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During what period in the history of the English language was diahrrœa most used as a variant spelling of the word? Whence did this spelling originate? I would like to contrive to play this word in Scrabble as the 'hrr' sequence is generally not found in any words (to my knowledge), so the time period will help me locate dictionaries likely to contain it.

Sources: http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/101002664

https://english.stackexchange.com/a/132919/113307 <-- quote with same spelling found in many places

similar spelling also with 'hrr':

https://www.memrise.com/course/961999/a-level-biology-aqa-2015-onwards/1/

Community
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Please stop being evil
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    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it is based upon a misconception or erroneously presented. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 01 '17 at 22:15
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    Never, I would think. That looks like a typo. Why do you think it isn't? – herisson Apr 01 '17 at 22:15
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    Etymonline says that diarrhoea is from Late Latin and is also a dialectal variant of diarrhea (British English, typically, as American English tends to not retain that oe spelling from Latin). But diahrrœa seems to be incorrect. – Kasenjo Apr 01 '17 at 22:21
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    There are numerous instances on Google of diahrroea, which could be spelling mistakes, except it seems such an odd mistake to make unless based on some tradition. Here https://www.memrise.com/course/961999/a-level-biology-aqa-2015-onwards/1/ the spelling is included under lactose intolerance in a UK A level course. I have also seen this spelt, in a note from a parent explaining her daughter's absence, as "she has a dire rear" . – davidlol Apr 02 '17 at 00:12
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    @davidlol The point is that it is a frequently misspelled word. The example you give is clearly that. Though I did rather enjoy the anecdote about the parent and her child's "dire rear". – WS2 Apr 02 '17 at 07:10
  • @WS2 why do you think that that source is 'clearly' a misspelling? – Please stop being evil Apr 02 '17 at 07:16
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    @thedarkwanderer That spelling is certainly not in the OED which is my own authority on English as spoken around the world. – WS2 Apr 02 '17 at 07:42
  • Basically, no one knows how to spell the word, so they either look up or just wing it. And do bear in mind that up until about 1800 there was no such thing as a "standard" spelling for an English word. – Hot Licks Apr 02 '17 at 12:32
  • @HotLicks I found reputable references, dated after 1800, that contain this spelling variant (or spelling mistake if you prefer). The "winging" it theory is most likely for the online instances, but there are over 2,000 of them, if we are to believe Google algorithms. – Mari-Lou A Apr 02 '17 at 14:05
  • @Mari-LouA - English dictionaries first became AVAILABLE around 1800. They weren't commonplace until about 100 years later. – Hot Licks Apr 02 '17 at 14:39
  • @Mari-LouA - And bear in mind that about 90% of written communications was via handwritten script until maybe 1960. In script if you didn't know how to spell a word (especially one as messy as "diarrhea") all you had to do is make it (partly) illegible. – Hot Licks Apr 02 '17 at 14:43
  • @HotLicks which is why I paid special attention to the editions, note that the spelling persists in six editions. Where one would presume expert copywriters and editors would have weeded out the fellow by then. – Mari-Lou A Apr 02 '17 at 14:46
  • The point is, until about 1800 there was no "official" spelling. And after that point lexicographers ran around documenting the different spellings they found, omitting any they rather arbitrarily judged to be "incorrect". This process took a while. – Hot Licks Apr 02 '17 at 14:56
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    @HotLicks The way that it is spelled in Britain today, namely diarrhoea (in America diarrhea) is exactly how it was spelled in Latin. Etymology per OED: < Latin diarrhœa, < Greek διάρροια a flowing through, diarrhœa, < διαρρεῖν to flow through. No other intermediate spellings are given. So I don't see too much relevance in your otherwise well-made point that prior to circa 1800 there were no "official spellings". – WS2 Apr 02 '17 at 18:16
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    @davidlol: I don't think it is such an odd mistake to make. The "h" doesn't correspond to any pronounced sound, and the "rh" digraph (or "rrh" trigraph) is rare, generally only occurring in words of Greek origin. People know there should be an "h" in the word but might accidentally put it in the wrong place. It's like the common misspelling of "Gandhi" as "Ghandi". – herisson Apr 02 '17 at 19:29

2 Answers2

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"diahrrœa" is certainly a misspelling. "diarrhœa" or "diarrhoea" is the standard British spelling; there is no real difference between them as use of the ligature "œ" is only an aesthetic choice and not a different spelling. "diarrhea" is the standard American spelling.

Not only is "diarrhea" spelled with an "rh" rather than "hr" but so is every word containing the suffix "-rrhea" (Greek for "flow), of which there are quite a few: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/words-that-end-in-rrhea

F.K. Juliano
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    please see my edit to include sources. I would like more indication that this is a misspelling, if this is still your answer. – Please stop being evil Apr 02 '17 at 07:05
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    "diahrrea" or any variation thereof is a misspelling, so of course that's still my answer. Although I don't play Scrabble, it seems to me that it would be dishonest to use a misspelling and then provide dated and obscure sources that use that particular misspelling to back up your claim of a "variant" spelling. Just about every conceivable misspelling can be found in print. This one is no different. – F.K. Juliano Apr 10 '17 at 04:42
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Against all my expectations, the “variant” spelling, diahrroea, has a long history on both sides of the pond.

  1. The Thomsonian Recorder, Volume 2. Printed in Columbus (Ohio), in 1834

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I have said that in almost every instance, Cholera is attended by diahrroea, of a peculiar character no doubt, because arising from a peculiar cause: nevertheless, easily manageable by an intelligent physician;

  1. Canine Pathology: Or a Description of the Diseases of Dogs. Third edition, printed in London, 1832.

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When mercurial preparations are licked by dogs they are apt to occasion violent and dangerous diahrroea.

  1. Report on Epidemic Cholera and Yellow Fever in the Army of the United States, During The Year 1867

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SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith my monthly report of sick and wounded at this post during the month of June, 1867; also the special report upon epidemic cholera required by Circular No 3, dated Surgeon General's Office, April 20, 1867.
Although diahrroea and dysentery have been quite prevalent during the latter part of the month, but two cases of cholera have occurred.

  1. Royle's Manual of Materia Medica and Therapeutics Sixth Edition. Printed in London, 1876, written by John Harley, M.D.
    HON. FELL. KING'S COLLEGE. ASSISTANT PHYSICIAN TO, AND LECTURER ON PHYSIOLOGY AT, ST THOMAS'S HOSPITAL

enter image description here

This is a warming stomachic tonic or aperient, useful in diahrroea or dyspepsia with flatulent colic.

Summary
Despite the evidence which suggests otherwise, the spelling variant diahrrœa or diahrroea is not recorded in any dictionary online. In Wiktionary, the (mis)spelling only occurs in a citation, in the entry for restrict

After suffering diahrroea, the patient was restricted to a diet of rice, cold meat, and yoghurt.‎

It also occurs in a Wikipedia discussion on Homeopathy, dated June, 2012. But on their page dedicated to the illness itself, Wikipedia lists only two spellings: Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea,

Mari-Lou A
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  • Your citations are from 1834-1876. Is that a high point in usage or just arbitrary? That's a pretty narrow range, which is a good thing for my dictionary search if it's representative. – Please stop being evil Apr 02 '17 at 17:18
  • @thedarkwanderer there were many more citations and sources I could have cited, but I limited my focus on the 19th century, and I did not find that spelling in any dictionary online, or recorded by Google Books. – Mari-Lou A Apr 02 '17 at 18:17
  • The Canine Pathology book has *one* result for a search for "diahrroea," and *24* results for a search for "diarrhoea." I think this strongly indicates the "variant" spelling with "hrr" was a mistake, not an intentional spelling. Report on Epidemic Cholera has *one* result for the "hrr" spelling, vs. *68* for the "rrh" spelling. Royle's has *one* result with "hrr," vs. *31* with "rrh." – herisson Apr 02 '17 at 19:20
  • I think it is misleading to say "the 'variant' spelling, diahrroea, has a long history on both sides of the pond." As far as I can tell, it only has the same kind of "long history" as any other easily-made spelling mistake. I don't see any evidence that the word was ever intentionally spelled "diahrroea" instead of ""diarrhoea" in any past published text. – herisson Apr 02 '17 at 19:21
  • @sumelic The word "variant" is placed between inverted commas, and at the end I clearly state I did not find any dictionary references that confirmed the spelling. My surprise was finding that the misspelling occurred on both sides of the atlantic, as I have always heard the British spelling diarrhoea, is quite different from the American one. And the OP's example contains the -(h)oea suffix. – Mari-Lou A Apr 02 '17 at 19:28
  • @sumelic Now if you want to argue that instances dating from the 19th century are recent, that is your prerogative. F.K. Juliano who also answered said the findings were archaic! the comment has since been deleted. How many Americans do you know would spell the word with oea? Not many, I bet. I checked on Ngram by the way, but I didn't post a link or a graph. My error was to take the OP's question seriously, wasn't it? :) – Mari-Lou A Apr 02 '17 at 19:34
  • Let us continue this discussion in chat. – herisson Apr 02 '17 at 19:50
  • @sumelic there's nothing else to discuss. You consider the answer false and misleading, end of story. I'll survive :) – Mari-Lou A Apr 02 '17 at 19:56