Emmeransſtraße
This street sign contains three different forms for the ess sound. In German blackletter spelling, ‘ſ’ (or ‘long s’) is the default. It is used in initial and medial positions.
The ‘s’ (or ‘round s’) is used for final sounds only. The street’s name is a compound – Emmerans·straße [Emmeran’s Street]: the ‘s’ is the last letter in ‘Emmerans-’.
The third form is the ‘ß’ (eszett). It is used for the unvoiced ess in final position, and also in medial position when following a long vowel – as it is the case here. In this Gotisch, the eszett clearly is conceived as a ligature of ‘ſ’ and ‘s’ (and not ‘ſ’ and descending ‘z’), with a – weird – plain horizontal bar as connector.
Emmeransſtraße
This street sign contains three different forms for the ess sound. In German blackletter spelling, ‘ſ’ (or ‘long s’) is the default. It is used in initial and medial positions.
The ‘s’ (or ‘round s’) is used for final sounds only. The street’s name is a compound – Emmerans·straße [Emmeran’s Street]: the ‘s’ is the last letter in ‘Emmerans-’.
The third form is the ‘ß’ (eszett). It is used for the unvoiced ess in final position, and also in medial position when following a long vowel – as it is the case here. In this Gotisch, the eszett clearly is conceived as a ligature of ‘ſ’ and ‘s’ (and not ‘ſ’ and descending ‘z’), with a – weird – plain horizontal bar as connector.