English Language & Usage Asked on March 4, 2021
Etymology Dictionary says "from French corps d’armée (16c.), which apparently was picked up in English during Marlborough’s campaigns, from French corps (old French cors) "body," from Latin corpus "body""
Wikitionary: From French corps d’armée (literally “army body”), from Latin corpus (“body”)
For the Latin corpus, wikitionary gives this pronunciation in which the P is pronounced: /ˈkor.pus/
Etymology Dictionary: *from Old French coup, colp "a blow, strike" (12c.), from Medieval Latin colpus, from Vulgar Latin colapus, from Latin colaphus "a cuff, box on the ear," from Greek kolaphos "a blow, buffet, punch, slap," "a lowly word without clear etymology" [Beekes]
Wikitionary: Borrowed from French coup (“blow, strike”), from Late Latin colpus, from Latin colaphus. Doublet of colpus.
For the French coup, Wikitionary pronunciation is /ku/.
There’s a similar question on Quora, but most answers there says "because English spelling is stupid". One of the answers says "because there’s another word corpse" but that doesn’t sound reasonable.
What’s happening here? Why are the P’s silent in these words in English? Can anyone explain it briefly?
From a comment by Stuart F:
Both [sc. coup and corps] are originally French, taken into English comparatively recently compared to many French words (corps is early 18th century; many French words came over with the Normans in the 11th century) and hence with the modern French pronunciation. "Coup" in English is from expressions such as "coup d'état", "coup de grace", etc, and "corps" apparently from "corps d'armée".
Although there may now be no 'silent letters' (that is, as should be obvious, no unpronounced characters in a written word), apparently there were 'silent letters' 6 years and 4 months ago, when the silent pee in the 'cupboard' was the topic of the question 'Why is “cupboard” pronounced with a silent “p”?' and its highly upvoted answers. Etc.
At that time (6 years, 4 months ago), questions were apparently approached with the grace and interpreted with the generosity which, although essential for civilized discourse, is not invariably seen here, now. Thus, the self-contradiction of a pronounced but somehow silent "p" went unremarked.
Likewise unremarked with reference to the 'cupboard' question was the absolutely unremarkable philosophical point that 'letters' are characters that merely represent, with all the hair-splitting the possibility of 'representation' may entail, "one or more of the elementary sounds used in speech and language" (OED). Except, of course, when the letters don't represent a sound in a particular case (a given word), in which case 'letters' are "any of the symbols of an alphabet used in written language" (op. cit.).
Correct answer by JEL on March 4, 2021
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