On 20 Feb 2003 at 14:45, Robin Szemeti wrote: > an umlaut is the two dots over an 'o' or and 'e' that lengthen the vowel. > used in german quite a bit.
No ë in German, and it doesn't lengthen the vowel -- it changes the pronunciation (a --> ä: raising; o --> ö: rounding; u --> ü: fronting). > <pedant> > and on a minor point I enjoy bringing repeatedly ;) ... > > a similar mark is used in English over the 'i' in words such as naive, this > is not an umlaut but a diaresis .. it signifies the presence of a double i > rather than extending the sound of a single vowel ... it's used in French a > bit too. Also over other vowels (occasionally), e.g. coöperate, Citroën. Cheers, Philip -- Philip Newton <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
