... I wonder if "you" in English used to have two different forms - a
singular and a plural - that became one. Does anyone know? ...
English had a singular "thou" and a plural "you", but as in French etc
it became customary to use "you" also for the singular, to the extent
that singular "thou" has almost died out, remaining only in some
dialects and used by some for addressing God - in an ironic reversal,
"thou" which originally was the less polite form being used as a term of
respect for God.
But the Hebrew usage is independent of this modern (i.e. post-mediaeval)
rejection of the singular "thou" etc found in most European languages.
--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work) http://www.qaya.org/
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