Page 223 - DENG504_LINGUISTICS

Unit 16: Varieties of English Cardinal Vowel System

Back Vowels VOWELS Notes

u High back rounded Front Central Back
‚ High back unrounded Close i y i u m u
I Y 
• Lowered high back rounded Close-mid e r b › p o
c
o Higher high back rounded i
Open-mid ε œ ε v c
p Higher mid back unrounded Õ X
Open a Œ a α
] Lower mid back rounded + α
Λ Lower mid back unrounded Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to
α Low back unrounded the right represents a rounded vowel.
Z Low back rounded

u High back rounded - French sou [su] “penny”
t‚
‚ High back unrounded - Vietnamese [ ] “fourth”
• Lowered high back rounded - English push
o Higher high back rounded - French eau [o] “water”
p Higher mid back unrounded - Vietnamese [t p ] “fourth”
t]
] Lower mid back rounded - Vietnamese [] “large”
tΛ
Λ Lower mid back unrounded - Vietnamese [ ] “fourth”
Y
α Low back unrounded - British English barred [bd ]
Z
Z Low back rounded - British English cot[ct ]
Although the labels for vowel characteristics seem to refer to articulatory positions, it is mostly auditory
impression which underlies the description. Since auditory impressions are based on acoustic
characteristics, a description of the acoustic properties of vowels is not only interesting in itself but
also explains much in the judgments of degrees of similarity or difference between one vowel and
another. Practice producing slowly changing articulatory position from one ‘known’ vowel to another,
noting the quality of the intermediate sounds produced.
Vowel Nasalization

• Vowels are most often oral but may be nasalized.
• Nasalization commonly occurs in vowels next to nasal consonants, but can be a contrastive
property in vowel systems, e.g. in French, Hindi, Navajo (transcription is a tilde over the vowel
symbol a % , o % , ε % etc.).
French nasalized vowels

% α % sα sans ‘without’

% ] % ] s son ‘his, hers’ (m sg.)
ε % sε % saint ‘saint’
b ε % “ brun ‘brown’

Voiceless vowels
• Vowels are most often modally voiced, but also occur with other laryngeal settings (voiceless,
breathy voiced, glottalized or creaky voice).

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