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Welcome to the illogical, idiosyncratic, outrageous linguistic phenomenon known as the English language. The story of how this ragtag collection of words evolved is a winding tale replete with intriguing accidents and bizarre twists of fate. In this eye-opening, fabulously entertaining book, James Essinger unlocks the mysteries that have confounded linguists and scholars for millennia.From the sophisticated writing systems of the ancient Sumerians through the tongue twisters of Middle English, the popular National Spelling Bee, and the mobile phone text-messaging of today, Spellbound chronicles the fascinating history of English spelling, including insights about the vast number of words English has borrowed from other languages ("orange," "vanilla," and "ketchup," to name a few), and how their meanings differ from country to country. Featuring a lively cast of characters ranging from the fictional to the historically noteworthy (Chaucer, Samuel Johnson, Noah Webster, Shakespeare, Bill Gates), this affectionate tribute to English spelling shows why our whimsical, capricious common language continues to hold us spellbound.From the Trade Paperback edition.
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Showing 4 featured editions. View all 4 editions?
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Spellbound: The Surprising Origins and Astonishing Secrets of English Spelling
May 1, 2007, Delta
in English
0385340842 9780385340847
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3
Spellbound: the surprising origins and astonishing secrets of English spelling
2007, Bantam Dell
in English
- Delta trade pbk. ed
0385340842 9780385340847
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4
Spellbound: the improbable story of English spelling
2006, Robson Books
in English
186105906X 9781861059062
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- Created June 23, 2010
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August 4, 2013 | Edited by VacuumBot | Updated format 'E-book' to 'eBook' |
April 3, 2013 | Edited by VacuumBot | Updated format 'eBook' to 'E-book'; Removed author from Edition (author found in Work) |
April 29, 2011 | Edited by OCLC Bot | Added OCLC numbers. |
June 23, 2010 | Created by ImportBot | Imported from marc_overdrive MARC record |