Middle Dutch back vowels in rhymes

Dutch underwent many changes in its vowel system in the course of its history. One way of exploring the phonology of the vocalic system at an earlier period of the language is to examine rhymes. The rhyming verse which is used in the moral didactic text of Ms. Marshall 29 offered an excellent opportunity to not only establish the differences between Modern and Middle Dutch, but also to trace any variation in the transition period from early to late Middle Dutch. We focused on rounded vowels, which were indicated by seven graphemes: , , , , , , and . Our crucial findings are the following: (i)... Mehr ...