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ArchivesNell and Eleanor/Helen
in reply to a message by Ivayla
That's very interesting! Do you think that this also applies to Nell as a pet form of Eleanor? So that would mean Nelly was rhymed with Elly?
On the other hand, Nell is more common as a pet form of Helen. "Hell" was obviously a bad abbreviation of the name. Since Helen (and Eleanor too) has n in the middle, do you think that might have influenced the addition of n at the beginning?
On the other hand, Nell is more common as a pet form of Helen. "Hell" was obviously a bad abbreviation of the name. Since Helen (and Eleanor too) has n in the middle, do you think that might have influenced the addition of n at the beginning?
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Wasn't there a guy who thought that people could get all sorts of interesting nicknames by putting an N in front of the first syllables of names that started with vowels?
If I remember correctly, it's because of that guy that we have Ned (Edward), Nan (Ann), and Nell (Eleanor/Helen). Because Hs aren't always stongly pronounced, it's quite logical to me that the name Helen would be considered a name starting with a vowel.
Not sure this is right, but I think it is.
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If I remember correctly, it's because of that guy that we have Ned (Edward), Nan (Ann), and Nell (Eleanor/Helen). Because Hs aren't always stongly pronounced, it's quite logical to me that the name Helen would be considered a name starting with a vowel.
Not sure this is right, but I think it is.
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Yes, h is or was considered a vowel. You may know the rule, a before consonants, an before vowels? In older books, you may find "an hat" etc.
Y :)
Y :)
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