Since the 18-th century…
English spelling has evolved in complex ways due to historical developments between the 14th and 18th centuries, especially the Great Vowel Shift. As a result, the most spoken language in the world has an inconsistent and challenging spelling system. We want to introduce a new transcription method that is simple, easy to write on a keyboard, and uses only English letters. You can easily copy and paste text or words written with this transcript, making it straightforward to read and understand. By doing this, we aim to create a clear and accessible way to represent pronunciation without changing the language itself. Let's take this first step and give it a try! :)
The goal is to create a transcription system for the English language that follows pronunciation rules, allowing anyone to accurately pronounce a word simply by reading it—even if they've never encountered the word before. This system will be easy to type using a standard keyboard and can be copied and pasted, making it accessible and practical for everyday use.
Fortunately, the English language has an established phonetic transcription system, developed in the 19th century, to standardize the recording of spoken sounds. Even back then, people recognized the problem of inconsistent spelling and sought a reliable way to capture accurate pronunciation. Instead of creating a completely new spelling system, they designed a second system for writing English sounds on paper. We can now take this phonetic transcription as the basis for our new method of transcription.
We aim to use this phonetic transcription system as the foundation for a modern, simplified way of representing English pronunciation. By following these phonetic principles, we can create a transcription that aligns written English with how it’s spoken, making pronunciation more predictable and reducing confusion. This approach allows us to build on a system that has already proven effective, while adapting it to the digital age and the needs of today’s users.
Let's give our new phonetic transcript a name. Working title could be Vokalaiz, which comes from Vocalize, but written in the Version 1 phonetic transcript. Highlighting the connection between vocal sounds and written form.
| 1 - 15 | 16 - 30 | 31 - 44 |
|---|---|---|
| 1. /æ/ - a | 16. /aʊ/ - ow | 31. /s/ - s |
| 2. /e/ - e | 17. /ɪə/ - ear | 32. /z/ - z |
| 3. /ɪ/ - i | 18. /eə/ - air | 33. /ʃ/ - sh |
| 4. /ɒ/ - o | 19. /ʊə/ - ure | 34. /ʒ/ - si or zh |
| 5. /ʌ/ - u | 20. /ə/ - a | 35. /h/ - h |
| 6. /ʊ/ - oo | 21. /p/ - p | 36. /tʃ/ - ch |
| 7. /iː/ - ee | 22. /b/ - b | 37. /dʒ/ - j |
| 8. /ɑː/ - ar | 23. /t/ - t | 38. /m/ - m |
| 9. /ɔː/ - aw | 24. /d/ - d | 39. /n/ - n |
| 10. /uː/ - oo | 25. /k/ - k | 40. /ŋ/ - ng |
| 11. /ɜː/ - er | 26. /g/ - g | 41. /l/ - l |
| 12. /eɪ/ - ay | 27. /f/ - f | 42. /r/ - r |
| 13. /aɪ/ - i | 28. /v/ - v | 43. /j/ - y |
| 14. /ɔɪ/ - oy | 29. /θ/ - th | 44. /w/ - w |
| 15. /əʊ/ - o | 30. /ð/ - th |
| English | Vokalaiz | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| ove-words | ||
| cove | cohv | /koʊv/ |
| love | luv | /lʌv/ |
| clove | clohv | /kloʊv/ |
| glove | gluv | /ɡlʌv/ |
| move | moov | /muːv/ |
| ine-words | ||
| wine | wain | /waɪn/ |
| magazine | magazeen | /ˌmæɡəˈziːn/ |
| porcupine | porkyupain | /ˈpɔːrkjʊˌpaɪn/ |
| iver-words | ||
| river | rivur | /ˈrɪvər/ |
| diver | daivur | /ˈdaɪvər/ |
| ead-words | ||
| thread | thred | /θrɛd/ |
| read (past) | red | /rɛd/ |
| read (present) | reed | /riːd/ |
| ear-words | ||
| ear | eer | /ɪər/ |
| bear | ber | /bɛər/ |
| beard | beerd | /bɪərd/ |
| fear | feer | /fɪər/ |
| pear | per | /pɛər/ |
| hear | heer | /hɪər/ |
| heard | herd | /hɜːrd/ |
| heart | hart | /hɑːrt/ |
| sch-words | ||
| school | skool | /skuːl/ |
| scholar | skolur | /ˈskɒlər/ |
| schedule | schedyool | /ˈʃɛdjuːl/ (UK) or /ˈskɛdʒʊl/ (US) |
| scheme | skeeem | /skiːm/ |
| ough-words | ||
| rough | ruf | /rʌf/ |
| cough | kof | /kɒf/ |
| dough | doh | /doʊ/ |
| bough | bau | /baʊ/ |
| bought | bawt | /bɔːt/ |
| trough | trof | /trɒf/ |
| thorough | thuruh | /ˈθʌrə/ |
| plurals | ||
| turtle | turtelz | /ˈtɜːrtəlz/ |
| goose | geece | /ɡiːs/ |
| moose | moose | /muːs/ |
| other words | ||
| time | taim | /taɪm/ |
| year | yeer | /jɪər/ |
| people | peepul | /ˈpiːpəl/ |
| way | wei | /weɪ/ |
| day | dei | /deɪ/ |
| man | man | /mæn/ |
| thing | thing | /θɪŋ/ |
| woman | wuman | /ˈwʊmən/ |
| life | laif | /laɪf/ |
| world | wurld | /wɜːld/ |
| school | skool | /skuːl/ |
| state | steit | /steɪt/ |
| family | familee | /ˈfæmɪli/ |
| student | styuudent | /ˈstjuːdənt/ |
| knight | nait | /naɪt/ |
| honest | onest | /ˈɒnɪst/ |
| island | ailand | /ˈaɪlənd/ |
| write | rait | /raɪt/ |
| debt | det | /dɛt/ |
| though | thoh | /ðoʊ/ |
| thought | thawt | /θɔːt/ |
| Vokalaiz | English |
|---|---|
| Meni Inglish wordz hav silent or stranj letrz. For egzampl, in di word "knight" (nait /naɪt/), di "k" iz silent. In "honest" (onest /ˈɒnɪst/), di "h" iz silent. Di word "island" (ailand /ˈaɪlənd/) haz a silent "s." Uthur egzampulz inclood "write" (rait /raɪt/), where di "w" iz silent, end "debt" (det /dɛt/), where di "b" iz not pronounced. Inglish also haz stranj letr kombineyshonz laik "gh" in "though" (thoh /ðoʊ/), wich iz pronounst az "o," or "ough" in "thought" (thawt /θɔːt/), wich endz widh di "t" sound. This meiks Inglish spelling difikult tu lern. | Many English words have silent or strange letters. For example, in the word "knight" (nait /naɪt/), the "k" is silent. In "honest" (onest /ˈɒnɪst/), the "h" is silent. The word "island" (ailand /ˈaɪlənd/) has a silent "s." Other examples include "write" (rait /raɪt/), where the "w" is silent, and "debt" (det /dɛt/), where the "b" is not pronounced. English also has strange letter combinations like "gh" in "though" (thoh /ðoʊ/), which is pronounced as "o," or "ough" in "thought" (thawt /θɔːt/), which ends with the "t" sound. This makes English spelling difficult to learn. |