Re: [tied] Davs (was Pronunciation of "r" - again?)

From: Andrew Jarrette
Message: 41214
Date: 2005-10-10

I wonder also whether "steg" meaning "steak" has a different pronunciation than "eg", even though they both go back to Old Danish e:k and ste:k, because "steg" is also the spelling of the word for "step", and the one spelling came to have only one pronunciation rather than two (the pronunciation of the one with -g in Old Danish instead of the one with -k, being chosen).  I must confess I am assuming that Lars is correct about the meaning "step", and I am assuming the forms e:k and ste:k for Old Danish -- were they eik and steik or something similar?
Similarly, "boeg" (I can't yet get the foreign characters) comes from *bo:kiz while "loeg" comes from *laukam, do they not?  Any chance that that could be the reason for the divergent pronunciations?
 
Andrew

squilluncus <grvs@...> wrote:
--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "tgpedersen" <tgpedersen@...>
wrote:


> Also note
> 'bøg' /bø?G/ "beech", 'løg' /loI?/ "onion"
> 'eg' /e?G/ "oak", 'steg' /staI?/ "steak"

We also got "egetrae", "egebord" with /e?G/ retained.
("Meget egendomligt")

Couldn't it be special spheres within which a certain pronunciation
is maintained? Weighty pre-industrial lumberdealers and carpenters
vs. low-status cooks and housewives (bög vs. lög)?

There is also a factor similar to shibboleth to be considered:

"troll" and "boll" is pronounced exactly the same in Sweden,
whereas "trold" is pronounced /tro?l/ and "bold" /bold/ in Danish.
Probably they were once exactly rhyming, but inappropriate
associations with "bolle" ("futuere") has lead to the d in writing
gaining also pronounced value as /d/.
As a Swede coming to Denmark you have to be careful with expressions
like "bolla med idéer" ("juggle with ideas").

Lars