This list of words that may be spelled with a ligature in English encompasses words which have letters that may, in modern usage, either be rendered as two distinct letters or as a single, combined letter. This includes AE being rendered as Æ and OE being rendered as Œ.
Until the early twentieth century, the œ and æ ligatures had been commonly used to indicate an etymological connection with Latin or Greek. Since then they have fallen out of fashion almost completely and are now only used occasionally. They are more commonly used for the names of historical people, to evoke archaism, or in literal quotations of historical sources. These ligatures are proper letters in some Scandinavian languages, and so are used to render names from those languages, and likewise names from Old English. Some American spellings replace ligatured vowels with a single letter; for example, gynæcology or gynaecology is spelled gynecology.
The fl and fi ligatures, among others, are still commonly used to render modern text in fine typography. Page-layout programs such as QuarkXPress and Adobe InDesign can be configured to automatically replace the individual characters with the appropriate ligatures. However this is a typographic feature and not part of the spelling.
Note: The variants Ædith, Cœline and Matthœo were a used (see citations), hypercorrected form of the names.
| Non-ligature form | Ligature form | Other forms |
|---|---|---|
| Ælfred | ||
| Ethel- Aethel- Oethel- | Æthel- Œthel- | (prefix of various names, e.g. Æthelthryth) |
| Æsop | ||
| Cecil | Cæcil | |
| Cæcilia | [1] | |
| Cæsar | ||
| Cæline, Cœline | [2] | |
| Cornælius | [3] | |
| Ædith | [4] | |
| Æmilia | [5] | |
| Emilian | Æmilian | |
| Œthel, Æthel | ||
| Hephaestus Hephaestos | Hephæstus Hephæstos | Hephaistus, Hephestus, Hephaistos, Hephestos[6] |
| Lætitia | Leticia, Letizia[7] | |
| Matthæo, Matthœo | [8] [9] | |
| Edipus | Œdipus | |
| Phœbe | Phoebë, Phœbë | |
The grapheme ß was originally made out of the characters long s (ſ) and z, the latter of which evolved into s. In Germany, the grapheme is still used today. Throughout history, various names have been spelled with ß. Many of the spelling variations are hypercorrected variants of other spellings of the name. Nowadays, most of the spelling variations and names are considered archaic or obsolete.
| Non-ligated form | Ligated form | Other forms | Gender | Etymology |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agnes | Agneß[10] | Agnesse | f | Derived from the Greek Ἁγνή Hagnḗ, meaning 'pure' or 'holy'. |
| Andreas | Andreaß[11] | Andreiß, Dreiß, Dreß | m | From the Greek word "andreios", "manly" |
| Ansgar | Anßgar[12] | Ansgarius (Latinized) | m | From the Old Norse word "Ásgeirr", "God + Spear" |
| Balthazar | Balthaßar[13] | Balthasar, Baltazar | m | From Akkadian "", "Bel protects the king" |
| Bartholomäus | Bartholomeiß[14] | Barthelmeß, Bartholomæus,[15] Bartholomeß,[16] Berthelmeß | m | From the Apostle Bartholomew |
| Klaus | Clauß[17] | Claiß, Clauß, Clawß, Klaß | m | A contraction of "Nicholas" |
| Elsbeth | Elßbeth[18] | Elßgen, Elßlin, Elße | f | Derivative of "Elisabeth" |
| Endres | Endreß | Enderß, Endereß, Enndreß[19] | m | Derivative of "Andreas" |
| Erasmus | Eraßmus[20] | Eraßmuß, Aßmus | m | Derived from Greek ἐράσμιος (erasmios) meaning "beloved" |
| Franz | Franß[21] | Francesco | m | From Latin "Francius" meaning "Frank, Frenchman" |
| Gillis | Gilliß[22] | Giles | f | From Latin "Aegidius" meaning "a wearer of goatskin" |
| Hans | Hanß[23] | Hannß[24] | m | A short form of "Johannes" |
| / | Heinsaß | / | m | (Unknown) |
| Jarosław | Jaroslauß[25] | Jarosława | m | Composed of the elements jar meaning 'strong' or 'powerful' and sława meaning 'glory' or 'fame' |
| Jasper | Jaßper[26] | / | m | From Latin iaspis, from Ancient Greek ἴασπις (íaspis) |
| Johannes | Johanneß[27] | Johann | m | A variant of the Greek name (Ιωάννης) and Classical Latin (Ioannes), itself derived from the Hebrew name Yehochanan, meaning "Yahweh is gracious" |
| Joss | Joß[28] | / | m/f | From the Old French name "Gosse", derived from "God" |
| Mathis | Mathiß | Matheß, Matheiß, Mattheiß, Matthiß[29] | m | Means “gift of Yahweh” (from Hebrew “mattath/מַתָּת” = gift + “yah/יָה” = referring to the Hebrew God). |
| Niels | Nielß[30] | Nils | m | Derived from the name Nicholas |
| Narziss | Narziß[31] | / | m | From the Greek Νάρκισσος |
| Nicolaus | Niclauß[32] | Nicklaß[33] | m | Derived from the Greek name Νικόλαος (Nikolaos), understood to mean "victory of the people", being a compound of νίκη nikē "victory" and λαός Laos "people". |
| Oswald | Oßwald | Oßwalt | m | Composed of two Anglo-Saxon elements, Ōs meaning "god" and weald meaning "rule" or "power" |
| Paul | Paulß[34] | Paulus, Pauluß | m | From Latin meaning "Small" or "Humble" |
| Theuss | Theuß[35] | Schultheß, Schulthieß, Thieß | m | From Latin "Thelonius", meaning "Ruler of the people" |
| Thomas | Thomaß[36] | / | m | Derived from the Aramaic personal name תאומא /tɑʔwmɑʔ/, meaning "twin" and "leader." |
| Thonis | Thonniß[37] | / | m | Derivate of "Antonius" |
Note that some words contain an ae which may not be written æ because the etymology is not from the Greek -αι- or Latin -ae- diphthongs. These include:
| Normal form | Ligature form | Other forms | Etymology | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| acanthaesthesia | acanthæsthesia | acanthesthesia | From Ancient Greek ἄκανθα (ákantha, “thorn”) + αἴσθησις (aísthēsis, “sensation”) | |
| Achaean | Achæan | Achean, Achaian, Akhaian | From Latin Achaeus or Achaius, from Ancient Greek Ἀχαιός (Akhaiós) | |
| Achaemenid | Achæmenid | From Ancient Greek Ἀχαιμενίδης | ||
| adhesive | adhæsive | From Latin "adhaerere" | ||
| Aeaea | Ææa | Eëä | From Greek Αἰαία (Aiaíā) | |
| aeciospore | æciospore | aeciospore | Neo-Latin aecium from Ancient Greek αἰκία (aikía, “injury, insult”) and Neo-Latin spora from Ancient Greek σπορά (sporá, “seed, a sowing”) | |
| aecidium | æcidium | (aecidium) | Neo-Latin aecidium, from Greek αἰκία (aikia) | |
| aecium | æcium | (aecium) | Neo-Latin aecidium, from Greek αἰκία (aikia) | |
| aedicule | ædicule | edicule (AmE) | From Latin aedicula (“small house”), diminutive of aedis (“a house”) | |
| Aegis | Ægis | Egis (archaic in AmE) | Latin from Greek Αἰγίς (Aigis) | |
| Aegyptus | Ægyptus | Egyptus (Biblical) | Latin from Greek Αἴγυπτος (Aígyptos) | |
| emulate | æmulate | From Latin "aemulare" | ||
| enigma | ænigma | From Latin "aenigma" meaning riddle | ||
| Aenon | Ænon | From Greek, Αἰνών | ||
| Aeolian | Æolian | Latin Aeolis from Greek mythology Αἰολίς (Aiolis) | ||
| Aeolis | Æolis | - | Latin Aeolis, from Greek Αἰολίς (Aiolis) | |
| aeon | æon | eon (AmE) | Late Latin aeon, from Greek αἰών (aion). | |
| equal | æqual | From Latin "aequus, a, um" meaning equal | ||
| aera | æra | era (AmE) | ||
| aerugite | ærugite | (aerugo) | Latin aerugo, from aes | |
| aerugo | ærugo | (aerugite) | Latin aerugo, from aes | |
| aeschynite | æschynite | eschynite (AmE) | Greek αἰσχύνω (aischuno) | |
| aesculin | æsculin | esculin (AmE) | ||
| aesculetin | æsculetin | esculetin (AmE) | ||
| Aespa | æspa | |||
| aesthetic | æsthetic | esthetic (AmE - rare) | Greek αἰσθετικός (aisthetikos) | |
| estimation | æstimation | From Latin "aestimare" meaning to guess | ||
| aestival | æstival | estival (AmE) | Latin aestivus, from aestas | |
| aestivation | æstivation | estivation (AmE) | Latin aestivare, from aestivus, from aestas | |
| eternity | æternity | From Latin 'aeternus' meaning without beginning or end | ||
| Aether | Æther | ether (AmE) | Latin aether, from Greek αἰθήρ (aither) | |
| aethereal | æthereal or ætherial | ethereal (AmE), ethereal (AmE - rare), aetherial (BrE - rare) | ||
| Aethrioscope | Æthrioscope | Ethrioscope | Greek αἴθριον (aithrion) | |
| aetiology | ætiology | etiology (AmE) | ||
| algae | algæ | algas (very rare) | ||
| Alphaeus | Alphæus | |||
| ambilevous | ambilævous | — | From Latin ambilævus (ambi- ("both") + lævus ("left")), a calque of Ancient Greek ἀμφαρίστερος (ampharisteros). | |
| anaemia | anæmia | anemia (AmE) | ||
| anaesthesia | anæsthesia | anesthesia (AmE) | ||
| anapaest | anapæst | anapest (AmE) | ||
| antennae | antennæ | antennas | ||
| archaeology | archæology | archeology (AmE) | ||
| archaebacteria | archæbacteria | archaea/archæ | ||
| Athenaeum | Athenæum | Atheneum (AmE) | ||
| aurorae | auroræ | auroras | ||
| azotaemia | azotæmia | azotemia (AmE) | ||
| bacteraemia | bacteræmia | bacteremia (AmE) | ||
| Caedmon | Cædmon | Cadmon | ||
| caesium | cæsium | cesium (AmE) | ||
| Chaldaea | Chaldæa | Chaldea | ||
| chaetophorous | chætophorous | chetophorous | ||
| chamaeleon | chamæleon | chameleon | ||
| chimaera | chimæra | chimera (AmE) | ||
| coaeval | coæval | coeval | ||
| curriculum vitae | curriculum vitæ | — | Latin meaning ‘course of life’, vitæ | |
| cyclopaedia | cyclopædia | cyclopedia | ||
| daedal | dædal | dedal | ||
| daemon | dæmon | demon | Greek δαιμων (daimon) | |
| diaeresis | diæresis | dieresis (AmE) | ||
| Egypt | Ægypt | Aegypt (Archaic) | From the Latinised Ægyptus | |
| encyclopaedia | encyclopædia | encyclopedia (AmE) | ||
| Epaenetus | Epænetus | — | ||
| equal | æqual | aequal (BrE - obsolete) | from Latin "aequus" | |
| equasion | æquasion | aequasion (BrE - obsolete) | from Latin "aequare", "to make equal" | |
| equator | æquator | aequator (BrE - obsolete) | The name is derived from medieval Latin word aequator, in the phrase circulus aequator diei et noctis, meaning 'circle equalizing day and night', from the Latin word aequare meaning 'make equal'. | |
| equilateral | æquilateral | aequilateral (BrE - obsolete) | from Latin "aequus" | |
| equinox | æquinox | aequinox (BrE - obsolete) | from Latin "aequi + nocta" | |
| equity | æquity | aequal (BrE - obsolete) | from Latin "aequitas" | |
| equivalent | æquivalent | aequivalent (BrE - obsolete) | f from late Latin aequivalent- ‘being of equal worth’ | |
| era | æra | aera (BrE - rare) | Late Latin aera, probably from Latin æs (plural æra) | |
| et cetera | et cætera | et caetera, etc., &c. | Latin phrase | |
| esteem | æsteem | aesteem (BrE - obsolete) | Latin aestimare, "to guess" | |
| estimation | æstimation | aestimation (BrE - obsolete) | Latin aestimare, "to guess" | |
| eternal | æternal | aeternal | ||
| Ethiopia | Æthiopia | Aethiopia | ||
| Eudaemonic | eudæmonic | eudemonic | ||
| faeces | fæces | feces (AmE) | ||
| fairy | færie | faerie | ||
| formulae | formulæ | formulas | ||
| fraenum | frænum | Frenum | ||
| Gaea | Gæa | Gaia | ||
| Graeco-Roman | Græco-Roman | Greco-Roman (AmE) | ||
| haemoglobin | hæmoglobin | hemoglobin (AmE) | ||
| haemolysis | hæmolysis | hemolysis (AmE) | ||
| haemophilia | hæmophilia | hemophilia (AmE) | ||
| haemorrhage | hæmorrhage | hemorrhage (AmE) | ||
| haemorrhoid | hæmorrhoid | hemorrhoid (AmE) | ||
| hyaena | hyæna | hyena | ||
| Hymenaeus | Hymenæus | — | ||
| hypaethral | hypæthral | hypethral | ||
| hyperbolae | hyperbolæ | hyperbolas (AmE) | ||
| hypnopedia | hypnopædia | — | ||
| Idumaea | Idumæa | Idumea | From "Edom" (Esau). | |
| Irenaeus | Irenæus | — | ||
| ischaemia | ischæmia | ischemia (AmE) | ||
| Ituraea | Ituræa | Iturea | ||
| Judaeo- | Judæo- | Judeo- | ||
| judaeophobe | judæophobe | judeophobe (AmE) | ||
| larvae | larvæ | larvas | ||
| leukaemia | leukæmia | leukemia (AmE) | ||
| medieval | mediæval | mediaeval (BrE) | ||
| nebulae | nebulæ | nebulas | plural – Neo-Latin → Latin ("mist"); akin to Old High German nebul ("fog") → Greek nephelē, nephos ("cloud") | |
| nymphae | nymphæ | nymphs | ||
| nymphaea | nymphæa | - | ||
| orthopaedic | orthopædic | orthopedic (AmE) | ||
| paean | pæan | pean (AmE) | ||
| paeon | pæon | - | ||
| pedagogue | pædagogue or pædagog | pedagog (AmE), (paedagogue and paedagog exist but are both somewhat archaic) | ||
| pederasty | pæderasty | paederasty | ||
| paediatrics | pædiatrics | pediatrics (AmE) | ||
| paediatrician | pædiatrician | pediatrician (AmE) | ||
| paediatrist | pædiatrist | pediatrist (AmE) | ||
| paedophile | pædophile | pedophile (AmE) | ||
| palaeobotany | palæobotany | paleobotany (AmE) | ||
| palaeocene | palæocene | paleocene (AmE) | ||
| palaeoclimatology | palæoclimatology | paleoclimatology (AmE) | ||
| palaeography | palæography | palaeography (AmE) | ||
| palaeolithic | palæolithic | paleolithic (AmE) | ||
| palaeography | palæography | paleography (AmE) | ||
| palaeontology | palæontology | paleontology (AmE) | ||
| palaeozoic | palæozoic | paleozoic (AmE) | ||
| Panacaea | Panacæa | Panacea (AmE) | ||
| pandemonium | pandæmonium | pandaemonium | ||
| Pangaea | Pangæa | Pangea (AmE) | ||
| parabolae | parabolæ | parabolas (AmE) | ||
| personae | personæ | personas | ||
| Plantae | Plantæ | |||
| premium | præmium | praemium | ||
| pretorium | prætorium | praetorium, also prœtorium | Both forms with æ and œ seen, from Latin, praetōrium | |
| primeval | primæval | primaeval (BrE - rare) | ||
| Quaestor | Quæstor | - | ||
| Rhaetia | Rhætia | - | ||
| septicaemia | septicæmia | septicemia (AmE) | ||
| scarabaeid | scarabæid | - | ||
| scarabaeoid | scarabæoid | - | ||
| subpoenae | subpœnæ | - | ||
| supernovae | supernovæ | supernovas | ||
| synaeresis | synæresis | syneresis (AmE) | ||
| synaesthesia | synæsthesia | synesthesia (AmE) | ||
| Thaddaeus | Thaddæus | Thaddeus | ||
| toxaemia | toxæmia | toxemia (AmE) | ||
| uraemia | uræmia | uremia (AmE) | ||
| vertebrae | vertebræ | |||
| viraemia | viræmia | viremia (AmE) | ||
| Zacchaeus | Zacchæus | Zaccheus | ||
| zoogloeae | zoöglœæ |
| Common form | Ligature form | Other forms | Etymology | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| amenorrhoea | amenorrhœa | amenorrhea (AmE) | From Greek α (a) + μένόρροια (mēnorroia) | |
| amoeba | amœba | ameba (AmE - rare) | Neo-Latin amoeba, from Greek ἀμοιβή (amoibē) | |
| apnea | apnœa | apnoea (BrE) | Neo-Latin apnoea, from Greek απνοια (apnoia) | |
| coelacanth | cœlacanth | From Greek κοῖλος (koîlos, “hollow”) + ἄκανθα (ákantha, “spine”) | ||
| coeliac | cœliac | celiac (AmE) | Latin coeliacus, from Greek κοιλιακος (koiliakos) | |
| coeptis | cœptis | On the Great Seal of the United States, Annuit cœptis from Latin, coeptum. | ||
| Confoederatio Helvetica | Confœderatio Helvetica | Latin for "Helvetic Confederation". The Roman and now formal name for Switzerland. The abbreviation CH is derived from the initialization of this Latin phrase. | ||
| diarrhoea | diarrhœa | diarrhea (AmE) | Middle English diaria, from Late Latin diarrhoea, from Greek διάρροια (diarroia) | |
| dyspnea | dyspnœa | dyspnoea | ||
| ecology | œcology | oecology | ||
| economics | œconomics | oeconomics | ||
| economy | œconomy | oeconomy | ||
| ecumenism | œcumenism | oecumenism, rarely ocumenism | ||
| esophagus | œsophagus | oesophagus (BrE) | ||
| estrogen | œstrogen | oestrogen (BrE) | ||
| estrus | œstrus | oestrus | ||
| federal | fœderal | foederal - archaic; thus virtually never found | Latin foedus | |
| fetid | fœtid | foetid (BrE) | Latin fētidus | |
| fetor | fœtor | foetor (BrE) | Middle English fetoure, from Latin fētor | |
| fetus | fœtus | foetus (BrE) | Middle English fetus, from Latin fētus | |
| gonorrhoea | gonorrhœa | gonorrhea (AmE) | Greek γονόρροια (gonorrhoia) | |
| homeomorphism | homœomorphism | homoeomorphism (BrE) | From Greek ὅμοιος (homoios) + μορφος (morphos) | |
| homeopath | homœopath | homoeopath (BrE) | From Greek ὅμοιος (homoios) + πάθος (pathos) | |
| homeostasis | homœostasis | homoeostasis (BrE) | From Greek ὅμοιος (homoios) + στάσις (stasis) | |
| homoeozoic | homœozoic | homeozoic (AmE - rare) | From Greek ὅμοιος (homoios) + ζωικός (zōikos) | |
| hors d'oeuvre | hors d'œuvre | - | French hors d'œuvre | |
| logorrhoea | logorrhœa | logorrhea (AmE) | From Greek | |
| maneuver | manœuvre | manoeuvre (BrE) | French manœuvre, from Old French maneuvre, from Medieval Latin manuopera, from Latin manū operārī | |
| oedema | œdema | edema (AmE) | ||
| oeillade | œillade | |||
| oenology | œnology | enology (AmE) | From Greek οίνος (oinos) + λόγος (logos) | |
| oenomel | œnomel | |||
| oenothera | œnothera | |||
| oesophagus | œsophagus | esophagus (AmE) | ||
| oestrus | œstrus | estrus (AmE) | Greek οἶστρος (oistros) ‘gadfly or frenzy’ | |
| Oethelwald | Œthelwald | Œthelwald of Deira | ||
| oeuvre | œuvre | - | French œuvre, from Old French uevre, from Latin opera | |
| onomatopoeia | onomatopœia | |||
| penology | pœnology | |||
| phoenix | phœnix | phenix (rare) | ||
| pretorium | prœtorium | prætorium or praetorium | Both forms with œ and æ seen, from Latin, praetōrium. | |
| subpoena | subpœna | subpena (rare) | ||
| tragedy | tragœdy | tragoedy | ||
| zoogloea | zoöglœa | - |
Also, ligatures may be used in personal names as well, i.e. Maecenus as Mæcenus etc.
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