[Mesorah] Ngayin

[kennethgmiller at juno.com]

R' Lipman Phillip Minden wrote:
> The other day I heard the idea that the ng pronunciation
> of Ayin might be the one the massoretes had in mind.

My understanding has been that the massoretes merely tried to record 
sounds in a consistent manner, in writing, so that (for example) one 
could easily be sure which words have a kamatz and which have a 
patach, or which have a esnachta and which have a sof pasuk.

I am troubled by RLPM's use of the phrase "had in mind". He seems to 
suggest that the massoretes were attempting to change pronunciation 
towards a particular direction. Am I mistaken? Did they try to change 
the way the ayin was pronounced?

If I am indeed wrong on this, then I would love to see some sort of 
very basic introduction to this subject. Preferably in English. "The 
Mesorah for Dummies", perhaps. Anyone wanna write it?

Akiva Miller