20. The vocalism of sylf 2011 and that of smere 1220, ȝesmered 1413–in the last two of which, it is true, the accented e is corrected into i (y),–are found in WS., A. and K.[1]; ȝereced 1812 is A. and K.[2] No special importance is to be attached to the non WS. ȝecnucad[3] 88, in which the a is sufficiently accounted for by the want of accent.
30. embe 621 1815 and embehwyrft 422 (also ymbhwyrftum 413) are K[4], etest[5] 423, byon[6] 624 and ȝeberned(e)[7] 811 2222 are A.[8] The vocalism of ærfodum[9] 615 seems to be properly Mercian and the same may be said of hæfeð[10] 82, driȝ 821, ȝedriȝede 1215 and forþricceð[11] 1813. It is, in fact, well-known that the Saxon patois are rich in Mercian forms.[12]
B. Phonetics.
I. The vowels in accented syllables.
Short Vowels.
§ 1. a.
OE. a in an open syllable before a guttural vowel remains a in hafast 224, hafað 206.
- ↑ Bülbr. § 304 and § 186 anm. 1.
- ↑ ib. § 184.
- ↑ Siev. § 414.
- ↑ Siev. § 154; the vocalism in e can also be explained by the weak accent (Bülbr. § 454).
- ↑ Siev. § 371 anm. 6, 7.
- ↑ Bülbr. § 118.
- ↑ ib. § 180 anm. 1.
- ↑ The use of mid with the accusative 1614 is another peculiarity of the same group of dialects (Sweet, Dict. s. v.).
- ↑ Siev. § 158, 1.
- ↑ ib. § 416 anm. 1, e.
- ↑ HES. § 688. The change of y, ȳ to i, ī in the Midland dialects seems to have begun before the end of the OE. period (Kluge 1. c. § 100 and 101).
- ↑ Förster 1. c.