>
> The develoment of English _father_ from OE fæder is irregular. The
> combination -der appears to have been subject to an irregular
change
> to voiced -ther. English _gather_ from OE gaderian is another
> example, is is the early Modern English alternation between
_murder_
> and _murther_. Norse influence may explain English _father_, but
it
> does not English _gather_.
>
For that matter, Danish (and Swedish) _far_ /fa:R/ is irregular
(_fa'er_ /fä&R) is 1800 Copenhagen, now obsolete, _fader_ /faD&R/ is
solemn). It has to do with frequency of use, cf. colloquial /la/
(spelt _la'_) for written and solemn (or upwardly mobile semi-
illiterate) _lade_ /lad&/, and similarly for frequent verbs in -
ge /G&/, -ve, -be /w&/, but never for the less frequently used eg.
_bade_, always /baD&/. In Swedish that extra syllable is dropped also
in spelling (eg Danish _drage_, _tage_, Swedish _dra_, _ta_). The
forms have been competing, in Danish the long forms are gaining
ground from literal pronunciation.
Torsten