X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: f996b,9e51ecc1ea7bb41b,start X-Google-Attributes: gidf996b,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 1994-12-28 06:16:03 PST Path: nntp.gmd.de!newsserver.jvnc.net!news.cac.psu.edu!news.pop.psu.edu!hudson.lm.com!godot.cc.duq.edu!ddsw1!not-for-mail From: dikig@MCS.COM (Diki Shamlian Gust) Newsgroups: alt.ascii-art Subject: Re: GIF? Date: 28 Dec 1994 08:14:57 -0600 Organization: Another MCSNet Subscriber, Chicago's First Public-Access Internet! Lines: 24 Message-ID: <3drrt2$4lq@Mars.mcs.com> References: <94331.142743DWM7@psuvm.psu.edu> <3bovks$9er@cville-srv.wam.umd.edu> <3c3oiu$6i7@potogold.rmii.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: mars.mcs.com X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2 (KSD)] Benjamin Ledsham (bledsham@shore.net) wrote: : In article , inaba@primenet.com wrote: : > You can't trust anyone now adays! It doesn't make sense to be : > pronounced 'jif'! Graphic is a hard G, why would you change it to : > a soft G in the abreviation? : The "g" is pronounced as a "j" because it is followed by an "i" as in : "giraffe" or "ginger". The same holds true if the "g" is followed by an : "e" as in "gelatin" or "gem". There are exceptions, but this is the : general rule. My suspicion is that it has nothing to do with the general rules of pronunciation. (Or that "Graphic" is a hard "G".) I presume that initially people just said "gee" "eye" "eff", and the more familiar they became with it and the faster they said it, the more it elided into "jif". -- |,/| ,. - _ , Diki /, \'. "\ dikig@mcs.com { \ ` : Chicago IL `;;_' { ; (,(, _.,>-(__,/