4.2.3. Consonants

4.2.3.1. Voicing of Voiceless Consonants

One of the most important changes of the XVI century was the voicing of consonants [f], [s], [θ], and the clusters [ks] and [ʧ] in weakly stressed and unstressed syllables (if they were preceded by an unstressed vowel and followed by a stressed vowel), e.g.

possess [po΄zes].

Note. After a stressed vowel, voicing usually did not take place, e.g.

off [of], cloth, rich, exercise.

The phonetic conditions of the Early NE voicing of fricatives and sibilants resemble those of Verner’s Law in Old Germanic languages, that is why O.Jespersen called this voicing «Verner’s Law in Early New English», e.g.

f > v ME of [of] > NE [əv]

s > z ME is [is] > NE [iz]

θ > ð ME the [θə] > NE [ðə, ði], ME that [θat] > NE [ðæt], ME they [θei] > NE [ðei], ME with [wiθ] > NE [wið]

ks > gz ME anxietie [aŋksie΄tiə] > NE [æŋ΄zaiti]

ʧ> ʤ ME knowleche [΄knoulət] > NE [΄nɔliʤ]

Note. The change of [θ] > [ð] affected mostly articles, pronouns, adverbs and conjunctions.

4.2.3.2. Loss of Consonants Development of [X]

During the XIII-XV cc., a number of consonants were lost. We must distinguish two variants of the development of [x] (written gh): (1) before t and (2) in final position.

1. ME [x] (mostly before t) was lost and the preceding short vowel was lengthened, e.g.

ME light [lixt] > NE [li:t], ME night [nixt] > NE [ni:t], ME eight [eixt] > NE [eit], ME daughter [΄dauxtər] > NE [΄dɔ:tə]. Long [i:] arising from this change took part in the vowel shift, e.g. light [li:t] > [lait], night [ni:t] > [nait]. In forms like brought, fought the [ou] developed into [ɔ:]

The spelling did not reflect this change.

After the digraph gh had become silent, it was introduced in some words, which had never had the souns [x], e.g.

the word delit of French origin (< Fr delit) became delight by analogy with light, night.

In Northern dialects the [x] before [t] has been preserved to our days.

2. [x] final mostly changed into [f], e.g. ME laugh [laux] > NE [lauf] > [lα:f], [x] changed into [f] if it was preceded by [u], e.g. ME enough [i΄nux] > NE [i΄nuf] > [in΄лf].

In a few words final [x] was lost, as in bough, dough, though, through, but the spelling did not reflect this change.

Simplification of Consonant Clusters

(1) Initial [k] or [g] before [n] and [w] before [r] were lost in the second half of the XVII c., e.g.

kn > n ME knee [kn ] > NE [ni:], ME knowen [΄knouən] > NE know [nou]

gn > n ME gnawen [g΄nauən] > NE gnaw [nɔ:] ]

wr > r ME written [΄wrīten] > NE write [rait], ME wrong [wrong] > NE [rɔŋ]

(2) The consonant [l] was lost before [k], [m], [f], [v] in the middle of a word, e.g.

lk > k ME talk [talk] > NE [tɔ: k], ME walk [walk] > NE [wɔ:k]

lm > m ME calm [kalm] > NE [kα:m], ME palm [palm] > NE [pα:m]

lf > f ME half [half] > NE [hα:f]. ME calf [kalf] > NE [kα:f]

lv > v halves [΄ halvəs] > NE [hα:vz], calves [΄ kalvəs] > [kα:vz]

(3) In the XVI-VII c. final [b] after [m] and [m] before [n] were lost.

mb > m ME climban [΄klimbən] > NE climb [klaim], ME comb [kǭmb] > NE [koum]

mn > n ME autumne [΄autumn] > NE [΄ɔ:təm], ME columne [΄kolumn] > NE [΄kɔləm]

The spelling did not reflect this change. Moreover, silent b was wrongly added in NE words that had never had b, e.g.

OE cruma > ME crume > NE crumb [krлm]

OE lim > ME lim > NE limb [lim]

OE þūma > ME thume > NE thumb [θлm]

(4) In the XVI c. the consonant t was lost in consonant clusters stl, stn, ftn, e.g.

[stl] > [sl] ME castel [΄kastəl] > castle NE [΄kα:sl], ME whistlen [΄wistlən] > NE whistle [΄wisl]

[stn] > [sn] ME listen [΄listən] > NE [΄lisn], ME fasten [΄fastən] > NE [΄fα:sn]

[ftn] > [fn] ME often [΄oftən] > NE [΄ɔfn], ME soften [΄softən] > NE [΄sɔfn]

5. Final [ng] was simplified to [ŋ], e.g. ME thing [θing] > NE [θiŋ]