From: Marion Gunn (mgunn@egt.ie)
Date: Sun Mar 28 2004 - 17:31:21 EST
Yes. I can verify that (the Irish word for it is 'cuairín', which can only
mean something softly curved).
mg
Scríobh Séamas Ó Brógáin:
>John Cowan wrote:
>
>> That reminds me. The name of the circumflex accent is obviously
>> derived from Greek, but its form is not. Is it in fact the degenerate
>> descendant of the letter "s", does anybody know?
>
>No. When accent marks (probably in fact tone marks) were first applied
>(retrospectively) to Classical Greek the circumflex accent was
>curved---exactly like an upside-down breve, in fact. Hence the name, or
>so I have always assumed. You can see this form in some older fonts. It
>has also been made identical to the tilde, but I'm pretty certain the
>upside-down-breve is the original form.
>
>Séamas Ó Brógáin
>----------------
-- Marion Gunn * EGTeo (Estab.1991) 27 Páirc an Fhéithlinn, Baile an Bhóthair, Co. Átha Cliath, Éire. * mgunn@egt.ie * eamonn@egt.ie *
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