hellog〜英語史ブログ / 2024-06-26

■ #5539. Chancery English にみる語源的綴字 [etymological_respelling][chancery_standard][hypercorrection][spelling]

　15世紀の英語の「書き言葉標準」として指摘されてきた "Chancery English" については，chancery_standard の各記事で取り上げてきた．Chancery English のアンソロジーを編んだ Fisher et al. (34) には，語源的綴字 (etymological_respelling) について少し記述がある．

Prefixes which appear in MnE with Latin ad still usually appear in their French form a. The MnE noun advice is 32 times a (avis, etc.) and 19 times ad; the MnE verb advise is six times a and five times ad. Adnullacion and adnulling appear once each alongside annullen once. Hypercorrection appears when an official hand notes on the dorse of a petition "he hath be resumed to þe kynges advayle [avail]" (227.20).

　ほかには，巻末の "Glossary of Forms" を丹念にたどっていくと，語源的綴字を示す単語の例を拾っていくことができる．ここでは拙論 "Etymological Respellings on the Eve of Spelling Standardisation" で注目した66の語彙項目とその派生語を中心に，Glossary から抜き出すことのできた関連項目を再掲する（赤字筆者）．S (= the Signet letters), P (= Privy Seal), C (= Chancery), N (= the Indentures) などの記号はアンソロジー内の典拠を指すが，詳細は同書に譲る．

- adnullacion n. a law voiding specified grants of a previous reign. (1) C5 (D.227.11). MED gives ad as a variant for an; no tion form OED obs. 1670.
- aduis(e) n. (17) S1, P2; auis(e) (10) S1, P2; auys (7) C8, C1; avis(e) (6) S1, P3; S1, C2; avys(e) (4) S1, C3; auice (1) C5; aduyce (1) C4; aduyse (1) N5.
- assault(e) n. (3) C3, C4 (D.195.7, 11); assaut(e) (6) C3, C4 (D.1995.1 etc.).
- auctorite n (35) C1, P3; autorite (8) C2, C3; auctoritee (6) P2, C3; auctoryte (2) C3, C5; aucorite (1) C3 (D.202.44); pl. autorites (1) C3.
- avail n. (1) P1; availle (4) C3, C4; avayle (2) C3, C5; availl (1) C3; advayle (1) C5; avaylle (1) C4.
- avise inf. advise (1) P2; past part. aduised (5) S1, P2; auised (2) P3; aduysed (1) C5; auysed (1) S1, C4; avysed (1) S1.
- convent n. (1) C5 (D.226.2); couent (7, all Signet Office documents) S1; conuent (6) C1, S1.
- doute n. doubt. (1) P2; dowte (4) S1 (1), C1 (3); dobȝthe (1) C5 (D.218.16).
- endorsement n. (1) P3; endocement (1) P3.
- endosed vb. past part. indorsed. (1) C3; endoced (1) P2 (D.122.6). OED obs. 1613.
- parliament n. (18) C3, C4 (D.194, 195, 199, 213, 216 only); parlement (104) C1, S1; parlament (1) C4; parlemet (1) C5 (D.226.21 error?); pl. parlementes (2) C5; parlementȝ (2) C5.
- receit n. act of receiving. (1) C3; receyte (1) C4 (D.210.28); pl. recepts (1) P2 (D.115.19).
- souereign n. (5) C3; souerain (55) S1, P2; soueraigne (41) C2, P2; souuerain (21) P2, P3; souerayne (18) C3, C5; souerayn (12) C3, P4; souereyne (10) P2 (D.213); soueraign (9) C2, C3; souueraign (8) P2; souereyn (6) P1, C3; souereigne (5) C1, C3; souuerayn (4) P3, C3; souueraigne (3) P2; souuerein (2) P3, C3; souuereigne (1) P2; souerainge (1) P1 (D.112.12); soueragne (1) C3; souerein (1) P1; pl. soueraines (1) S1.

　現代まで残らなかった adnullacion (cf. "annul"), auctorite "authority", advayle "avail" などの綴字が目に留まる．「書き言葉標準」とは名ばかりで，Chancery English の時代は，まだまだ揺れの激しい時代だったことが分かるだろう．

　・ Fisher, John H., Malcolm Richardson, and Jane L. Fisher, comps. An Anthology of Chancery English. Knoxville: U of Tennessee P, 1984. 392.
　・ Hotta, Ryuichi. "Etymological Respellings on the Eve of Spelling Standardisation." Studies in Medieval English Language and Literature30 (2015): 41--58.

[ 固定リンク | 印刷用ページ ]