Norms and Conventions in the History of English

This paper addresses the question of why historical linguistics should be interested in studying dialect spelling in its own right. It deduces a number of arguments in favour of that interest from a case study of the graphical representation of Ulster Scots in the past and present. Referring to a selection of findings from that case study and relating them to central issues of written language, the paper calls for a greater interest in the general structure and the historical development of vern