Is it "a" or "an"?

Question

When using the word "historical" as an adjective to describe, say, an event, would one say "an historical event" or "a historical event"? A total grammar nazi, this has been bugging me for a while. And if it is "a", is it a long a or short a?

Color me nerdy.

Answer 1

In the case of "historic(al)" you will often see "an". It is not necessary, but it's not improper either. There are good historical and phonological reasons for it. It has mainly to do with the fact that this syllable has very little accent and the h is very weakly pronounced. . . which is very CLOSE to having the word begin with a vowel sound. (see esp. Pt #3 below)

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Here's a summary of why "an" may appear before a word beginning with /h/:

1) the initial /h/ IS not pronounced
*generally in "hours" hono(u)r"
*American English - "herb"
*some dialects "humble", "hotel"

2) history - that is, the /h/ USED to be silent:
there are a number of words whose initial /h/ was originally not pronounced, esp. those derived from (Old) French, which did not pronounce it (sometimes did not even spell it)
Some of these (examples listed in #1) STILL do not pronounce the /h/ in many or all English dialects. Others that have added a pronounced /h/ may still be treated as if they did not have it -- 'historic(al)' is perhaps the best example of this

BUT this is not enough -- those who say "an historic(al) event" (pronouncing the /h/) ALSO usually say "a history"!
So, there's one other very important factor, which is:

3) The syllable starting with /h/ LACKS an ACCENT
--Specifically, if the SECOND syllable is accented, the initial /h/ is WEAKER, perhaps only very slightly pronounced (It seems especially weak if the following vowel is formed in the front of the mouth -- a, i, e (as opposed to vowels made further back -- o, u)

So, if the first syllable HAS an accent (especially the MAIN accent of the word) it is preceded by "a" --thus we say "A HISTORY" (unless, of course, you're Cockney)

To get the sense of how this works, just try saying the word "historic" all by itself. You may notice that you scarcely pronounce the /h/. Even if you do, it may feel like it takes extra energy do so (whereas when you say "history" the 'energy' is already supplied by accenting the syllable)

[Some have said 'accented' or 'unaccented', but this is not quite correct. When the SECOND syllable is accented, the first syllable has the LEAST accent; if a LATER syllable has the primary accent the first syllable may still have a SECONDARY accent, and the 'rule' just described does not apply. Examples: 'hospitality' 'hippopotamus']

In fact, in expressions like "an historic..." many find that the inclusion of the /n/ can actually make the words easier to pronounce (though in that case the /h/ is usually only VERY slightly pronounced).

Other examples where "an" may be found (all of which have an accent on the second syllable): "an hereditary title" [vs. "a HERitage], "an habitual liar" [vs. "a HA-bit"], cf. "an hysterical child"

Now if you were to try some of these expressions in a search engine you would likely find that "an historic" and "an historical" are much more common (in proportion to "a historic" "a historical") than these other examples. That leads to the FINAL(?) factor that affects pronunciation.

4) HABIT! That is, we're USED to hearing it that way, and so it just seems right, even if it does not follow the "rules" we may generally us for such cases.

Thus, the reason 'historic' and 'historical' are far more likely to be preceded by "an" than other words that might "qualify" is that they are more COMMON words or expressions. People are used to hearing them this way. This is hardly unusual. In any language the LESS common a word is in everyday speech the MORE likely it is speakers apply the "general rules" to that word. Thus, irregular verbs in a language [forms of to be, come, go, sit, etc.] are COMMON words.

Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonological_history_of_English_consonants#H-adding
http://www.bartleby.com/185/12.html#note62
http://www.antimoon.com/forum/posts/7245.htm
http://www.theslot.com/a-an.html

Answer 2

In formal English, the correct grammar is "an historical event". However, colloquical usage would be "a historical event" and would be accepted by the majority of listeners.

Colour me nerdy as well ... to me, an historical event sounds right. But "an history book"? That sounds incorrect to me. Don't ask me why though.

Answer 3

Though "a" is supposed to precede a word that starts with a consonant while "an" is supposed to precede a word that starts with a vowel, an exception to this rule is that a lot of consideration is given to the pronunciation of the word....there are some words that start with silent consonants that when pronounced gives the sound like it starts with a vowel examples are:
Hour...pronounced as "er"
MTN...pronounced as "em tee en"
These words cannot be preceded with "a" (a MTN line, a hour). So "an" is the right article to use.
The same thing goes for "Historical" because the "h" in historical is silent and the pronunciation produces something like "istoreekal".
From these, I think the right article for Historical is "AN"

Long or short "a" is basically for emphasis.

Answer 4

You use an before an open vowel like "an orator." An is also used before a word starting with "h" because it is not recognized as a hard letter. Most "h"'s preceed vowels. So it is "an historical event." I'm with you as a grammer nazi. This totally ruined a movie for me where the president in the film didn't use proper grammer when warning the world of impending alien attack. Strange, I know, but it came late in the movie.

Answer 5

Oh goodness you are not nerdy. Asking questions is a real good way to learn things. The answer to your question is "a historical event". I am an English and Grammar person. You can trust what my responses are. Feel free to ask me anything else you need or want to know. Take care

Answer 6

You only put "an" before words that begin in vowel sounds. If you pronounce the 'h' in historic, it's 'a'. If you're some weirdo who doesn't, it's 'an'. And it's short a. The long a that people use is just for emphasis and makes you sound pompous if overused.

Answer 7

an is used before a word starting with a vowel, or in case the pronounciation is like one eg an hour, hour is pronounced more like our and not the h sound.
it will be a historical event

Answer 8

'davidcar' is the man. It's properly presented as 'an historical ......'

PLEASE, young people, STOP using the word 'nazi' in any context. You have no idea how offensive it is! Even though it's a short form for the political party Adolph Hitler created, it represents absolute 'evil' in a world you know little or nothing about, yet should be taught about. Have a little respect - please.

Answer 9

an is always used before a vowel. an apple, an orange a grape a lime a historical event an event.

Answer 10

it should be an historical event
it is a little confusing, but just go by what your guts say, and what looks right, not to mention what sounds right.