From phonemic spelling to distinctive spelling
Whether spelling is phonemic is only one factor in whether a writing system is suitable for a given language; another consideration
is "lexical distinctiveness" of spelling, in two separate senses, and the importance of lexical distinctiveness grows as a writing
system matures. Seen in this light, the increasing irregularity of English spelling, over the period when English has been a
written language, has been a desirable response to the changing needs of the English-speaking world.
Article outline
- 1.Diverse types of script
- 2.Script types matter
- 3.Few independent examples
- 4.A proposed generalization
- 5.An early assumption
- 6.The assumption questioned
- 7.Lexical distinctiveness or conservatism?
- 8.Sparse orthographic neighbourhoods
- 9.Supporting examples
- 10.
A reductio ad absurdum?
- 11.Conflicting interests
- Acknowledgements
- Notes
-
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Cited by
Cited by 2 other publications
Joyce, Terry & Dimitrios Meletis
2021.
Alternative criteria for writing system typology.
Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft 40:3
► pp. 257 ff.

McClung, Nicola A. & P. David Pearson
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