public figure as was the case with Shakespeare. Even in the modern world attempting to determine the correct spelling of a person’s name through their signature would be foolish.

“a person’s signature, whether he be an Elizabethan playwright or a modern orthodontist, is about the least reliable way of determining how he spells his name.” (Bryson, 2009:116)

            However, in this particular example it was not only in his signature that his name was spelt in various different ways. The name also appeared differently in print depending on who published it and the original source material. This reflects the nature of spelling in the Elizabethan period being fundamentally unestablished.

Elision, the removal of letter or reduction in the spelling of a word was common in Shakespearean English, more so than in Modern English. Most of these were quite common though there are more unexpected ones also (Crystal and Crystal, 2002:146). Elision appears in print and in hand-written documents and presents a blending of words together, in the case of printers it would have been to save space, for the average writer it would have served a similar purpose as well as reducing the amount written, this shortening of words and blending using deletion common in period, in some interesting variants (Lass, 1999:179). Elision is one of the examples which can be seen where the hand-written and the printed used a technique in order to save space, however the printers had more tools at their disposal to achieve their end.

Printers and Typesetting

            The printing press and those who operated them had a surprisingly large effect upon the spelling of words. It was through the printing press that documents became public and as a result the printing press enabled spelling to become more uniform (Bryson, 2009:118). This was because the spellings were put into the public eye where they would be recognised and used as they were printed. It was not just the printer’s spelling of words that changed things, the actual printing process also had an effect, typesetting and letter form also changes spelling of words (Crystal, 2008:34). In some instances this would change the spelling of the word from the original as the author had written them, for the modern researcher, this is something that has to be taken into account.

“Students of Shakespeare’s language need to be aware of the layers of uncertainty surrounding the texts we have available, and understand the bibliographic variables involved,” (Crystal, 2008:40)

            In the case of the printers themselves choices had to be made as to how the work was to be presented, and thus there had to be considerations about the spelling of words in the final print. Simply following the author’s spelling was one option, but as there was so many variations in spelling at the time, a choice had to be made about the spelling of words, ideographic, logographic or phonetic spelling (Lass, 1999:16). This was further complicated in that most of the printers came from other nations and thus English was not their first language, resulting in spelling issues.

            Even with the issues present the fact that attempts were being made to formalise or at least standardise the spelling of words is significant, “it appears that, in general, printers of the later sixteenth century were making some attempts at both regularity and consistency.” (Lass, 1999:27). This would inspire the reformers at the same time to work on the standardisation of the language, not just in spelling but also in grammar and punctuation. Even with these inspired individuals it would still be a long time before the need or want of a standard spelling would emerge. “In general, however, printers of the early sixteenth century demonstrate little obvious interest in working towards a standard orthography.” (Lass, 1999:25).

            In the case of printers it was more important for them to present the work well so that the material would be saleable. For them it was more of a financial consideration more than any consideration of correct spelling. This was even more important for works such as plays which would have to be performed after being printed and thus the spelling affected pronunciation and thus presentation, “The ‘correct’ relationship between the spoken and the written word was an issue which occupied printers and grammarians alike;” (Lass, 1999:18).

            Even with the need for the presentation of the words correctly in order that they could be pronounced and thus presented correctly, there was still a financial issue which hovered over the printers’ heads, along with one of presentation. The idea of full-justification so that all the ends of the lines lined up was one which was an obsession of printers, this combined with the fact that such measures would result in less paper used, thus making the work cheaper meant that they developed space saving measures for typesetting (Crystal, 2008:53).

            There are many examples of these space-saving techniques, some which would have an effect on spelling and others which would not. Some even appear in the modern language, a perfect example of this is logograms, symbols standing for words, “&” for and, &c for et cetera or for things which are assumed knowledge (Crystal, 2008:55). While not so commonly used in normal texts they do appear in the modern language. Assumed knowledge was an area in which the printers identified as a place to save space in the printing and typesetting, thus abbreviations were used for money and titles for example (Crystal, 2008:55). While these did not have a great effect on spelling their presence is significant. The effect of printers and their typesetting measures should not be underestimated.

Conclusion

            While the focus of this investigation has been on spelling, it is important to remember that orthography is much more than that. It is the formation of the words also and this is based on phonetic principles due to the pronunciation of the words. The result of this is that this discussion has focussed on several different areas which affected the spelling of words in the Elizabethan period.

            The Great Vowel Shift marked the end of the Middle English period and the presentation of Early Modern English. This is significant in that it describes how the language began to be recognised for itself. This is significant for Elizabethan English in that this process was well and truly complete by that period resulting in the language being much more refined than it could have been, not complete but more refined.

            Spelling is something which is very vague in the Elizabethan period and much of the spelling was still up to the person who was writing at the time. There were efforts made to standardise the language and some recognisable patterns which can be used to better understand the language and its spelling. These form a foundation for relating the language to our own where differences are present. Even with these differences present there are many words which are spelt the same as they are in the modern world.

            The impact of printers can be seen in both a positive and negative light. The printing of the words enabled some standardisation of some spelling practices. However, the printers themselves were not always so fluent in the language in order to understand the effect that they had on the language. This resulted in some spellings which were not so close to the original text as they might have been. For the modern researcher, who is for the most part reliant on printed works, this effect is something that needs to be taken into account in the study of the language.

            Spelling is something that cannot be ignored in the study of a language regardless of its age or its origin. The spelling of words is related to their pronunciation and the formation of the words and thus is extremely significant. It is so closely related to the alphabet which is used and how they are used that it is often difficult to separate the two subjects. In the case of Elizabethan English there are many good examples of the language present in many formats, and the only real way to understand the formation of the words is to read them in as close to their original format as possible.

Bibliography

Bryson, B. (2009) Mother Tongue: The Story of the English Language, Penguin Books Ltd, London, UK

Crystal, D. (2008) ‘Think on my Words’: Exploring Shakespeare’s Language, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK

Crystal, D. and Crystal, B. (2002) Shakespeare’s Words: A Glossary and Language Companion, Penguin Books, London, UK

Lass, R. (ed.)(1999) The Cambridge History of the English Language: Volume III: 1476 – 1776, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK

Mugglestone, L. (ed) (2006) The Oxford History of English, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK

Nevalainen, T. (2006) An Introduction to Early Modern English, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, Scotland

Smith, J. (2005) Essentials of Early English, Routledge, New York, USA