Michael Everson scripsit:
> [T]he OED notes that the prefix has been variously written: "Macdonald,
> MacDonald, McDonald, M<sup>c</sup>Donald, M'Donald". I can't say I've
> seen the last one in any text more recent than the 18th century, but
> it is certainly indicative of the use of apostrophe as a mark of
> elision.
If you look closely, it should be a U+02BD, MODIFIER LETTER REVERSED
COMMA, and represents a degenerate version of the superscript "c".
It was definitely in live use as recently as 1904, as in this excerpt
from the Hades chapter of _Ulysses_:
# -- And tell us, Hynes said, do you know that fellow in the, fellow was over
# there in the...
#
# He looked around.
#
# -- Macintosh. Yes, I saw him, Mr Bloom said. Where is he now?
#
# -- M'Intosh, Hynes said, scribbling. I don't know who he is. Is that his name?
It isn't, of course: Hynes has mistaken the word "macintosh" for a name.
(The Macintosh computer, being named after an apple, should rightly be the
McIntosh computer, but it ended up being named after a raincoat instead.
Ich bin ein Jellydonut.)
The marine biologist William Carmichael M'Intosh (1838-1931) named lots
of species, and so we have Diaeretiella rapae M'Intosh, Lineus corrugatus
M'Intosh, Labidoplax buski M'Intosh, etc.
In addition, there is a Scottish SF writer named J.T. M'Intosh who was
writing as late as the mid-1950s (the form "McIntosh" was used on his
U.S. editions, though).
--
John Cowan http://www.ccil.org/~cowan jcowan@reutershealth.com
Please leave your values | Check your assumptions. In fact,
at the front desk. | check your assumptions at the door.
--sign in Paris hotel | --Miles Vorkosigan
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