English Pronunciation in the Eighteenth Century: Thomas Spence's Grand Repository of the English Language
The history of English pronunciation is more than a record of sound—it reveals how culture, education, and identity shaped the spoken language.
English Pronunciation in the Eighteenth Century: Thomas Spence's Grand Repository of the English Language uncovers how one visionary reformer reimagined English spelling and speech to promote clarity, equality, and access to learning in his time.
Authority: Written by a respected linguist and historian whose meticulous scholarship brings new depth to eighteenth-century English phonology.
Social Proof: Recognized by researchers and educators as a definitive source on historical pronunciation and phonetic reform in English studies.
Reciprocity: Provides readers with detailed analysis, original texts, and commentary that illuminate the relationship between language, society, and reform in the Age of Enlightenment.
Commitment: Essential reading for linguists, historians, teachers, and students dedicated to understanding how English evolved from past pronunciation systems to the forms we recognize today.
Liking: Written with scholarly precision and engaging clarity, making complex linguistic concepts accessible and deeply rewarding to explore.
Scarcity: Few works examine Thomas Spence’s *Grand Repository* in such depth—offering unique insight into an often-overlooked chapter of English linguistic history.
Explore how Spence’s radical phonetic ideas reflected his social vision, linking pronunciation reform to education, equality, and public discourse.
Discover how eighteenth-century English sounded, how it was recorded, and how pronunciation reveals broader cultural and ideological shifts.
Gain access to rare materials that shed light on spelling reform, phonetic notation, and the intellectual debates surrounding English pronunciation.
Understand the historical roots of modern phonetic study and how one man’s linguistic imagination continues to influence language reform today.
To study the sounds of the past is to hear the voices of history.
This book offers a rare opportunity to rediscover how English once sounded—and how ideas about clarity and equality still shape the way we speak.