Question mark: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 00:01, 1 January 2007

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==Variants in other languages and in history==

[[Image:Question_opening-closing.svg|frame|left|Opening (inverted) and closing question marks]]

In some languages, such as [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and [[Galician language|Galician]], typography since the [[18th century]] has required opening and closing question marks; an interrogative sentence or phrase begins with an '''inverted question mark''' ('''¿''') and ends with the question mark ('''?''') (see more on [[Inverted question mark and exclamation point in Spanish|usage in Spanish]]). However, this [[orthography|orthographical]] convention mayis occasionally beoften disregarded by less knowledgeable people in quick [[typing]] and where the inverted character is not easily available from [[computer keyboard]]s. This opening question mark has a very precise function in line with the ideal of phonetic representation because enables those reading aloud to intonate the question appropiately from the very begining of the sentence or to follow the discourse without having to review it at the end of a long question. It is not a cultural curiosity but something other looser systems of writing -such as that of English- have overlooked. In [[Greek language|Greek]] and [[Church Slavonic language|Church Slavonic]], a [[semicolon]] (;) is used as a question mark. In [[Arabic language|Arabic]], which is written from right to left, the question mark "؟" is mirrored. The question mark is also used in modern writing (though not required) in [[Chinese language|Chinese]], [[Korean language|Korean]], and [[Japanese language|Japanese]].

The '''rhetorical question mark''' first appeared in the [[1580s]] and was used at the end of a [[rhetorical question]]. It was the reverse of an ordinary question mark, so that instead of the main opening pointing back into the sentence, it opened away from it. This usage gradually disappeared in the [[1600s]]. However, there has been recent discussion about re-implementing the rhetorical question mark.<!-- tagged 2006-10-05 -->{{verify source}}