#3848: On orthographic choice : Canal comments

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From: Francois Canal <axxaxx@yahoo.com>


> However, the issue remains that there is no
> explanation for
> dropping the accent off "é" to have "e" while the
> same sound is
> conserved. 

Poincy, in making this statement is providing an
answer to his own question, that is, "there is no
explanation for dropping the accent off "é" to have
"e" while the same sound is conserved". And the author
is exactly right. We can go into the next millenium
(3000) speculating the reason of that choice as
opposed to keeping the "orthographic status quo", we
will never be proven wrong in any of our theory (even
by our own self).

There need not be any basis behind the choice of
characters for a spelling system, but we usually opt
for simplicity of representation (relative to the
group. Appreciate the simplicity of Chinese characters
versus the complexity of Roman characters!) and
accessibility to representational technology. 

Because of Haiti's economic status, Roman characters
are chosen because widely used in the Western (and
increasingly Eastern) world and all printing tools
used these characters. 

What is of essence to any orthographic system is
efficiency of representation (elimination of
dedundancy: representing the same sound in multiple
ways), completeness (not leave any essential sound
out) and simplicity (do not introduce unnecessary
symbols in the language).

Based on that test of adequateness of a spelling
system (efficiency, completeness, simplicity), for
theoretical reasons only, the current official
spelling system of Haitian Creole can be improved by
eliminating completely the character "c" which
survives only in the production of the consonants of a
word like "chich". Replacing "c" by "s" would give
rise then to the word "shish". Only on theoretical
ground should that proposal be entertained since
Haitian Creole writers have conformed quite well to
the established norm of "ch".

May we all find peace in our cultural identification!


=====
Francois Canal
105 SE 4th Ave Apt#B
Boynton Beach, FL 33435
(561)752-0649

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