20.2 How could one standardise Scots?
Both English and Scots face a fundamental problem in spelling in that we use the Latin alphabet, with its 21 consonants and 5 vowels to represent 24 consonant and approximately 25 vowel sounds in received pronunciation, and 26 consonant and approximately 14 to 17 basic vowel sounds in the various Scots accents.
Vowels – spoken and written
“Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness and also in quantity (length). They are usually voiced, and are closely involved in prosodic variation such as tone, intonation and stress.
The word vowel comes from the Latin word vocalis, meaning "vocal" (i.e. relating to the voice). In English, the word vowel is commonly used to refer both to vowel sounds and to the written symbols that represent them.” (Wikipedia [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] )
- A written vowel is a, e, i, o, u and sometimes y.
- A spoken vowel is a sound produced with the voice where the airflow is not impeded.
We chose to give you the two specific handsel words for this unit as they, on the surface, may seem at first quite akin to Standard Scottish English. When one takes a closer look, one finds they behave quite differently from their Standard English equivalents. Before exploring standardisation of Scots, we shall delve a little deeper into these words to get a flavour of some of the issues facing us when considering such a thing as Standard Scots.
20.1 What is a ‘standard language’?