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I'm confused by the "Front Vowels" argument, since it doesn't seem to hold particularly well for ⟨ɪ⟩ (the "i" in gif). I took a look at onelook for all "gi*" words, sorted by commonness [1]. Out of the first 30 words I count using the ⟨ɪ⟩ sound, I see: - 19 with a Hard G (gift, gig, gill, gilt, gigabyte, give, gibbous, gild, git, giggle, gingham, ginkgo, giddy, gimlet, gibbon, gifted, gimp, gilding, gimmick) - 11 with a Soft G (ginger, gin, gingivitis, ginseng, gist, giraffe, gibbet, gib, gibberish, giblets, gingerly) This isn't an argument one way or another, but it seems to discount the entire first argument. It seems that the author is performing a bit of a sleight of hand by focusing on the entire class of "front vowels," instead of the specifics of the ⟨ɪ⟩ sound, because otherwise the numbers wouldn't work out nearly as well. Also, front and back vowels aren't nearly as simple as "I, E, Y = front" and "A, O, U = non-front. ⟨a⟩, the a in "hat" is a front vowel, for instance.[2] And you'll never find a soft g before ⟨a⟩. 1. https://onelook.com/?w=gi*&ssbp=1 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_front_unrounded_vowel |