PRONUNCIATION: EARLY

MODERN ENGLISH AND

AFTER

GROUP 2: 1. Ayu Mareta Mulyawati (173211038)

2. Tias Septiana Fauzy (173211063)
INTRODUCTION
 In this chapter, we examine the pronunciation of EModE as
well as the most important changes that have taken place
since then. By the term “Pronunciation” we mean
phonological changes (including sound changes or changes
in word stress) on the one hand, but we would also like to
discuss letter-to-sound rules to some extent, because they
might prove useful in explaining sound of the orthographic
peculiarities of English.
 During the EModE period when PdE standard accents,
especially British and American, started their independent
development, but this is also true for other accents to a
large extent (such as Irish or Scottish English, for
example). In other word, an understanding of the sound
changes that have taken place since EModE – especially
those which are restricted to certain accents of English –
provide a historycal background to the phonological
differences that exist between PdE accents. Some of the
characteristic spelling conventions of PdE became
stabilized (or fixed) during the later
3.2 The Sound of EModE at arround 1600
3.2.1 An illustrative sample of EModE pronunciationVerses of Mattew 5
from the King James version
In this section, I give a reasonable reconstruction of how EModE around
1600 might have been pronounced. It must be emphasized that we have no
direct evidence (such as tape recordings) of the pronunciation of EModE, but we
can tell a lot about it; nonetheless, opinions vary regarding some points.
3.2 .2 The sounds of EModE (at around
1600) and their typical spellings
Let us start with two important notes. First the
consonants of EModE are the same as those of PdE (with
the exception of З, as in PdE vision which was coming into
existence right then: it probably existed in popular speech
already, but not yet in formal speech styles. The following
table sums up these, then. Since – as I mentioned earlier
– you are most likely to read EModE texts with a
modernized spelling, I give the examples according to
their present-day spelling. Historically, this is sometimes
anachronistic (e.g. the letter V was also used where we
use U today, as in vpon, PdE upon); also, EModE texts
show considerable variation in spelling (e.g. cause ~
cawse). The point is that I wish to illustrate EModE
stressed vowels, giving examples, so you can compare
them to their modern counterparts and their spellings. It
must be emphasized that the typical PdE spellings are
also found in EModE, even if not exactly in the same
words
Note 1: A * after a vowel letter means that the given
letter (O, A, I, E, U) is followed by either (i) a word-
final R, cf. for, far, sir, etc., or (ii) an R + another
consonant (e.g. lord, part, turn, etc.).
  3.4 Consonant changes from EModE to PdE
 3.4.1 R-Dropping (Non-Rhoticity) and related
vowel changes

3.4.1.1 R-Dropping itself

 During the 18th century, r was becoming gradually weakened and
finally dropped before consonants as well as word-finally (cf. the
words given in (46) above, or the passage from the King James
Bible, transcribed, in (39) and (40)), pronounced with a r in
EmodE but without it in many accents of English – such as RP –
today). Accents of English which have R-Dropping are called non-
rhotic, while those which lack it are called rhotic (such as most
American accents). The phenomenon of R-Dropping is also
referred to as non-rhoticity, therefore. R- Dropping started as a
feature of popular speech in and around London, but it soon
became quite widespread, in two ways:
 It spread geographically, to most of parts of England, as well as to
Wales, some areas of the US (but not to Canada), and the
Englishes of the southern hemisphere (= South Africa, New
Zealand and Australia). Its spread in England was of course
gradual, as illustrated by the following maps below8
 2. While originating in popular speech, non-rhoticity spread socially,
too: in England (as mentioned), it became more and more accepted in
educated circles and higher levels of society, so by the middle of the
19th century, it had come to be regarded as the educated, generally
accepted form of pronunciation.
3.4.1.2 The length of short vowels before a dropped
(50) R-DROPPING REVISITED
3.4.1.3 THE APPEARANCE OF INTRUSIVE-R
 In Later ModE, becoming widespread in the 20th century,
another change took place in most non-rhotic accents (including
RP), referred to as Intrusive-R.
3.4.3 YOD-DROPPING
THANKSFOR YOUR
ATTENTION! IS
THERE ANY
QUESTION?