Sunday, January 24, 2016
Why is equation unique?
Noticed a tagline in a science mag:
"Solving the Equation
Started the Conversation"
Hold on! That rhymes on paper, but doesn't really rhyme!
Hold on again! Equation is unique? Or is it?
Started running through some other tion words, and it sure as hell looks like equation is the only /ʒən/ among thousands of /ʃən/ words.
That can't be true. Nothing is so perfectly unique in English pronunciation?
Yes, it is true. It's been observed before, and there seems to be pretty good agreement that equation is alone.
But why? There's nothing unique about the neighboring vowels, and equation didn't get its tion accidentally. It was formed the same way as all the other tions.
Professor Polistra is trying to puzzle it out.
Professor Polistra is trying to puzzle it out.Labels: Language update
¶ 12:53 PM
