letteral

Definition

Referring to a type of musical notation used by Shakers, based on letters instead of notes.

Etymology

From letter + -al. The Lojban sense was coined by James Cooke Brown by analogy with numeral.

Example Sentences

• "[A certain effect is achieved] by a letter, by “old man R”, as the master agent is alone named[…]Thus, when Hitchcock repeats certain names and syllabic or even letteral patterns across his films, they appear to link up in active networks[…]Such repetitions isolate specific signifiers—individual letters or letteral clusters, sounds[…], visual “puns”, and citations—which may operate like monadic and nomadic switchboards whose proliferation continues to alter the afterlife not only of the film texts themselves[…]but the literary or cultural mnemonics that they have become embedded in."