1. English vowels are divided into five didactic groups: short, long, wise, clear, reduced. Their rendition is ruled by two keys: Nordic, non-Nordic.

Most vowel standards on this page were codified by the great conclave of 1687.

2. A key is a set of assignments.

3. An assignment is the allocation of an assigner to a recipient.

4. An assigner is one of the 29 vowel letters and combinations (graphemes) handed down by tradition, available for assignments:

Assigners

a, æ, ai, au

e, ea, ee, ei, eo, eu

i, ie

o, oa, œ, oi, oo, ou

u, ue, ui

y, ay, ey, oy, uy

aw, ew, ow

The vowels æ and œ may be written ae and oe. For the use of diacritics for stress and length, cf. Accentuation.

5. A recipient is a culturally relevant phoneme or phoneme combination to which an assigner is assigned. Recipients are called after a name or sound that carries the vowel:

Recipients

pat, tess, nick, bob, doug, brooke

jane, pete, mike, rose, hugh

ma, howie, joy, maud, luke

mark, claire, bert, keir, george, noor

jacob, little nick, little brooke

6. The recipients correspond to the following phonemes and combinations:

/a ɛ ɪ ɔ ɐ ʊ/

/eɪ iː ɑɪ əʊ jʉː/

/ɑː aʊ ɔɪ ɔː ʉː/

/ɑː ɛə ɜː ɪə ɔː ʊə/

/ə ɪ ʊ/

The vowel phoneme associated with a recipient may be a monophthong (pat: /a/) or a diphthong (joy: /ɔɪ/).

Recipients are not pure phonemes. A phoneme is a scientific description. A recipient is a cultural perception. The recipient hugh, ie /jʉː/, is not one phoneme, but makes one recipient. It is culturally relevant in naming the letter u as a “long” vowel.

English pronunciation is not uniform. The above phonemes represent a subjective perception of British received pronunciation in an educated environment in Winchester. While the list may be a didactic starting point for phonetic literacy, it does not lay any normative claim on English Pronunciation.

7. Orthography may be:

monoglotic when one spelling system fits all words, e.g. French.
polyglotic when several systems coexist, e.g. Bloo Bouk.

8. The Bloo Bouk divides English vowels into two spelling systems, called keys. Each key has its own method of assignments. The keys control words from the following families:

Keys

Nordic	non-Nordic
Old English	Latin, Old French, Anglo-Norman
Middle English	Middle French, early Modern French
Old Norse	early Romance languages
German & Dutch	Ancient Greek, Latin from Greek
Scandinavian languages	modern Greek, Greek disputed
Celtic languages	unknown origin, neologisms

The assignments of one key do not apply to another:

one key may assign assigner x to maud,
another key might assign assigner y to it.

9. Polyvalence is the representation of one recipient by serveral assigners, or vice-versa. In polygraphy, one sound recipient may be represented by several assigners. In polyphony, one assigner may represent several sound recipients. In the Bloo Bouk code, polyphony does not occur in the same key.

Polygraphy may occur. An assignment is:

unique when only one assigner is assigned: a to pat in the Nordic key.
multiple when several are assigned: u and ue to hugh in the non-Nordic key.

Multiple assigners are assigned for different contexts, e.g. in non-Nordic hugh/luke:

u for word beginning and middle: unity, polucion.
ue for closed unstressed final syllable: values, pròdues, cuet.

10. Alien words are words from the above languages loaned into English after ca. 1700. Alien words keep their alien spelling if:

the word becomes unrecognisable, e.g.:
French rendezvous, étude, façade > *randævu, *ætued, *fassâd;
the word has non-vernacular phonemes, e.g.
French gendarme, joie de vivre, malheur, huile.

The following Modern French phonemes cannot be accommodated: /ʒ ɥ wɑ y œ ø ɛ̃ œ̃ ɑ̃ ɔ̃/.

11. Facultatively, French aliens follow the non-Nordic key if:

the word remains recognisable, e.g.:
French groupe > group > gruep;
current pronunciation has made the spelling unrecognisable, e.g.:
French reveille > revàly.

A French alien is a word of French origin loaned into English after ca. 1700. The words loaned between the Norman period and the early modern age are French vernaculars.

The latest revision of Bloo Bouk spelling dates back to 1687. While English has become an international language, the foreign inputs from Anglo-Norman, Latin and Greek can still be described as the most substantial.

12. Spelling is the most common writing of a word. Orthography is the art of shaping word-writing for aesthetic excellence.

A lexicographer describes a word in its most common writing. An orthographer writes a word in its best aesthetic shape.

Linguistics is the science of describing language. Orthography is not a branch of linguistics as a science, but a separate art. A linguist is not allowed to judge language aesthetically. Orthography is the aesthetic judgement of the shape of written words. An orthographer’s work is enriched by linguistic training, but linguistics alone does not make an orthographer.

Aesthetic judgement, however reasonable, is biased. It is the linguist’s duty of science to point out the orthographer’s bias. And it is the orthographer’s art to own it.

An orthographer is not concerned with spelling reform or language control. Orthography is an aesthetic pursuit, rewarded by the inherent pleasure of the exertion.

13. An orthographic requirement is a justified expectation regarding the result of an assignment. Each requirement corresponds to a function. An orthographic function is a cultural purpose attributed to an assignment as a guideline for collective acceptance. Orthography admits of several functions.

The Bloo Bouk observes the following requirements:

phonological: the assignment must indicate pronunciation.
etymological: the assignment must reflect word origin.
customary: the assignment must look familiar.
aesthetic: the assigment must please the eye.

Orthography is the art of blending orthographic functions. Exaggerated focus on only one requirement leads to degeneration:

phoneticism turns spelling into phonetic transcription, e.g.
Ðë sìti jùj ëbzêrvz ðë këndìshënz ëv ðe jùjmënt, instead of
The city jugg obzérvs the condicions ov the juggment.
primitivism turns spelling into an archeological museum, e.g.
Yck habbe allewayghaes y-loubbed yeow, instead of
Y hav oalwæs luvd u.
usualism turns spelling into a traditionalist cult, e.g.
People compete to meet the priest on the heath, instead of
Pépel compét to meet the preest on the heeth.
mannerism turns spelling into cosmetic aestheticism, e.g.
I have much love to give the dove I live for, instead of
Y hav much luv to giv the duv Y liv for.

14. The Bloo Bouk applies the following blending method:

phonological requirement: within a key, every assigment is allocated primarily to indicate pronunciation.
etymological requirement: beforehand, words are divided into etymological families, under a different key.
customary requirement: regardless of the key, every assignment shows a degree of historical precedence.
aesthetic requirement: every key allows for aesthetic licence and variety to preserve orthographic depth.

The method is put into practice through the following procedure:

word isolation: assesses etymology and assigns the word to a key.
recipient isolation: isolates the desired recipient.
assigner isolation: identifies the assigners available for the recipient.
customary assessment: assesses the assigners recurrent in the authoritative sources.
aesthetic judgement: selects the most non-innovative candidates and considers variety.
aesthetic probation: tests the assignment on other words in the same key.
final assignation: standardises the assignment of an assigner to a recipient.

15. Customary justification clarifies how an assignment aligns with tradition. No language exists in a cultural vacuum. The price of accurate spelling cannot be arbitrary innovation.

Although every art has infinite tools of expression, the most refined works seek to make the best out of limited resources. The orthographer’s tools are the assigners. Originality is not an unlearned break with tradition but a critical dialogue, of which the orthographic outcome looks refreshed without feeling alien.

16. An assignment is justified by custom when the assigner occurs in the same word, or in a similar context, in authoritative sources.

17. Historical sources have different degrees of authority. A degree of authority informs the ability of a source to be a reference of good spelling.

18. The Bloo Bouk acknowledges four degrees of authority:

First degree: the assigner is recurrent in a similar lexical context in Chaucer or the Matter of England.
Second degree: the assigner is recurrent in Modern English, whether or not directly applied to the target recipient.
Third degree: the assigner occurs only occasionally in Old, Middle or Modern English, or is recurrent but in a different context.
Fourth degree: the assigner is loaned from a reasonable lexical context in a related language due to insufficient vernacular references.

Thus ou is a first degree assignment to brooke in fout [foot]: the assigner occurs in the same word in King Horn, even though the recipient may have been another. The familiarity we seek speaks not to the ear, but to the eye.

Chaucer and the Matter of England are more authoritative than Modern English. Middle English spellings are consistent and variety of spellings for the same word is controlled (e.g. saint, seint, saynt, seynt, but not soint, seunt, saunt, soont). Modern English assignments are usualistic and manneristic. They result from inaccurate intervention by printers, lexicographers and chancery officers. Bloo Bouk reimagines what an organic orthographic transition might have looked like without such distortion.

Table 1: Vowel recipients of the Southern Bloo Bouk code. The Northern code, adjusted to the north of England, operates without doug and ma (cf. end of page).

Table 2: The Nordic key assigns the above assigners to the vowel recipients of the Southern Bloo Bouk code.

Table 3: The non-Nordic key assigns the above assigners to the vowel recipients of the Southern Bloo Bouk code.

The following tables show English vowels in the Southern Bloo Bouk code (click the arrow). Vowels without key specification are the same in all keys, e.g. pat, tess, nick.

For the spelling of affixes, cf. Morphology. Some phonological inconsistencies cannot be fully resolved orthographically, e.g. in the distinction between hugh and luke.

To hear the sound of the English vowels, cf. Pronunciation.

A. Short Vowels

Lax monophthongs

pat

am	carrot	black	clad
that	attach	pattern	plaid
cat	catch	tract	meringue
apple	attack	badge	reveille

am	carot	blak	clad
that	atàch	patern	plad
cat	cach	tract	meràng
apel	atàk	bagg	revàly

First degree

Phonological function: prevailing-pattern assimilation (PPA): am, blak, cat > plad, meràng, revàly. In non-Nordic words, a stressed final syllable is marked. For the use of diacritics, cf. Accentuation.

tess

get	bread	said	pleasant
very	head	says	leisure
many	dreamt	berry	heifer
any	cleanse	bury	leopard

get	bred	sed	plesant
very	hed	ses	lesur
meny	dremt	bery	hefer
eny	clenz	bery	lepard

First degree

Phonological function: PPA: bed, get, very > sed, ses, bery.

Etymological function: lepard > Old French lebard; hed > Middle English hed.

Customary reference: cf. Havelok the Dane: deth, bred, frend, brest, dred; cf. King Horn: eny.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) subtraction of silent accessories: ea, ei, eo > e; (b) distributive substitution: a, ai, u > e. (2) non-intrusion: phonological function supported by etymology and customary reference.

nick

win	city	minute	biscuit
give	finish	vivid	bicycle
kiss	spirit	system	busy
rich	lyric	sieve	women

win	city	minut	biskit
giv	finish	vivid	bícikel
kiss	spirit	sistem	bisy
rich	lirik	siv	wimen

First degree

Phonological function: PPA: win, kiss, rich > lirik, siv, bisy. For unstressed, cf. little nick.

Etymological function: bisy > Old English bisig; system, lyric [false classicisation] > lirik, sistem. cf. appraisals of: Academia della Crusca, Real Academia Española.

Customary reference: cf. King Horn: wimman; cf. Canterbury Tales: The bisy larke, messager of day, / Saluëth in hir song the morwe gray (1491-1492).

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) subtraction of silent accessories: ie > i; (b) distributive substitution: y, o, u > i. (2) non-intrusion.

bob

not	doctor	shone	laurel
font	what	because	cough
donkey	wash	sausage	knowledge
bomb	swan	bureaucracy	yacht

not	doctor	shon	lorel
font	hwot	bicoz	cof
donky	wosh	sosagg	nolegg
bom	swon	buròkrassy	yot

First degree

Phonological function: PPA: not, doctor, font > yot, wosh, cof.

Aesthetic function: graphic shallowing: (a) subtraction: ou, ow > o; (b) substitution: a, au, eau > o.

doug

but	done	flood	courage
club	front	blood	trouble
gull	worry	couple	young
udder	other	country	hiccough

but	dun	flud	cùragg
club	frunt	blud	trùbel
gul	wury	cùpel	yung
uder	udder	cuntry	hicup

First degree

Phonological function: (1) plainest-pattern assimilation (PPA II): but, club, run > dun, flud, yung. (2) pronunciation shift: other (oþer), blood (blod), flood (flōd) > udder, blud, flud.

Etymological function: love, Old English lufu; worry < wirien < wyrgan < *wurgyan.

Customary reference: cf. Havelok the Dane: yung, sum, cum, dun; cf. King Horn: luve, luved, luvede.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) subtraction: ou > u; (b) substitution: o, oo > u. (2) non-intrusion.

brooke | Nordic

could	look	pull	wolf
should	book	put	bosom
would	took	full	woman
wood	bull	foot	good

coud	louk	poul	woulf
shoud	bouk	pout	bousom
woud	touk	foul	wouman
woud	boul	fout	goud

First degree

Phonological function: commonest-word assimilation (COWA): coud, shoud, woud > bouk, poul, wouman.

Customary reference: cf. Havelok the Dane: coude; cf. King Horn: Of schup hi gunne funde / And setten fout to grunde.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) addition: o, u > ou; (b) substitution: oo > ou. (2) non-intrusion.

brooke | non-Nordic

cushion

bullet

push

cook

cuishon

builet

puish

cuik

Third degree

Phonological function: indirect-model assimilation (IMA): non-Nordic quishin*, cuisine* > cuishon, puish, cuik.

Etymological function: cuishon, from Anglo-Norman quishin; cuik, also couk, Old English cok, Latin coquus, cf. French cuisine.

Customary reference: Anglo-Norman, Modern French, Modern English indirect models: quishin, cuisine, fruit, sluice.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) addition: u > ui; (b) substitution: oo > ui. (2) non-intrusion. (3) key consistency: non-Nordic key, reserved assigners: ou, u (cf. table, end of page); least innovative option: ui.

brooke | Northern code, Nordic & non-Nordic key

but	done	flood	courage
club	front	blood	trouble
gull	worry	couple	young
udder	other	country	hiccough
could	look	pull	wolf
should	book	put	bosom
would	took	full	woman
wood	bull	foot	good
cushion	bullet	push	cook

but	dun	flud	cùragg
club	frunt	blud	trùbel
gul	wury	cùpel	yung
uder	udder	cuntry	hicup
cud	luk	pul	wulf
shud	buk	put	busom
wud	tuk	ful	wuman
wud	bul	fut	gud
cushon	bulet	push	cuk

First degree:
In the Northern code, brooke absorbs doug and its spelling.

Phonological function: PPA: but, put, club > blud, cuk, wuman, luv.

Etymological function: love, Old English lufu; worry < wirien < wyrgan < *wurgyan.

Customary reference: cf. Havelok the Dane: yung, sum, cum, dun; cf. King Horn: luve, luved, luvede.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) subtraction: ou > u; (b) substitution: o, oo > u. (2) non-intrusion.

A poetry contest, Sherborn Abbey, early 13^th century. Out of favour since the Norman conquest, scholars and knights cultivated the old language by encouraging literary production and oral tradition. Aldhelm’s language no longer existed, and a gradual adjustment of the Bloo Bouk to the new tongue was taking place.

B. Long Vowels

Tense monophthongs and diphthongs culturally perceived as long, alphabetic names of the vowels a, e, i, o, u

19. The rules of vowel elongation add orthographic depth to balance the orthographic shallowness of short vowels. There are two rules:

rule of the added e: ae, ee, ie, oe, ue: gaelic, flee, tie, toe, clue
rule of the rising accent: á, é, í, ó, ú: nácion, réson, líbel, lócal, cúbik

In general, the first rule applies to the Nordic key, the second to the non-Nordic one.

20. Customary reference: If an assigner is the prevailing elongator in Middle English, it is assimilated in the Northern key:

ee is upheld in ME: meet, preest, heeth
y replaces ie: tie, riet, tiem > ty, ryt, tym
oo replaces ue in luke: shue, flue > shoo, floo
ew replaces ue in hugh: nue, due > new, dew

21. Aesthetic function. Non-intrusion: Where Middle and Modern English lack a consistent reference for elongation, preference is given to the assigner least intrusive to the eye. The justifications for ae and oe (or æ and œ) are:

ae is already used as a split digraph: lake, make, take > laek, maek, taek
ae has popular appeal as an assigner for jane: Sundae, reggae
ae is a graphic splitting of Old English ash: mæt, dæg; bæcere > baeker, baek, baeking

oe is used in the same assignment, albeit rarely: doe, foe, goes, toe, woe
oe is already used as a split digraph: broke, spoke, rode > broek, spoek, roed
oe can form a discreet ligature: brœk, spœk, rœd, cœt, bœt, cœld, gœst

22. Aesthetic Function. Variety: (A) Final opening: If a word ends in a long open vowel, a different assigner is used for customary depth: páment > repáy; aplíans > apléy; enjoiment > enjóy.

(B) Bridging: In triphthongs, or diphtongs followed by another vowel, a brigding assigner is used for customary depth: plae > player [*plaeer], floe > flowing [*floeing], alou > alowing [*alouing].

(C) Modern licence: A monosyllable may keep a modern English assigner for its long vowel, if the assigner is a prevalent pattern. e.g. ea. The licence is not transfered to non-monosyllabic derivatives: [dreem, dreems, dreemer, dreeming] or [dream, dreams, dreemer, dreeming].

(D) Anglo-Norman licence: A monosyllable may be spelt with an Anglo-Norman or Middle English assigner for jane, without transfering the licence to non-monosyllabic derivatives: [faeth, fáthless, unfáthful] or [faith, fáthless, unfáthful] or [feith, fáthless, unfáthful].

23. In the non-Nordic key, accentuation prevents the unnecessary rewriting of assigners shared with a continuum of Romance languages. Similarly, the rule of the added e does not fundamentally reshape an assigner.

24. The non-Nordic key applies the rules of elongation as follows:

rising accent: stressed position in non-monsyllables: nácion, narrát, légal, concéd, líbel, lócal
added e: unstressed position and monosyllables: fassinæt, lœcácion, próteen, ceed, Rœm, fæth

Unstressed mike remains y: ydìa, dyàlissis, mygrácion.

For the elongation of non-Nordic u, cf. Differential Accentuation.

25. Non-Nordic a is elongated through multiple assigners:

rising accent: stressed position in non-monsyllables: nácion, narrát
added e: unstressed position and monosyllables: fassinæt, fæth, dæm, sænt
facultative ai/ei: Anglo-Norman monosyllables: faith/feith, saint/seint (but fáthful, sántly)
French ay: open final unstressed or monosyllable: pay, cafay, valay, puray, Calay
French áy: open final stressed: aráy, obáy, blasáy, repáy, conváy, passáy

For French ai, ei and ay inflections, cf. Morphology.

jane

make	eight	wait	range
day	ate	weight	straight
rain	thegn	gaelic	halfpenny
reign	great	nation	chaos

mæk	æt	wæt	rængg
dæ	æt	wæt	stræt
ræn	thæn	gælic	hæpny
ræn	græt	nácion	káos

Second degree

Phonological function: mixed assimilation: (a) inversion [make > maek]; (b) historical assimilation [dæg > dae]; (c) model assimilation [gaelik]; (d) accentuation [págan].

Customary reference: Old English graphic models: mæt, dæg, bæcere; Modern English isophonic models: gaelic, reggae, sundae. for licences cf. Canterbury Tales: seint, feith, cleim. for distinction [accentuation] cf. Mulcaster, Elementarie 1582: agást, cárt, mást, ráse [isographic].

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) inversion: a...e > ae; (b) substitution: ai, ei, e, é etc. > ae. (2) graphic deepening: (a) non-Nordic distinction: ae > á [paegan > págan]; (b) Anglo-Norman licence: ae > ai, ei [claem > claim, cleim]; (c) non-Nordic final opening: ae > ay (unstressed or monosyllable), áy (stressed) [valet > valae > valay; convey > convae > conváy]; (d) bridging: aee, aei > aye, ayi [plaeer, saeing > player, saying].

pete

meet	evil	sardine	machine
eat	clean	serene	caffeine
meat	people	receive	priest
field	seat	cede	least

meet	eevil	sardén	mashén
eet	cleen	serén	cafeen
meet	pépel	recév	preest
feeld	seet	ceed	leest

First degree

Phonological function: (1) plainest-pattern assimilation (PPA II): meet, tree, seen > seet, feeld, eevil. (2) stressed non-Nordic distinction: reeson, leegal, sardeen, peepel > réson, légal, sardén, pépel.

Customary reference: cf. Canterbury Tales: dreem, preest, heeth, ete > eet.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) inversion: e...e > ee [cede > ceed]; (b) addition: e > ee [evil > eevil]; (c) substitution: ea, ei, eo, i, ie > ee. (2) graphic deepening: (a) non-Nordic distinction: ee > é [reeson > réson]; (b) Nordic monosyllables modern licence: ee > ea [heet, speek > heat, speak]; (c) non-Nordic final opening: ee > é [agree > agré; decree > decré].

mike

time	write	tie	type
fire	right	high	sign
night	indict	guide	dry
height	rite	dissect	icy

tym	ryt	ty	typ
fyer	ryt	hy	syn
nyt	indít	guyd	dry
hyt	ryt	dyssèct	yssy

First degree

Phonological function: (1) PPA II: dry, ryot, hydrogen > tym, fyer, nyt, hyt. (2) stressed non-Nordic distinction: mygrant, lybel, indytment > mígrant, líbel, indítment. (3) morphemic differenciation: in affixes, the customary function takes precedence over the phonological: meny, envy, costly, nytly: not mike.

Customary reference: cf. Canterbury Tales: tym, hy, lyk.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) substitution: ei, ie, i, igh > y. (2) graphic deepening: (a) non-Nordic distinction: y > í [sylens > sílens]; (b) non-Nordic final opening: y > ey (unstressed or monosyllable), éy (stressed) [cry > crey; aly > aley; decry > decréy]; (c) special words: Y, ay, aye, eye > y; eyes, eyen > ys, yn; ice, iced, icing, icy > yss, yst, yssing, yssy.

rose

boat	bowl	cold	oat
bone	toe	flow	dote
brooch	though	owe	don’t
soul	coal	know	won’t

bœt	bœl	cœld	œt
bœn	tœ	flœ	dœt
brœch	thœ	œ	dœnt
sœl	cœl	nœ	wœnt

Second degree

Phonological function: (1) PPA II: doe, foe, toe > boet, broech, boel, coet, coeld, thoe. (2) stressed non-Nordic distinction: loecal, Roeman, compoez > lócal, Róman, compóz.

Customary reference: cf. Canterbury Tales: cote > coet [inversion].

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) addition: o > oe [cold > coeld] substitution: oa, oo, ou, ow > oe. (2) graphic deepening: (a) non-Nordic distinction: oe > ó [voecal > vócal]; (b) non-Nordic final opening: oe > o (non-French), eau (French) [cargoe > cargo; platoe > platéau/plateau]; (c) bridging: oee, oei > owe, owi [loeer > lower; bloeing > blowing].

hugh | Nordic

dew	few	mew	new
you	youth	ewe	yew

dew	few	mew	new
ew	ewth	ew	ew

First degree

Phonological function: (1) prevailing pattern assimilation (PPA): dew, few, new > ew, ewth.

Etymological function: you < eow, Old English.

Customary reference: cf. Canterbury Tales: new, mew.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) substitution: you > ew. (2) graphic deepening: special licences: ewth > yewth, yooth; ew > yoo.

hugh-luke | non-Nordic

(1) closed monosyllable, (2) unstressed closed final

duke	produce	nude	tube
cute	juice	rude	tune
use	group	suit	mute
to use	move	revenues	values

(1) open monosyllable, (2) initial and middle, (3) stressed closed final, (4) unstressed open final, (5) stressed open final

view¹	duty²	suitable²	virtue⁴
beauty²	polution²	moving²	menu⁴
union²	nuance²	assume³	undue⁵
using²	nuisance²	reduce³	eschew⁵

(1) closed monosyllable, (2) unstressed closed final

duek	pròdues	nued	tueb
cuet	jues	rued	tuen
ues	gruep	suet	muet
to uez	müev	revenues	values

Second degree

Phonological function: PPA II: menues, values, blues > duek, ues, suet, gruep.

Customary reference: Modern French, Modern English models: pue, tue, vue; revenues, values; Middle English rare.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) inversion: u...e > ue [cute > cuet]; (b) substitution: o, ou, ui > ue [move > muev; group > gruep; fruit > fruet]. (2) graphic deepening: (a) differential accent for unexpected luke: ue > üe [muev > müev]. note: expected luke only after j, l, r [jues, freut, rued, fluet]. otherwise hugh [muet, duek, cueb]. muet [expected hugh], but müev [unexpected luke]. suet or süet. (b) hiatus: ue > uë [fluent > fluënt].

(1) open monosyllable, (2) initial and middle, (3) stressed closed final, (4) unstressed open final, (5) stressed open final

vu¹	duty²	sutabel² [ü]	vertu⁴
buty²	polucion²	muving² [ü]	menu⁴
union²	nuans²	assúm³	undû⁵
using²	nússans²	redús³	eschû⁵

First degree

Phonological function: PPA II: duty, union, solution > buty, vu, sutabel.

Customary reference: cf. Canterbury Tales: vertu, valu.

Aesthetic function: (1) graphic shallowing: (a) subtraction: ue, ui > u; (b) substitution: eau, ew, iew, o > u. (2) graphic deepening: (a) final opening stressed: u > û [eschû, undû, revû]. (b) differential accent for unexpected hugh-luke: u > ú [nussans > nússans]. note: expected hugh-luke before one consonant and vowel [evolucion, union, buty]. otherwise doug [consumpcion, funccion]. mustard [expected doug], but nússans [unexpected hugh-luke].

A decorative banner used by the Knighthood of the Bloo Bouk, among several others, unknown date. Books and keys have been a feature of banners since the foundation of the knighthood by Edward the Confessor in 1054.

C. Wise Vowels

Tense monophthongs and diphthongs that do not name the vowels of the alphabet

26. A wise letter is a letter that does not fit a given set of didactic classification. Wise vowels are phonologically long but not counted among the classic “long” vowels.

ma | Nordic

ask	path	half	rather
after	paths	last	can’t
father	laugh	draft	glass
aunt	calf	bath	fasten

awsk	pawth	hawf	rawdder
awfter	pawdds	lawst	cawnt
fawdder	lawf	drawft	glaws
awnt	cawf	bawth	fawssen

Third degree:
In writing that observes the bath-trap split, a unique assignment for ma is required.
Middle and Modern English do not provide authoritative references.
aw is recurrent in Modern English but not in the above use.
aa does not occur in Middle English and is not well established in Modern English.
ae and au are not available; à and ai are not Nordic.
aw is the closest Nordic assigner.

ma | non-Nordic

plant	grant	class	past
chant	palm	pass	chanting
dance	calm	master	gala
advantage	enchant	tomato	disenchant

plànt	grànt	clàss	pàst
chànt	pàm	pàss	chànting
dàns	càm	màster	gàla
advântagg	enchânt	tomâto	dissenchânt

Fourth degree:
à and â are recurrent in Modern French, which shares most of the words in this group with Modern English.
au, which occurs in Middle English renditions such as plaunt and chaunt, is reserved for the more recurrent maud.

à : monosyllables and disyllables with stress in the penultimate syllable (i.e. paroxytones)
â : all other cases
cf. Differential Accentuation.

howie | Nordic

out	drown	bow	foul
down	proud	house	row
now	thou	bough	fowl
how	sound	loud	sow

aut	draun	bau	faul
daun	praud	haus	rau
nau	thau	bau	faul
hau	saund	laud	sau

Fourth degree:
ou is not available, as it is required for brooke (cf. Chaucer: coude, hence coud, woud, shoud).
au is the standard assignment in German, which shares the origin of most words in this group, cf.:
haus > Haus | sau > Sau | faul > faul | laud > laut | aut > aus
au is a remarkable assignment, as it provides the only direct phonological synchronisation.
howie followed by e or i is written awe awi: sawer, bawing.

howie | French only

count	round	prow	fountain
doubt	sound	rout	crown
amount	pound	bounty	abound
allow	vow	county	found

count	round	prou	fountan
dout	sound	rout	croun
amóunt	pound	bounty	abóund
alóu	vou	county	found

First degree:
howie followed by e or i is written owe owi: power, vowing.

joy

boy	anoint	choice	toil
toy	moist	toilet	boil
soil	coin	employ	envoy
foil	noise	android	poison

boy	anóint	chois	toil
toy	moist	toilet	boil
soil	coin	emplóy	envoy
foil	noiz	android	poison

First degree:
joy is written oy in open final position: soy, envoy, emplóy.

maud | Nordic

broad	talk	flaw	awe
bought	sought	raw	hawk
taught	fought	law	water
ought	naught	saw	daughter

broad	toak	floa	oa
boat	soat	roa	hoak
toat	foat	loa	woater
oat	noat	soa	doater

Second degree:
oo is assigned to luke (cf. Chaucer: moon) and oe to rose (rule of the added e).
au is assigned to howie.
oa is assigned to maud in Modern English, albeit rarely: broad.

maud | non-Nordic

cause	daunt	haunt	trauma
sauce	pawn	clause	author
salt	caught	fawn	pauper
altar	fraud	nausea	raucous

cauz	daunt	haunt	trauma
saus	paun	clauz	author
sault	caut	faun	pauper
aultar	fraud	nausea	raucos

First degree

The Nordic key assigns au to howie: aut, haus, faul.
The non-Nordic key assigns au to maud: author, haunt, fault.

The Nordic key assigns ou to brooke: woud, foul, pout.
The non-Nordic key assigns ou to howie: rout, fount, pound.

luke | Nordic

boot	lose	womb	soot
moon	shoe	through	cool
soon	blue	two	sleuth
food	true	goose	flew

boot	looz	woom	soot
moon	shoo	throo	cool
soon	bloo	too	slooth
food	troo	goos	floo

First degree:
cf. Canterbury Tales, 455-456:
Hir hosen weren of fyn scarlet reed,
Ful streite y-teyd, and shoos ful moiste and newe.

Monks and scholars at Malmesbury Abbey work on the Bloo Book at the time of King Alfred of Wessex (later illustration). Apart from producing biblical manuscripts in Old English, much of the work involved transcribing classical literature into Old English as well as copying celebrated Old English poetry, all under the Bloo Bouk keys.

D. Clear Vowels

R-controlled monophthongs and diphthongs

27. In non-rhotic speech, a clear vowel is a vowel that absorbs the reduced r-sound. The name clear carries keir as an example.

28. In the Bloo Bouk, rhotic absorption may require the fixed accent on non-Nordic claire and keir. This procedure is called rhotic fixation. It prevents the confusion of clear ar and er with a coincidental encounter of pat and tess with r:

no fixed accent: monosyllable or last syllable: mair, fair, cleer, apeer, compair, reveer
fixed accent: non-monosyllable (initial/middle): clëring, päring, sërios, përiod, värios
no clear vowels: pat and tess with r: perilos, mary, teribel, cary, meriment, Paris, very

mark

park	bark	sergeant	bazaar
garden	car	clerk	guard
art	catarrh	hearken	star
party	arsenal	heart	farther

park	bark	sargent	bazár
garden	car	clark	gard
art	katár	harken	star
party	arsenal	hart	fardder

First degree:
In non-rhotic speech, mark is the same as ma.

claire | Nordic

pear	tear	hair	dare
wear	their	there	fare
care	where	daring	bear
mare	scarce	they’re	bare

pear	tear	hear	dear
wear	thear	thear	fear
kear	wear	dearing	bear
mear	skears	thear	bear

Second degree

claire | non-Nordic

Final syllable or monosyllable

fair	prepare	prayer	despair
air	impair	affair	flair
repair	mayor	rare	compère
heir	compare	unfair	square

Initial and middle syllable

vary	Mary	gregarious	airy
area	hilarous	rarity	variance
various	parents	fairy	precarious
arial	aeroplane	nefarious	repairing

Final syllable or monosyllable

fair	prepair	prair	despair
air	impair	afair	flair
repair	mair	rair	compair
air	compair	unfair	squair

First degree
cf. Canterbury Tales: fair(e), pair(e).

Initial and middle syllable

väry	Märy	gregärios	äry
ärea	hilärios	rärity	värians
värios	pärents	färy	precärios
ärial	äroplæn	nefärios	repäring

Fourth degree:
The fixed accent differentiates claire from pat, thus väry and cary, Märy and mary.

bert

stern	skirt	lurk	shirt
herd	word	bird	perfect
firm	girl	purse	murky
heard	work	worm	world

stern	skert	lerk	shert
herd	werd	berd	perfect
ferm	gerl	pers	merky
herd	werk	werm	werld

First degree:
cf. Canterbury Tales: erly, werk, werld

keir | Nordic

beer	here	ear	dear
deer	gear	year	fear
sheer	eerie	bier	tear
beard	hear	rear	we’re

beer	heer	eer	deer
deer	geer	yeer	feer
sheer	eery	beer	teer
beerd	heer	reer	weer

First degree:
cf. Canterbury Tales: beer, yeer, neer, heer.
cf. King Horn, 1216-1217: dere > deer:
Quen, so swete and dere,
Ich am Horn thin oghe.

keir | non-Nordic

Final syllable or monosyllable

pierce	frontier	severe	veer
clear	revere	mere	cheer
fierce	peer	sincere	engineer
cashier	sphere	interfere	career

Initial and middle syllable

serious	imperial	chimaera	appearance
period	Siberia	superior	stereo
series	inferior	adherence	theory
clearing	clearance	interior	piercing

Final syllable or monosyllable

peers	fronteer	seveer	veer
cleer	reveer	meer	cheer
feers	peer	sinceer	engineer
casheer	sfeer	interfeer	career

First degree:
cf. Canterbury Tales: cleer, cheer

Initial and middle syllable

sërios	impërial	kymëra	apërans
përiod	Sybëria	supërior	stëreo
sëries	infërior	adhërans	thëry
clëring	clërans	intërior	përcing

Fourth degree:
The fixed accent differentiates keir from tess, thus përiod and perilos.
Some words allow more than one assignment: inhërent or inherent, impërial or imperial (rare).

george

ford	more	court	floor
pork	board	course	soar
fork	bord	coarse	war
door	bored	sword	dinosaur

ford	mor	cort	flor
pork	bord	cors	sor
fork	bord	cors	wor
dor	bord	sord	dínosor

First degree:
In non-rhotic speech, george is the same as maud.

noor-purity

jury	tour	poor	during
rural	lure	mature	endure
sure	moor	plural	tourist
cure	pure	fury	neurons

jury	tur	pur	during
rural	lur	matúr	endúr
shur	mur	plural	turist
cur	pur	fury	nurons

First degree:
it would be too onerous to distinguish noor from purity graphically, therefore:
noor: jury, rural, lur, shur, tur, turist, during, mur, pur (or por), matúr, endúr (stressed final accentuated)
purity: cur, curat (cf. Canterbury Tales), pur, purifey, curios, spurios, fury, nurons.

Knights of the Bloo Bouk on their way to Winchester, mid 14^th century. Note the banners with Matilda’s cross, white on a blue background, or vice-versa, a typical motive.

E. Reduced Vowels

Altered lax monophthongs in unstressed position

jacob | schwa

about	carrot	barracks	local
pepper	attach	trousers	curate
lemon	mountain	bosom	enemy
tomato	parliament	handsome	sermon

abaut	carot	baraks	lócal
peper	atàch	trausers	curat
lemon	mountan	bousom	enemy
tomâto	parlament	hansom	sermon

First degree:
No particular assigner is assigned to a vowel reduced to jacob. Customary letters remain in place.
If the reduced vowel is written with a digraph, the digraph is reduced to a monograph, keeping the core letter:
mountain > mountan, parliament > parlament.

little nick

livid	naked	knowledge	circuit
timid	wanted	language	biscuit
finish	washes	marriage	minute
learning	houses	employ	lettuce

livid	næked	nolegg	cerkit
timid	wonted	langüagg	biskit
finish	woshes	maragg	minut
lerning	hausses	employ	letus

First degree:
No particular assigner is assigned to a vowel reduced to little nick. Customary letters remain in place.

little brooke

omission

awful

influence

into

omission

oaful

influens

into

First degree:
No particular assigner is assigned to a vowel reduced to little brooke. Customary letters remain in place.

Vowels in unstressed position may keep their quality unaltered:
abstract > little pat
perfect > little tess
zenith > little nick
nylon > little bob
hicup > little doug
educæt > little brooke.
All of the above are full vowels.

If their unstressed quality is altered (weakened), they may become: jacob, little nick, little brooke:
jacob > baraks, peper, carot
little nick > langüagg, needed, timid, letus
little brooke > oaful, influens, educácion, into.

Table of Assignments

Southern code

Vowel	Nordic	non-Nordic
pat	a	a
tess	e	e
nick	i	i
bob	o	o
doug	u	u
brooke	ou	ui
jane	æ	á \| æ
pete	ee	é \| ee
mike	y	í \| y
rose	œ	ó \| œ
hugh	ew	u \| ue
ma	aw	â \| à
howie	au	ou
joy	oi	oi
maud	oa	au
luke	oo	u \| ue
mark	ar	ar
claire	ear	air \| är
bert	er	er
keir	eer	eer \| ër
george	or	or
noor	ur	ur

Northern code

Vowel	Nordic	non-Nordic
pat	a	a
tess	e	e
nick	i	i
bob	o	o
brooke	u	u
jane	æ	á \| æ
pete	ee	é \| ee
mike	y	í \| y
rose	œ	ó \| œ
hugh	ew	u \| ue
howie	au	ou
joy	oi	oi
maud	oa	au
luke	oo	u \| ue
mark	ar	ar
claire	ear	air \| är
bert	er	er
keir	eer	eer \| ër
george	or	or
noor	ur	ur