Language: The English alphabet once had 27 letters — the "ampersa…

Question

Did you know? The English alphabet once had 27 letters — the "ampersand" (&) was the 27th. School children recited the alphabet as "X, Y, Z, and per se and" — which morphed into "ampersand". The letter was dropped in the 19th century; today it is a punctuation mark, not a letter.

Accepted Answer

The English alphabet once had 27 letters — the "ampersand" (&) was the 27th. School children recited the alphabet as "X, Y, Z, and per se and" — which morphed into "ampersand". The letter was dropped in the 19th century; today it is a punctuation mark, not a letter.

Het Engelse alfabet had ooit 27 letters — de "ampersand" (&) was de 27e. Schoolkinderen reciteerden het alfabet als "X, Y, Z, and per se and" — wat versmolt tot "ampersand". De letter werd in de 19e eeuw gedropt; vandaag is hij een leesteken, geen letter.

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