Re: Norwegian Vocative

--- In cybalist@..., Håkan Lindgren <h5@...> wrote:

> There's something about Chaucer's English spelling that always

makes me smile.

>
> I guess cherl = Swedish karl, German Kerl, modern English man
>
> Hakan,
> a myslyved man myself...

There's something about Chaucer's style, and the "style" of Middle
English in general, that reminds me of the Scandinavian languages. As
if time had stood still here.
This is a "Scandinavian" system of long vowels:

i y u
e ø o
æ ö å
a

and this is what you might make of present day English spelling:

ie ue "add e"
ee oo "double vowel"
ea oa "add a"
a

Torsten

>
> O stronge God
> O wommanliche wyf
> Nay, olde cherl
> Goode fader, shal I dye?
> False coward
>
> However, it is dropped after disyllabic adjectives and more

generally (see the last example) when alternating rhythm can be
sustained without it:

>
> O woful Mars
> O wery goost
> O verrey lord
> O woful eyen two
> O cruel fader
> O oold unholsom and myslyved man
>
> Piotr