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pourquoy

Pourquoy is an archaic French interrogative adverb meaning “why” or “for what reason.” In modern French the standard spelling is “pourquoi.” The form “pourquoy” was common in Early Modern French and appears in late medieval and Renaissance texts, as well as in religious and legal writings. The spelling reflects historical orthographic variation, with forms including pourquoï and pourquoy attested in older manuscripts. The suffix '-oy' corresponds to the modern suffix in '-oi,' and the final y often functioned as a vowel in historical usage.

Over the 17th and 18th centuries, French orthography shifted toward the modern form “pourquoi,” and “pourquoy”

In summary, pourquoy is the historical counterpart of pourquoi, retained in a minority of texts for antiquarian

came
to
be
regarded
as
archaic.
In
contemporary
writing,
the
form
mostly
survives
in
quotations
of
historical
texts,
scholarly
editions,
or
as
a
stylistic
device
intended
to
evoke
the
tone
of
an
earlier
period.
It
is
generally
not
used
in
everyday
French.
or
stylistic
purposes.
See
also
pourquoi,
as
well
as
discussions
of
archaic
French
spellings
and
orthographic
variation
in
historical
sources.