Was the letter "J" ever pronounced like "Y&qu
From my understanding, in most other Germanic languages(German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish), they pronounce "J" as English equivalent of "Y". For example, "Ja" is pronounced like "Ya", "Juli(July)" is pronounced like "Yuli".
My question is: Was the letter "J" ever pronounced like "Y" in English history(as it is in other Germanic languages)?
If it was, when did "J" become to be pronounced as modern "J"? I mean, the regualar J sound in English what we hear today.
I can easily imagine that it could. The same thing happened (or unhappened) with different versions of Spanish.
Is the currrent English "j" sound due to French influence?
Yeah, I think so. And I think that that's how it was pronounced in Old Norman French. Same for the combination "ch"--as in "chair". (Modern Parisian French "chaise" pronounced "shez"; in the olden days "ch" in French was still pronounced like it is in English, and their was an "r" in "chair".)
In a film made during WW2, during the very possible likelihood of the invasion of Britain by the Germans in the late summer and early autumn of 1940 during which every precaution was being taken to combat this threat in this country, especially in the south east and east of England, those areas closest to the Nazi occupied Continent of Europe just 22 miles away, two German parachutists who had unaccountably managed to land on the coast of East Kent during the hours of darkness, - two men who were specially trained in the use of English, and trained to speak in a highly credible RP English English accent, were caught out when they asked a local man for directions to a place called Jarvis Cross, where they were due to meet up with a group of other German inflitrators.
In spite of his impeccable English English RP accent, and all his other plausbiule credentials, he said "Yarvis" instead of "Jarvis". Quick thinking on the part of the local man, who pretended that he hadn't noticed this obvious Teutonic error, gave the right directions, but immediately after they had gone on their merry way (or so they thought) he called the military, the police and the local Home Guard units and all the German invaders were arrested and sent of to a remote Prisoners of War camp.
One slip of the tongue and they met their Waterloo.
The English J is unrelated to the J of other Germanic languages, The usage of the letter J for /ʤ/ comes from the Normans, J was /ʤ/ is Old French. In Old English the digraph "cg" was used.
Even Italian has J /j/, as in Jacopo, Jesolo.
<The English J is unrelated to the J of other Germanic languages, The usage of the letter J for /ʤ/ comes from the Normans, J was /ʤ/ is Old French.>
Besides English, does any other European language have "J for /ʤ/"sound or at least /ʤ/ sound?