Simplifying English language

[Sonic]

Well, I think a time has came to simplify this language .

OK, firstly, we spell letters "q" ("queen"), "k" ("kilometer"), "ck" ("jack") and "c" ("colt"), also "ch" ("character") almost the same in some words. So, let's in all cases from now on instead of these letters write a letter "k", since it is only letters from the mentioned ones to describe only that sound. Then, remove "h" from places where it is not said (like "hour", from now on to be written just "our", "when" - just "wen"). Were "c" or other letters sounds as letter "s", let's change them to "s". If letter "e" in the ends of words is unspelled, just skip it. In plases were "g" and "j" sounds the sam (lik words "gym" and "july"), us "j" only, leaving "g" for words lik "Garry". Us letter "i" only instead of "ea", "ee", etc. in words were this sound is heard (lik "i" in "lick" and "ee" in "sheep"). After this, let's us letter "u" instead of "a", "o" in words lik "glass", "done", living "a" for words like "name". Then, us always "e" instead of "ea", "a" in words were it is heard like "e" in "bed". Wat els is still not dun? Well, ther still ur thos unoying dubl letters. Let's stop using them. Also, "o" stil has 2 prunonsations: lik in "also" and in "stop". So let's now use "ou" olways for "also" tip of prononsation. Insted of "tions" just us "shns". Liv leter "i" for words lik "live" and us "y" in words lik "bite". Drop leter "r" were it is not nided. Insted of "aight" lyk in "straight" us "eit", insted of "ought", lyk in "bought", us "ot", insted of "ought", lyk in "enough", us "uf". Doun't u think it is inuf? Y doun't. Leter "u" stil hes two prononsashns: on lyk in "universe" end the uthe lyk in "undying". Just us "u" fo words lyk "undying" end us "iu" in uthe words. Alsou, chanj prunonsashn of ending "ease" to "iz". Chanj "ph" to "f". Wy diu wi nid apostrofes et ol? Just rimuv them. Chanj "uege" (like in "languege") to "wej" OK, now it is probubli inaf, but Inglish langwej is stil not simpli inaf thus pliz sei iur uthe sugeshns...

[Solly]

[Anodyne]

Wai not jast switch tu ool-fö'netik speling laik wii Fins häv dan foo eijes?

[chequita guevara]

The last time they tried this (19th Century, IIRC) everyone hated it and it went over like a lead balloon.

[Urban Ranger]

Simplification is a good idea. Makes it more accessable. Only snobs would reject such an idea.

Oh, there's no such thing as "language purity" when it comes to English.

[FrustratedPoet]

[chequita guevara]

Sorry, we native speakers get first crack at saying how English will be spelled (or spelt if yer a Brit). It's hard enough to get native English speakers to undersand our language as it is. You go and change it on us and we'll never be able to read or write again.

[Bosh]

or to quote Mark Twain...For example, in Year 1 that useless letter "c" would be dropped to be replased either by "k" or "s", and likewise "x" would no longer be part of the alphabet.

The only kase in which "c" would be retained would be the "ch" formation, which will be dealt with later.

Year 2 might reform "w" spelling, so that "which" and "one" would take the same konsonant, wile Year 3 might well abolish "y" replasing it with "i" and iear 4 might fiks the "g/j" anomali wonse and for all.

Jenerally, then, the improvement would kontinue iear bai iear with iear 5 doing awai with useless double konsonants, and iears 6-12 or so modifaiing vowlz and the rimeining voist and unvoist konsonants.

Bai iear 15 or sou, it wud fainali bi posibl tu meik ius ov thi ridandant letez "c", "y" and "x" -- bai now jast a memori in the maindz ov ould doderez -- tu riplais "ch", "sh", and "th" rispektivli.

Fainali, xen, aafte sam 20 iers ov orxogrefkl riform, wi wud hev a lojikl, kohirnt speling in ius xrewawt xe Ingliy-spiking werld.

[raghar]

You should disable "a" "the" and "an". Do you know what would happen? There is good chance that English persons would start think.
Look Mountain. A mountain? The mountain? An mountain????? Can you see possibilities?
English was raped several time around the world and would be raped more, so... Don't worry IT WOULD be more simple.

[Traianvs]

lol at boshko... We don't need to simplify our languages, because they evolve anyway

dutch has had a very rapid evolution, whereas french or english of 2 centuries ago can still be understood now, most of it at least.

we on the other hand try to change our spelling every 5-7 years or so which makes our writing a bit hard... even the hardcore linguistic specialists who spend their entire days studing the dutch language often make mistakes! We always try to simplify our written language, every so often, but after a while it gets clear that it's another futile attempt and that there is still no real improvement, except that the written language changes and evolves all the time, so nobody gets the hang of it

[cavebear]

I recall reading something like that as a child in the 50's...



That doesn't mean I don't agree some spelling simplification wouldn't be beneficial, just that it's not a new idea...

[Immortal Wombat]

Originally posted by Anodyne
Wai not jast switch tu ool-fö'netik speling laik wii Fins häv dan foo eijes?

From e2.com
Finns love to claim that Finnish is spoken the same way it's written. This is indeed true in the sense that Finnish spelling is quite regular, so it is easy to read Finnish out loud... assuming, of course, that you've mastered the somewhat tricky pronunciation.
What is less often advertised is that spoken Finnish is radically different from written Finnish. While every region and major city of Finland has its own dialect -- including the notoriously incomprehensible Rauma dialect and the hilariously stretched tones of Savo -- thanks to modern mass communications the de facto standard these days is the Helsinki dialect. Mind you, I am specifically not referring to the bizarre, heavily Russian and Swedish-influenced subcultural Helsinki slang (Stadin slangi) that reached its peak around WW2, just the "everyday" language spoken by most Finns on non-formal occasions.

The most distinctive features of spoken Finnish are that vowel-consonant-vowel clusters become long vowels, final vowels are dropped and words are elided. Naturally, these occurs in other languages as well, written Finnish just entirely fails to take these into account. Every now and then, scholarly debates flare up about whether it might be possible to accept an alternate form of the 1st person plural or spell sydämellisesti with two M's (the way it's actually pronounced), inevitably ending in the failure of the revisionists. Written Finnish is carved in stone, dammit, and if any of its 5 million speakers try to say otherwise they're just wrong!

[loinburger]

Too many long-posts.

Just switch to formal languages. Problem solved.
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