Subject: Re: doppLEganger?
From: phz@cadence.com (Pete Zakel)
Date: 1991-06-24, 15:47
Newsgroups: alt.tv.twin-peaks

In article <10308.2865126c@ohstpy.mps.ohio-state.edu> kdb@ohstpy.mps.ohio-state.edu writes:
> >Since everybody is slinging the word around like they've used it forever,
> >isn't the word "doppELganger" and not "doppLEganger"?

The absolute correct spelling is "doppelgaenger", since the word is German
and has an umlaut (the two dots) over the 'a'.  When umlauts are unavailable
(as in our ASCII world), the proper German replacement is to follow the
normally umlauted letter with an 'e' (which is what the umlaut is actually
a contraction for).

In English, however, it is OK to spell it without the umlaut as "doppelganger".
In neither case does the 'l' precede the 'e', as Keith points out.

As long as we're being picky...

-Pete Zakel
 (phz@cadence.com or ..!uunet!cadence!phz)

Just for grins, say "red room" backwards and see what you get...