> but they actually achieved to change their English
> language into a new standard, endowed not only with a different

pronunciation,

> but also with a different spelling, though not very remarkable

(think of -ize

> instead of -ise, "harbor" instead of "harbour").

I get the impression that the spelling -ize was the more normal one
in Britain even in the early 20th century. Not sure when or why -
ise took over, but I think it existed as an acceptable alternative
before becoming general. Maybe it was a case of British spelling
authorities wanting to assert their independence of the global power
after WW2? But I don't really know. The invention of
wordprocessers has further ossified these niggly differences.

Llama Nom