[net.nlang] diaeresis and no-L

levy@princeton.UUCP (09/06/83)

The reason Noel is sometimes (ever more seldom) spelled with a diaeresis is
that it comes from French, where the word *must* have one because otherwise
oe is pronounced as a single vowel (lips as in o, tongue as in e).  The same
applies to "naive" (ai in French is pronounced e).

			-- Silvio levy