Orthographical Change

Question 1

What is orthography?

Answer 1

• the spelling and punctuation system of a language.

- punctuation also falls under orthography.

Question 2

What is standardisation and give examples of historical attempts to standardise

Answer 2

• The process of making language more uniformed.
• throughout history, there have been attempts to standardise English spelling:
  Caxton’s Printing Press (1476)
  Johnson’s Dictionary (1755)
  Webster’s American English reforms (late 1700s)

Question 3

What are the key features of Caxton’s Printing Press (1476)?

Answer 3

• The first printing press.
• Identical copies of a text could be produced.
• He chose the dialect being used in courts, universities (Cambridge) and in London at the time.
• Using it in printed texts gave the dialect a further feeling of prestige.

Question 4

List extra features of Caxton’s Printing Press:

Answer 4

• printing was very expensive.
• not totally accurate.
• huge impact on libraries: thousands more books installed - must redesign library: must build above lecterns to make room for more books.
• Caxton used printing press to preserve ‘medieval culture’, not ‘renaissance culture’. Interested in preserving old style of lang. Not supportive of new learning or ‘humanism’.

Question 5

Who was Dr Johnson?

Answer 5

• Helped standardise spelling and meanings, provided a standard reference point.
• Initially hoped to ‘fix’ variation in English spelling, but realised language is ever changing and he should describe, not prescribe, it.
• Influential: “one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship.” Influenced the Oxford English Dictionary we see now.

Question 6

What are the key features of Webster’s American Spelling Reforms?

Answer 6

• Differences between British and American English can be attributed to Noah Webster.
• Concerned with divide between spoken/written forms.
• Late 1700s, edited dictionaries (Meriam Webster) proposing spelling reforms.
• Wanted a system of American English equal to, if not superior to, British English.

Question 7

Give some examples of Noah Webster’s American Spelling Reforms:

Answer 7

• ‘or’ endings, e.g. ‘color (colour), behavior (behaviour).
• ‘er’ endings, e.g. ‘theater (theatre), center (centre) behavior (behaviour).
• ‘ize’ endings, e.g. ‘capitalize (capitalise), realize (realise).
• use of ‘s’, e.g. ‘defense (defence), pretense (pretence).

Question 8

Give an example of resistance to orthographical change

Answer 8

• some cities in the UK, including Birmingham and Cambridge, have decided to remove all apostrophes from road signs.

Question 9

List the reasons in favour of removing apostrophes from road signs

Answer 9

• it will avoid confusion over whether apostrophes should be used.
• no rule in Britain requiring use of possessive apostrophe’s in place names.
• Not grammatically correct to include possessive apostrophe as the monarchy no longer own places like ‘Kings Heath’ and ‘Kings Norton’.
• Apostrophes rarely make a semantic difference.
• They are wasteful. Firms spend so much money on proof readers.

Question 10

What arguments are against the removal of the apostrophe?

Answer 10

• It is an example of ‘dumbing down’.
• 1st step to linguistic anarchy - is there any point in having full stops or question marks if no possessive apostrophes.
• Children will struggle to learn proper grammar and spelling as some places won’t have possessive apostrophes in names which should.
• can distress/annoy local residents of Birmingham/Cambridge.
• Rules of apostrophes in written English are very simple to understand.