Hello ellabee-ga,
Thank-you for your question.
If the next word in the sentence SOUNDS LIKE it begins with a
consonant then you should use "a", if the next word in the sentence
SOUNDS LIKE it begins with a vowel you should use "an". We therefore
get a car - not an car - or an apple - not a apple. Whether you use
"a" or "an" for historic, and many other words beginning with "h",
depends on how *you* pronounce the word. Some people say HIStoric
(those that would use an "a") and some would say hISToric (those that
would use an "an").
I believe that the language is adaptive and that neither is right or
wrong - the most important thing in language is getting the message
across correctly, whether you use "a" or "an" will probably not affect
the meaning of the message. Many people will disagree with me here
(especially those who are very strict on grammar)!
The best argument I can find is on the Wikipedia:
"The form "an" is always prescribed before words beginning with a
silent "h," such as "honorable," "heir," "hour," and, in American
English, "herb." Some British dialects (e.g., Cockney) silence all
initial "h's" and so employ "an" all the time: e.g., "an 'elmet". Many
British usage books, therefore, discount a usage which some Americans
(amongst others) employ as being a derivative of the Cockney. The
reason is that the indefinite article "a" is pronounced either of two
ways: as a schwa or as the letter itself is pronounced, "long a." Some
words beginning with the letter "h" have the primary stress on the
second or later syllable. Pronouncing "a" as a schwa can diminish the
sound of the schwa and melt into the vowel. Pronouncing it as a "long
a" does not do this, but the pronunciation cannot be prescribed, the
word is spelled the same for either. Hence "an" may be seen in such
phrases as "an historic," "an heroic," and yes, "an hôtel of
excellence" was the by-line in an advertisement in a New York City
newspaper.
Such was also the case for some other words which take the place of
the article. "My" and "thy" became "mine" and "thine," as in "mine
uncle."
The appearance of "an" or "a" in front of words beginning with "h" is
not only limited to stress. Sometimes there are historical roots as
well. Words that may have had a route into English via French (where
all "h"s are unpronounced) may have "an" to avoid an unusual
pronunciation. Words that derived from German however would use "a" as
the "h"s would be pronounced. There is even some suggestion that
fashion may have had some influence. When England was ruled by a
French aristocracy, the tradition may have been to exclusively use
"an", whilst when Britain was governed by a German based monarchy the
tide may have changed to "a"."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%2C_an
There are several excellent online discussions of this at the following webpages:
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/grammar/index.php?title=a_vs_an_1&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
http://www.theslot.com/a-an.html
http://experts.about.com/q/English-Second-Language-1815/vs.htm
http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/archives/0003/techwhirl-0003-00432.html
https://nautical.uwf.edu/unitapp/faq/list.cfm?ID=150&CLAN=333
http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/anhistoric.html
I hope this answers your question. Should you have any further
queries on this subject please do not hesitate to ask for
clarification. |
