Phonetics

I know what they do and I know why they are there but rarely remember the correct names of those dots, lines and squiggles above and below letters to amend pronunciation. Perhaps it would help if I understood the etymologies and thus knew why they were named.

Acute accent - not 'accent' in the sense of 'mode of pronunciation used', normally due to point of origin, but the written instruction. The term 'accent' came to English from Middle French, where accenter, meaning 'stress' or 'accentuate' and used as a verb, came from the noun. This in turn is derived from Latin accentus, with the same meaning, and ultimately from Latin ad 'to' and cantus 'a singing' and has exactly the same origins as the word 'chant'. The addition of 'acute', to differentiate from the grave accent (see below) and to show indicate a higher pitch than the latter, comes to English through the same French and Latin route and is ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ak meaning 'to a point, sharp' - and is why the term is used to describe such as an illness or feeling. It came to French from the use of the apex in Latin, itself indicating a long vowel sound.

Breve - indicating a short vowel is much easier to see as this comes from the Latin brevis meaning 'short, brief'. It is the opposite of the macron (see below)

Cedilla - comes from the Spanish where, along with French and Portuguese, it is used to instruct the speaker to use, for example, the sibillant 's' (as in the English 'facade') instead of the hard constant sound for 'k' (as in the English 'arcade') when under the letter 'C'. This is the most common example although, in truth, the use is much more complex. The image of the cedilla comes from the Visigoth representation of their letter 'Z', easy to see in the image.

Circumflex - used to mark vowels where pronunciation begins at a high pitch then falls, this comes from Latin circumflexus or 'bent around', a reasonable description of the symbol.

Diaresis - comes from the Greek meaning 'division, separation, distinction', it is used to show where a vowel letter is not pronounced as one vowel when alongside another vowel. In English these are always loanwords, best seen in names such as Zoe and Cloe, although today the use of the symbol is rarely seen.

Grave accent - shares the same 'stress' origins with 'acute accent' above, the addition not only to differentiate but to indicate a lower pitch than the acute accent. This French term shows it comes from the Latin gravis which, when used in the sense of sounds, is used as 'deep, low, bass' and ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root gwere or 'heavy'. This ancient root has produced words of similar meaning in Greek and Sanskrit as well as Latin gravis which also gave terms meaning 'ponderous, burdensome, loaded, oppressive, grievous, troublesome' and also 'pregnant'.

Hacek - most often seen in Baltic, Slavic and Finnic language is also known as a 'caron'. Such changes the pronunciation so the vowel sound begins low and then rises, ostensibly the reverse of the circumflex (see above).

Macron - is used to indicate a short vowel and is the opposite of the breve (see above) and is derived from the Greek makron literally meaning 'long' and most often seen in the suffix 'macro-'

Tilde - is a stroke over a word to indicate missing letters. It is related, not in its use, to the 'tittle' that dot above the ninth and tenth letters of the alphabet. The 'tilde' and 'tittle' share an origin in the Latin titulus meaning 'inscription, heading' - this meaning also seen in the origins of the word 'title' and for obvious reasons.

Trema - is simply another name for the diaresis (above) or umlaut (below). The different name is used because it comes from the Greek trema meaning 'perforation, pip, orifice' and thus a description of the symbol rather than the function.

Umlaut - another name for the diaresis or trema (above), this coming from the German ambi 'about' and laut 'sound'. The term was first coined as recently as 1774 by poet Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock but not used in the sense 'modification of vowels' until Jakob Grimm did so in 1819. Earlier uses of the umlaut had the same function but were not known as such but simply accepted as the norm. Klopstock used the German hlut which shares its origins with the modern English word 'listen'.

Did learning the origins help? Not in the least. But it did confirm that 'umlaut' is among the most wonderful-sounding words in any language - ironic considering its literal meaning.

Distinguishing Males from Females

During my formative years I recall being instructed and/or quizzed on the names given to different genders in animals. When hearing a question on a television quiz show recently, I wondered when and why swans were classified as cobs and pens. Before long I was looking into the origins of boar and sow, bull and cow, buck and doe and all the rest.

Bull and Cow
Not only cattle but camel, elephant, elk, giraffe, hippopotamus, walrus, whale, and even the termite, rat, crocodile are known as bulls and cows. The word 'bull' can be traced to a Proto-Indo-European word bhel meaning 'to inflate, swell', thereafter a Germanic root meaning 'to roar', and ultimately used for male cattle. Not until the early 17th century did the males of other creatures come to be known as 'bulls'. The female 'cow' comes from Proto-Indo-European gwou which referred to cattle in general, irrespective of gender. Indeed it is only in Celtic and Germanic languages that 'cow' has come to refer to the female, in every other Indo-European language it refers to the species and both genders.

Boar and Sow
Swine or pigs would doubtless first come to mind, these terms are also used for bear, guinea pig, hedgehog, jellyfish, and mole. Nothing is known of the origns of boar before the Proto-Germanic bairaz, although we can be fairly sure it was created by the Germanic speakers as it is unknown outside the West Germanic-speaking regions. Sow can be traced to Proto-Indo-European su which began referring to both genders and is thought to have been imitative of the noise made by pigs. Again the use for animals other than pigs is comparatively recent.

Buck and Doe
Deer or even rabbits come instantly to mind but these terms are also used when speaking of antelope, reindeer, gerbil, goat, hamster, kangaroo and mouse. It seems none of these were the original references, indeed both words seem likely to have once referred to different animals. In the case of 'buck' this undoubtedly came from Proto-Indo-European bhugo meaning 'goat', while 'doe' is an Old English loan word and related to Old Irish dam 'ox' and Old Welsh dafad 'sheep'.

Stallion and Mare
After horse we may think of zebra, but should also consider the seahorse where the male and female are known as the seastallion and seamare. Of the two the female version is by far the oldest and originally referred to simply 'horse'. Stallion is thought to be derived from Proto-Germanic stalla or 'stalls' and where the beast would be kept in order to service the mares.

Dog and Bitch
Both terms are comparatively recent and the origins unknown. Until the 15th century both sexes were simply known as hounds.

Cock and Hen
Not only birds but also fish such as the salmon. While 'cock' is something of a mystery, 'hen' is derived from Old English hana - although hana referred to the male bird and came from the Proto-Indo-European kan meaning 'to sing', still seen in the word 'chant'.

Ram and Ewe
The origins of the male 'ram' is not clear but could refer to 'strength', the word seen in Old Norse rammr 'strong'. As with earlier examples the female 'ewe' began as referring to the animal in general and is derived from Proto-Indo-European owi meaning 'sheep'.

Gander and Goose
From the Germanic gans meaning 'goose' also comes 'gander', the root gans imitative of the bird's honking cry.

Stag and Hind
The male 'stag' has not changed since the Proto-Germanic stag with the same meaning. This comes from the Proto-Indo-European root stegh 'to prick, sting' and used in the sense of an animal in its prime. The female 'hind' is derived from Proto-Indo-European kem meaning 'hornless'.

Cob and Pen
The male swan or 'cob' may share an origin with the surname 'Cobb', in which case it simply describes a large beast. The female 'pen' shares an origin with the French penne or 'feather' in simply meaning 'to fly'.