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From: deb5@ellis.uchicago.edu (Daniel von Brighoff)
Subject: Cyril and Methodius [Re: German pronunciation of English "v"
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References: <4kuik3$118@aim.et.iupui.edu> <rte-1604961032490001@mac-118.lz.att.com> <4l5vo0$2hg@lyra.csx.cam.ac.uk> <rte-2204961057520001@mac-118.lz.att.com>
Date: Fri, 26 Apr 1996 04:57:43 GMT
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In article <rte-2204961057520001@mac-118.lz.att.com>,
Ralph T. Edwards <rte@elmo.lz.att.com> wrote:
[snip]
>Which brings up another point.  Some folks claimed recently that the
>Korean alphabet is the only designed alphabet (as opposed to evolved). 

I for one never claimed this and I don't remember reading anyone else's
claim that this is true.  I said that Hankul was the only alphabet 
designed according to systematic principles relating shape to sound.

>What about Cyril and Methodius?  Now it's clear they didn't start from
>scratch, as the Koreans did, but they borrowed from two sources, and
>accommodated the Greek alphabet to a new language in an inventive way. 
>The result fits Slavic much better than the Roman alphabet fits anything
>but Romance.  The second source was Hebrew, which suppied sh and shch, and
>probably ts and ch, but I can't quite tell from which Hebrew letters.

For that matter, what about St. Mesrop?  The Armenian alphabet owes even 
less to Greek, Roman, and Hebrew script than Cyrillic and fits Armenian
much better than any of them.

However, there is no clear systematic graphical relation between the
Armenian letters for /b/, /p/, and /ph/ (for example).  This sharply
distinguishes it from Hankul and makes it a much less impressive 
achievement.  Some scripts designed in post-Enlightenment Europe
approach it in innovativeness, but not one of them ever got off the
drawing board.


-- 
	 Daniel "Da" von Brighoff    /\          Dilettanten
	(deb5@midway.uchicago.edu)  /__\         erhebt Euch
				   /____\      gegen die Kunst!
