history - Why did only English undergo the Great Vowel Shift, making pronunciation stray so far from spelling?


Lots of people have wondered why English seems to be one of very few languages with such irregular spelling, far from its pronunciation. The answers include the Norman invasion, and the Great Vowel Shift.


Ok, cool. But why did all those other languages not have the same thing happen to them?


German, Spanish, Italian, all Slavic languages, etc. They don't have a silent 'e', they don't have the day/date poke/soak treat/tree vowel dualities, etc. They still ascribe vowels the same sounds they ascribed them many centuries ago.


Is it because England had more trade contact and colonies? Or because they're on an isolated island? Or why?




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