Nicholas Bodley wrote:

> Fwiw, I only barely understand the reasons why one word ends in "...ence"
> and another in "...ance".

To a first approximation, a word has -ant/-ance/-ancy
if its root is a Latin a-stem verb, -e- otherwise.

--
Anton Sherwood, http://www.ogre.nu/
"How'd ya like to climb this high *without* no mountain?" --Porky Pine