The Centrewardness of Q

A small matter that has escaped my eye among the statistics but that has emerged in my recent study of lines of text is the tendency of [q] words to be towards the centre of lines, or at least away from the start and end of lines. 

Here is some text from f21r with the glyph [q] presented in red:

   

pchor.oeeockhy.ofychey.ypchey.qopcheody.otaiin.chan-

saiin.chcphy.oky.sheaiin.qotchol.oteos.sheey.cthy.daiin-

qotol.shy.ol.cheor.chy.qokchey.chey.keey.dy=

pchofychy.daiin.cthain.otolosheey. qocthey.tolchory-

ykeey.daiin.chosy. qokoiin.otol.chol. qotcheol.okeoaiin-

dchor.y.kolyky.chol.kol. qokeol.cholol. qoteeol.dady-

shoeor.cheor.chokeody.cho.cthor.shy=

fchokshy.otor.cheol.ocphal.opcheas.cthodaiin.oty-

okaiin.sho.tshaiin.chkaiin.shcthey.cthody.cthy.s-

totchy.keor.chy.ky. qotaiin. qotchol.ty.ctheey.otaiin-

shol.chol.shol.tchol.chcthy.otyky.shey.yteol.shody-

ykeea.chor.sheey.ysheol.chor.chol.daiin.chkaiin=

When we scan through the online search programs we find plenty of pages that demonstrate the same phenomenon; the glyph [q] and [q] words tend to be in the centre - rather than at the start or ends - of lines. 

Examples:

Turning to the numbers, it is easily confirmed that [q] is shy of line starts and line ends. It is, in fact, the glyph least likely to start a line, with only about 550 cases. But nor do they congregate at the end of lines. 

The habits of [q] in lines - considered also in different parts of the text, since the text is not homogenous - requires suitable statistics. 

On the face of it, there is a centrewardness of [q] and [q] words, if centreward means the same as averse to line-start and line-end. They tend to appear towards the middle of lines, which is to say away from the starts and ends of lines.

* * *

I am alerted to this because my current method is to consider lines in relation to their midpoint. As an observation, [q] words tend towards the centre of lines. 

But this is also to say that [q] words are LONGER than other words, and short words tend towards the start and especially the end of lines. 

I am curious about line patterns. An observable tendency in some lines I sample is to find short words and particles at line-start and line-end with longer words towards the centre. There are many [q] words among the longer words.

A further observation - but far from confirmed - the nearer [q] words are to the paradigm [qokeedy] the nearer it is towards the midline. Some examples:

Whether this is true in the whole text, or in parts, it is nonetheless observable in these and other cases. 

R.B.