gunwhales (sp?)
Michael
I do not agree that "inwhale" is "incorrect, though it is not a spelling I would use. I would say that it is not a preferred spelling.
Most linguists today would disagree with the idea that the number of people using a word form is not a logical or "correct" basis for accepting a word or spelling of a word. Indeed, most would reject the notion that a spelling such as gunwhale is "incorrect." And most would assert that how many people prefer a usage or spelling is a primary test of acceptability.
Linguists often describe themselves as either prescriptivists, who judge something to be right or wrong, correct or incorrect, or descriptivists. Descriptivists accept the idea that language is evolutionary, and that words, their definition and usage and spelling change over time, with new words coming into use and other words fading from use. They prefer to assess whether a word or spelling is acceptable or effective in the circumstances it is used. So "gunwhale" would be acceptable on the WCHA or WoodenBoat forums, because it is readily understood by most readers. It would be much less acceptable to use with a general group of readers, who will might not understand the word, and would not be able to look it up in a standard dictionary.
English spelling was not standardized until the 19th century, when Victorian society put most everything into "correct" and "incorrect" pigeonholes and prescriptivists ruled the linguistic roost. But most linguists today accept that language admits of great variety and is always changing. "Correct" spelling and usage is not consistent between different English-speaking populations. Colour/color and -ise/-ize are two ready examples. In the U.S. we say "The jury is out" treating the collective as a singular noun. In Britain and many former British colonies, the preferred usage is "The jury are out" treating the collective as plural. You would seriously ruffle feathers if you told a Londoner that the second sentence was "incorrect." Indeed, the second sentence is the "Queen's English," while the first sentence would be considered just a United States variant by British scholars. And of course, the "Queens English" is a dialect now spoken by only a very small percentage of the English speaking world. "Correct" and "incorrect" can be loaded words, and I prefer not to use them about spelling, syntax, or usage.
As you said, those of us not at the Assembly are bored. But I will be paddling in Maine next week, and won't care at all about wales.
