F is very rare (cf. § 59). The few examples appear to show that f
(presumably in the 6th century or earlier) became β, and then developed
like any other β (see β): _Stĕphănum_ ＞ Estęve, _co(n)fortāre_? ＞
✱coβortar ＞ ✱coortar ＞ conortar (through the common use of the double
forms, _con-_, _co-_), _gryphum_ ＞ griu, _raphănum_ ＞ rave rafe,
✱_refusāre_ ＞ rehusar refusar, ✱_prefŭndum_ (= _pro-_) ＞ preọn.
Nevertheless, cofịn ＜ _cŏphĭnum_, defǫrs ＜ _de fŏris_, grifọ, profięg
＜ _profĕctum_, rafe, would seem to indicate that in some words,
possibly less popular at the outset, f was retained.
1. In purely learned words, f was kept: _antifona_, _Caifas_,
_philozophia_.
G, representing original c and g, had a varied development.[48] For the
fall of g in some words in Vulgar Latin, see § 55, G.
(1) Before a, g remained in the greater part of the territory, but in
the north and east it early became y; and this y was generally retained
in the eastern dialects (often fusing with a preceding i), while in
most of the northern it developed into dž (cf. Y): _amīca_ ＞ amiga
amiia amia, _dīcam_ ＞ diga dia, _mīca_ ＞ miga miia mia,[49] _pacāre_ ＞
pagar paiar, _precāre_ ＞ pregar preiar; _castigāre_ ＞ castigar castiar,
_legālem_ ＞ leial leyal lial, _ligāmen_ ＞ liam, _lĭgātum_ ＞ legat liat,
_plaga_ ＞ plaga plaia, _regālem_ ＞ reial, _rūga_ ＞ rüa.[50]
(2) Before o and u (ü), g was preserved, except in a few words which
(doubtless in Vulgar Latin times) lost it either in all or in many
dialects: _acūtum_ ＞ agüt, _secŭndum_ ＞ segọn, _secūrus_ ＞ segürs;
✱_a(u)gūrium_ ＞ agür aür, _a(u)gŭstum_ ＞ agọst[51] ahọst, proclitic
_ĕgo_ ＞ ęu, ✱_fagŏttum_ ＞ fagǫt, _figūra_ ＞ figüra, _Hugōnem_ ＞ Ugọ.
For a g that becomes final or contiguous to final s, see § 63, (6):
_amīcus_ ＞ amics amis, _Auriācum_ ＞ Auriac, _cŏcum_ (= _cŏquum_) ＞ cǫc,
_jŏcus_ ＞ iǫcs, _Ludovīcum_ ＞ Lozoic Lozoi, _prĕco_ ＞ pręc; _castīgo_ ＞
chastic chasti.
(3) Between the last two vowels of a proparoxytone, g, early in the
Provençal period, became y, which developed into dž before the literary
epoch; cf. § 49, (4): _clĕrĭcum_ ＞ clęrge, ✱_coratĭcum_ ＞ coratge,
_domĭnĭcum_ ＞ dimẹnge, _manĭca_ ＞ mania, _mĕdĭcum_ ＞ męge, _mŏnăchum_
＞ monge, ✱_paratĭcum_ ＞ paratge, _viatĭcum_ ＞ viatie. In some dialects,
however, the vowel of the penult, after liquids and nasals, fell too
early for the g to become y: clęrgue,[52] esta(t)ga, mętgue, mongue.
1. _Amiu_, _chastiu_ belong to the dialect of Forez; so perhaps
_fau_ ＜ _fagum_, _preu_ ＜ _prĕco_. These forms indicate a very
early fall of the g in the dialect to which they belong. Cf. §
51, 3.
2. In purely learned words, Latin g remains unchanged:
_paganōrum_ ＞ _paganor_.
G´ became y during the Vulgar Latin period (§ 55, G). See Y.
1. In purely learned words the letter _g_ was retained, but it
was doubtless pronounced dž: _astrologia_.
L remained: _colōrem_ ＞ colọr, _male_ ＞ mal, ✱_volēre_ (= _velle_) ＞
volẹr. Before final s, l became u in most dialects, in some as early
as the 10th century: _malos_ ＞ maus, _talis_ ＞ taus; _l_ was written,
however, long after l had been vocalized. Under the influence of forms
in which -ls ＞ -us, final l became u in the southwest and in some
other regions: _Aprīlem_ ＞ abriu. Cf. § 74, (2). Au ＜ -al is common in
William of Poitiers.