200-year-old love poem uses text-speak

A startling sheet of ornate love poetry written by a Welsh emigrant more than 200 years ago has been uncovered at an American museum reports ICWales.

"The parchment, covered in fine calligraphic script and detailing Hugh Pugh's doomed love for Mary Fisher, hung on a family's wall for generations.

It offers a unique insight into the rites of courtship in the American colonies and tells a moving story about a young schoolteacher's love and the 20-year-old woman who ultimately spurned him.

And while academics today bemoan the damaging effect that email and text messaging is having on teenagers' communication skills, it seems that there were similar trends back in 1801. Instead of writing out some words in full, Pugh has replaced them with abbreviations like "CU" in a startling precursor to today's teen text-speak.

"It's quite unique," said Ingrid Bogel, the centre's executive director. "It's different from anything I've seen."

emily | 7:30 AM | Do you speak SMS? |
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