Interesting question that I'm now hooked on too! Below is from the link:

You should use “an” before a word beginning with an “H” only if the “H” is not pronounced: “an honest effort”; it’s properly “a historic event” though many sophisticated speakers somehow prefer the sound of “an historic,” so that version is not likely to get you into any real trouble.



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Note added at 8 mins (2005-07-25 07:30:17 GMT)
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http://www.betterwritingskills.com/tip-w005.html

You probably know the grammar rule that says you use an before vowel sounds (e.g. an accident, an item, an hour) and a otherwise; e.g. a book, a report, a hotel.

Following this rule, we would say \"a historic\", not \"an historic\".

Words of three or more syllables that start with h are treated differently by some speakers, though. For example, which of these pairs of sentences sounds correct to you?

It is a historic occasion.
It is an historic occasion.


We can\'t agree on a hypothesis.
We can\'t agree on an hypothesis.
A quick bit of Googling reveals that the phrase \"a historic\" is used on 1.43 million pages (68%), and \"an historic\" on 675,000 pages (32%).

Which form you use seems to be little more than a personal preference. Both usages are sufficiently common to be considered correct in modern English.



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Note added at 8 mins (2005-07-25 07:30:25 GMT)
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http://www.betterwritingskills.com/tip-w005.html

You probably know the grammar rule that says you use an before vowel sounds (e.g. an accident, an item, an hour) and a otherwise; e.g. a book, a report, a hotel.

Following this rule, we would say \"a historic\", not \"an historic\".

Words of three or more syllables that start with h are treated differently by some speakers, though. For example, which of these pairs of sentences sounds correct to you?

It is a historic occasion.
It is an historic occasion.


We can\'t agree on a hypothesis.
We can\'t agree on an hypothesis.
A quick bit of Googling reveals that the phrase \"a historic\" is used on 1.43 million pages (68%), and \"an historic\" on 675,000 pages (32%).

Which form you use seems to be little more than a personal preference. Both usages are sufficiently common to be considered correct in modern English.

Hi Ian, you said you've been googling this, so you may have already come across this link, but I found it one of the most interesting I've read on this debate (and there is a surprising amount of stuff on the Net written about this, isn't there?!). And it seems that everyone comes down to the same answer, that grammatically speaking "a historic" is correct, but that more and more speakers prefer the sound of "an historic". Language is evolving and so this will no doubt eventually be grammatically correct as well - an accepted exception to the rule :-)

http://www.sharbean.ca/main/template.php?EntryID=719

I'm a bit of a word snob; and, a fanatic about proper grammar. So, when Chris approached me about me writing "a historic" instead of "an historic" in the Mission to Mars post and claimed I was using bad grammar, I had to prove that French / English grammar guy wrong.

As it turns out - after a bit of research I discovered that we were both right...sort of. This is one of those language anomalies that we English speakers hear so much about but never really identify because we speak the language.

My thinking was that you placed 'n' between two vowels as in 'an apple'; but, because 'h' isn't a vowel, there is no need for the 'n' in 'a historic'.

But, this is not entirely correct.

It appears that what you use is dependent on the word and the consistency of the 'h'. With a strong 'h' like you see in 'hotel' it would be 'a hotel'; but, with a soft 'h' like in 'herb' you would use 'an herb'.

This is the direct result of a mixing of British English, where the 'h' is seldom pronounced, and the evolution of American English where the is no such thing as a soft 'h'. Though in talking to a few Brits about the 'h' their preference is to also move away from using 'an' in front of the 'h'.

Of course the argument doesn't stop here, because if you give people something to discuss they will discuss it.

Spencer Howson from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) asked his listeners which they preferred to use - 'an historic' or 'a historic'. The result: 62.5% preferred 'an historic' while 37.5% preferred 'a historic'.

Whether you believe the Aussies on this is up to you - but Spencer took this matter one step further and spoke with the linguistic professor Roly Sussex. Roly says which version you use is dependent on where the word is stressed. For example the word 'history' would use 'a' and the word 'historic' could go either way depending on the speaker's preference. The current trend is leaning towards using 'a'.

Well, all this confuses me more than it helps. I'll stick to the 'vowel rule' in this case.

© 1992 - 2005 sharbean.ca. All Rights Reserved

But I'll stick with "an" even when the H isn't aspirated. It's more a matter of continuity of form.
An Hilarious Half Hour
An History
An historic

Poor pronunciation is probably at the base of the use of "A" in UK English, but it shouldn't stop the rule from being applied. In my book(s) "A" would simply be wrong.

What appears to be missing in Kurt Porter and Mara Bertelsen's response is the way in which the article "a" is pronounced when it appears before the word historic. Rather than being pronounced as the u- and a-sounds in cut, what, but, the article is pronounced like the stressed vowels in the phrase "stay away". This same approach to understanding the problem can explain why the word herb is often preceded by the article "an" rather than its "a" counterpart. In effect, the rule of when to write which article is not, and could never be orthographically based; rather, it is how one pronounces the noun that follows that is determinant.

I never pronounce the h-sound in the word herb and always write the article "an" before it. In contrast, I always pronounce the h-sound in historic and write the article "a" before it.

Consider the word university by way of further example. Like the h-sound in historic, the u-sound in university is a semi-vowel that is half consonant and half vowel. I never write the orthographically determined phrase "an university"; rather, I write "a university" and pronounce the a-sound as in the two stressed vowels in the phrase "stay away".

Surely, I hope my explanation has removed Mara's confusion. In the end I find it difficult to find agreement with Kurt. Of course, some people may prefer the phrase "an historic" over "a historic", because the latter could be easily confused with the word "ahistoric", and this may have been your point all along.

No politics is the politics of the status quo.

Of course, the problem does not end here, because I pronounce the articles in the phrases "a hole in the wall" and "the whole thing" with the unstressed, mid-vowel found in the words cut, what, but, rather than with the stressed a- and e-sounds found in the words may and see. I suspect this has to do with the fact that the o-sound in hole and whole is that of a high-back vowel. Once again, pronunciation takes a back seat to orthography.

With this I hope that I have left no holes in the whole of it.

English term (edited): 'a' or 'an' historic

I just wanted to add that back in the 50s and still 60s, people who considered themselves 'educated' speakers in the UK would say 'an historic' and even sometimes 'an hotel' (and I've even known a few say 'an unique...'). Nowadays, it sounds like a slightly quaint middle-class pretension, though I have to say that i still prefer it.

There is clearly a AE / BE difference here, as no-one I know in the UK would dream of saying 'an herb garden'

I see the following as being fiarly clear-cut in everyday oral usage [UK English]

a house
a history book
a herb garden
a holiday
a hypothesis
a humorous anecdote
a hopeless case
a university

an hour
an hilarious moment
an uneventful week

but I see the following as being much more debatable

an historic
an hotel

I think there is a trend to move towards what follows logical orthographic 'rules', and to be less based on 'what it sounds like when you pronounce it'. Look at the way French prefers euphony over logic. My parents always used to say (referring to many words) "If you pronounce it correctly, it will help you remember the correct spelling"




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Note added at 4 hrs 42 mins (2005-07-25 12:04:24 GMT)
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I should have said \"By contrast, look at the way French...\"

The endless debates to establish "rules" to ensnare the elusive and self inventing thing called the English language falters yet again.

Have a look and Dusty's answer:

"an hour" is normal and common, therefore it's correct. Just try saying "a hour"- ridiculous.

Now tr<y saying "an hilarious"- just as ridiculous.

Modern doesn't even come into it- it's what feels right IMVHO.