29. Sizzling growth consonants and affricates in New England and the Middle English period.

The system of Old English consonants no hissing. The process of forming a sizzling phonemes, including affricates, the second element of which was the hissing consonants, was completed in the 11th century. Sibilant phonemes arose from taking place before front vowels sredneyazychnyh [k '] and [g'] and of the consonant [sk ']:cild> child cicen> chicken cin> chinIf a front vowel was not primordial, and has appeared as a result of the palatal mutations, it could not affect the neighboring consonant soothing manner: [k] is still solid, and velar affricate is not passed. Velar [k] remains unchanged and is still:kin (kin) <OE cynn <kuni (genus) keen (sharp) <OE cēne <cōni (brave).

30 The Great Vowel Shift

The Great Vowel Shift was a major change in the pronunciation of the English language that took place in England between 1350 and 1700. The Great Vowel Shift was first studied by Otto Jespersen, a Danish linguist and Anglicist, who coined the term.

Because English spelling was becoming standardized in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Great Vowel Shift is responsible for many of the peculiarities of English spelling.

The main difference between the pronunciation of Middle English and Modern English is in the value of the long vowels, described as the Great Vowel Shift. Vowels of Middle English had "continental" values much like those remaining in Spanish and liturgical Latin. However, during the Great Vowel Shift, the two highest long vowels became diphthongs, and the other five underwent an increase in tongue height with one of them coming to the front ([uː]).

The principal changes are roughly as follows.

Middle English [aː] (ā) fronted to [æː] and then raised to [ɛː], [eː] and in many dialects diphthongized in Modern English to [eɪ] (as in make; the [aː] in the Middle English words in question had arisen earlier from lengthening of short a in open syllables and from French loan words, rather than from original Old English ā, because the latter had in the meantime been raised to Middle English [ɔː].)

• Middle English [ɛː] raised to [eː] and then to modern English [iː] (as in beak).

• Middle English [eː] raised to Modern English [iː] (as in feet).

• Middle English [iː] diphthongized to [ɪi], which was most likely followed by [əɪ] and finally Modern English [aɪ] (as in mice).

• Middle English [ɔː] raised to [oː], and in the 18th century this became Modern English [oʊ] or [əʊ] (as in boat).

• Middle English [oː] raised to Modern English [uː] (as in boot).

• Middle English [uː] was diphthongized in most environments to [ʊu], and this was followed by [əʊ], and then Modern English [aʊ] (as in mouse) in the 18th century. Before labial consonants, this shift did not occur, and [uː] remains as in soup and room (its Middle English spelling was roum).

Effect on spelling

The printing press was introduced to England in the 1470s by William Caxton and later Richard Pynson. The adoption and use of the printing press accelerated the process of standardization of English spelling which continued into the 16th century. The standard spellings were those of Middle English pronunciation, as well as spelling conventions continued from Old English. However, the Middle English spellings were retained into Modern English while the Great Vowel Shift was taking place, resulting in some of the peculiarities of Modern English spelling in relation to vowels.