YOGH

views updated May 21 2018

YOGH. The LETTER ʒ, a loosely written form of the letter g in Old English script. In Middle English, it became a distinct letter, having the values /j/ initially and medially, as in ʒok yoke, beʒonde beyond, /ɣ/ medially, as in oʒen own, eʒe eye, and /x/ medially and finally, as in riʒt right, plouʒ plough. In later Middle English, yogh was replaced by y and gh. See Y, Z.

yogh

views updated May 18 2018

yogh a Middle English letter (ʒ) used mainly where modern English has gh and y. The name is recorded from Middle English, but the origin is unknown.