Interestingly enough, the t in often was only silent for a relatively short period of time. Up until the late 15th century it was pronounced and it began to move back into the language in the early 20th century.
Interesting. I have issues with language changes. Smacks of Orwell’s 1984. I hate that they purge words from the dictionary periodically with new editions. I probably need to learn to be more flexible :)