Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 22:42:39 -0500

From: "William H. Smith" Wh5mith[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]AOL.COM

Subject: Re: /w/ and /hw/



Why isn't "who" pronounced [wu:] or [hwu:]? Because a Middle Endlish to

Modern English change deleted [w] between a consonant and a back vowel, for

example, "two" is [tu:] and "sword" is [sord]. Without analogical leveling,

the past tense of "swear" would be "sore".

Bill Smith

Piedmont College