Did you know the English alphabet has had more than 26 letters?
Do you know the name of the symbol “&”? Most would call it “ampersand”. It is a ligature of the two letters spelling the Latin word “et” meaning “and.”
Imagine a child reciting his A-B-Cs. The 27th symbol was “&” pronounced “and”. The end of his recitation went like this: ” double-U, ex, why, zee, and, per se , and.” (“W, X, Y, Z and, per se, And”). With typical slurring or blending of the last sounds, “and per se and” became “ampersand”.
Learn about the lost letter “thorn” (made the “TH” sound) but looked like a Y leading many to pronounce thee spelled ye without the “th” and how the lost letter “wynn” became replaced by the “double-u” or “W” at the Dictionary.com blog The Hot Word.
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