orthographytry

Orthographytry is a proposed approach in linguistics and language planning that involves the systematic testing of alternative spellings or writing conventions within a language to evaluate effects on legibility, learnability, and standardization. It emphasizes controlled experimentation and community feedback before any formal policy change is adopted.

The term is a neologism not widely codified in scholarly literature. It combines orthography, the conventional spelling system of a language, with try, implying a staged, experimental process. In practice, discussions of orthographytry describe pilot projects, drafts, and short-term trials rather than immediate reforms.

A typical orthographytry process includes designing several variant spellings, selecting a representative population, running small-scale pilots (e.g., school materials, digital keyboards), collecting quantitative and qualitative data on readability, error rates, and user attitudes, and comparing results. Findings are often published for review to inform broader policy decisions.

Applications include language education, digital typography, software localization, and the maintenance of minority or endangered languages where orthographic stability is balanced against modernization. Challenges include stakeholder buy-in, dialectal variation, resource demands, potential fragmentation of the writing system, and the difficulty of measuring long-term effects.

Orthographytry intersects with orthography reform and language policy. It advocates evidence-based change while acknowledging cultural and practical considerations, aiming to minimize disruption and maximize accessibility. See also orthography reform, language policy.