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Source:Skousen:Translating the Book of Mormon: Evidence from the Original Manuscript:Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited:Coriantumr
Oliver Cowdery could not have guessed the spelling of "Coriantumr" since no name in English ends in the letters "mr"
Parent page: Book of Mormon Names
Oliver Cowdery could not have guessed the spelling of "Coriantumr" since no name in English ends in the letters "mr"
In this case, no matter how slowly or carefully Joseph Smith might have repronounced Coriantumr, it would have been impossible for him to have indicated that there was no vowel between the m and r at the end of the name except by actually spelling out the separate letters m and r. Nor could Oliver Cowdery have guessed this spelling since no word (or name) in English ends in mr. In fact, Oliver ends the correct spelling Coriantumr with a large flourish on the final r, which Oliver produces nowhere else in either the original or the printer's manuscript. This addition probably reveals Oliver Cowdery's frustration at having to guess at such a weird spelling.[1]
Notes
- ↑ Royal Skousen, "Translating the Book of Mormon: Evidence from the Original Manuscript," Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited (1997).