Consider the following:
A/S would alliterate on vowels (any vowels!)
The thorn is a *barely voiced consonant and so could be considered a vowel???
Roger Collett
Arrowhead Press
http://www.arrowheadpress.co.uk/
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"Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality."
Jules de Gaultier
----- Original Message -----
From: "Judy Prince" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, November 30, 2008 12:52 AM
Subject: Re: Beowulf's Yogh
> So, Dr. Hamilton, is this your question: "Why does the author of Beowulf
> treat, for alliterative purposes, two distinct sounds ['y' as in 'yet', and
> 'g' as in 'get'] if they were the same?
> And, further, you wonder: "Were voiced and voiceless velar fricatives
> distinct in Proto-Germanic?"
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