Thank you all for taking the Etymology Pre-Tests (1 & 2) that I posted last week.  I trust it showed you your personal growth areas as you embark upon this journey of true science and meaningful scholarship.  It absolutely helped me determine which lessons are most pertinent.  So with no further adieu, I present to you Lesson 1: Building A Word

What asked via the pre-test, 50% of respondents indicated that it is the "history" or "origin" of a word.  While these two concepts are required to make etymological analyses, the word itself denotes that one would study the "true sense" of words.  With that, one must know where the word has come from (origin) and how the word has been used over time (history).  Point being, etymology is broader than the origin and history of the word- it is getting to the true nature of words and concepts, implying that we are not always privy to this knowledge.  It indicates that the laity of society deal with lies and half-truths in our general studies until the etymological flashlight shines to illuminate the ideas that our ancestors espoused when first uttering the word.  And as many of us are realizing more and more that we have been fed fallacies throughout our schooling, we are desperately seeking to fast from toxic tales and replenish ourselves with the nourishment of authenticity.  For those that embrace astrology, this is a hallmark symptom of the Age of Aquarius- or as the Erykah Badu moniker says, people have become and strive to #staywoke

Many often retort that etymology is pedantic, in that its' students are purists that only regard the original meaning as applicable and valid in all circumstances.   However, I know that it is due to person's lack of understanding of the science itself.  Etymology addresses the following aspects of language (Mosi Bey; "Etymology + Reading"; MoorishCiviletter.net):

• Basic Elements
• Earliest Known Use
• Changes In Form and Meaning
• Tracing Its Transmission From One Language to Another
• Identifying Its Cognates In Other Languages
• Reconstructing Its Ancestral Form Where Possible
• ​All Its Different Meanings And Shades Of Meaning

When building words, we start with phonetics, which is the study of how speech sounds are made, transmitted, and received.  This differs from phonology, which is the study of the principles that govern the way sounds are organized in languages.  We begin with these two principles that fall under the linguistics of sound because words are utterances that convey ideas- and the utterances are systematically analyzed via phonetics and phonology.  In future lessons, we will elucidate this point further when we discuss sound changes, any processes of language change that affect pronunciation (phonetic change) or sound system structures (phonological change). 



​For now, these are the basics that you need to know:

• graphemes: smallest units in a writing system capable of causing a contrast in meaning; i.e., a letter
• phonemes: smallest units in a sound system capable of causing a contrast in meaning; i.e. sounds in a word
• morphemes: the smallest part of a word that carries meaning, which would be a root word, prefix, or suffix

Words are comprised of graphemes, phonemes and morphemes

For example, the word prefix is comprised of six graphemes (letters), six phonemes (sounds), and two morphemes (pre + fix).  

The word preview is comprised of seven graphemes, five phonemes (p-r-e-v-u), and two morphemes (pre + view)

• Preview has five phonemes because the iew makes the long u sound.  This is called a vowel digraph

The word chapstick contains __ graphemes, __ phonemes, and __ morphemes. (scroll down for answer)

The word chapstick contains nine graphemes, seven phonemes, and two morphemes. (scroll down for answer)

• the ch makes one sound, despite the fact that there are two letters.  This is a consonant digraph; ck is also a consonant digraph

What about the word stone? __graphemes, __ phonemes, and __moprhemes
(remember: e at the end of this word is silent)
                      graphemes: five     phonemes: four     morphemes: one


Below is a chart that lists the vowel pairs/digraphs/dipthongs and a chart listing the consonant digraphs.  Remember, these are instances where two letters combine to make one sound. 

​

Vowels are sounds that have no stricture: that is, the sound is created when air escapes the mouth but without obstruction through the mouth or nose.  Changes in vowel sounds are based on slight movements of the tongue, throat, and lips.  Although vowels are classified by linguistics 

We are taught that vowels are long vs short, but technically, they exist on a range of vowel sounds, based on the shape the mouth makes to create said sound.  For example, opening my mouth wide creates the short a sound while the long e sound is created when my mouth is a bit more closed.  When we apply dicritical marks to vowel sounds in words, for the purposes of reading instruction, let's keep the long and short concept

Consonants are sounds made by a closure in the vocal tract, or by a narrowing which is so marked that air cannot escape without producing audible friction.  The friction is produced by air coming through obstructions of the lips, teeth, and tongue.  

The word consider​ contains: two gutturals (c and r) and two dentals (d and s); the gutturals are a plosive and a liquid (respectively), and the dentals are a plosive and a fricative.  One plosive is voiced (d) and one is not (c); one dental is voiced (d) and the other is not (s).  

Note: Pater is Latin for father (English).  Notice that the p changed to f, which is a change throughout one category (dentals).   This phenomena also takes place between cord (Latin) and heart (English)- the c (sounds like /k/) changed to h, which is a change throughout one category (guttural).  

Semi Vowels
y and w are both semi-vowels, in that they often act as a vowel depending on their placement in a word.  For example, the word "water" uses w as a consonant (dental); but in the word "few", w is a vowel.  Similarly, in the word "yellow" y is a consonant (guttural), but in "happy", y is a vowel.  

Recap
Etymology is the study of the truest sense of words; this includes the basic form of words, the origin of words, the original meaning of words, and how words change in meaning and form over time.

The basis of word study must beginning with phonetics and phonology.  Phonetics and phonology both contain the root phon(o) meaning sound.  Thus, these fields refer to the sounds within a word or a language system overall. 

Words are utterances of sound that convey meaning.  They are comprised of graphemes (letters), phonemes (sounds), and, and morphemes.

Sounds in words can be categorized as either vowels or consonants.  Consonants can be broken down even further into labials, dentals, and gutturals.

 

Practice and Quiz
Link 1: "Lesson 1 Practice"
Link 2: "Lesson 1 Quiz"

Sorting is an important exercise in building literacy skills.  From developing phonemic awareness to improving vocabulary skills, sorts allow the learner to identify common themes amongst words
Root Words Sort 1
Root Words Sort 2
Root Words Sort 3
Root Words Sort 4
Root Words Sort 5
Root Words Sort 6
Root Words Sort 7
Root Words Sort 8
Root Words Sort 9

Greetings,
    Below are two pre-tests for you to determine your current etymological understandings.  The first is one I created- it covers initial concepts that will be addressed in the first couple of lessons.

The second is a pre-test in preparation for the National Classical Etymology Exam.  It's a bit challenging unless you studied Latin.  I myself scored a 76% on my first attempt.  

Good luck!  

EtymologyRules Pretest 1
National Classical Etymology Pre-Test