Mid Back Unrounded Vowel Information
The mid back unrounded vowel is a type of vowel sound, used in some spoken languages. While there is no dedicated symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents the "exact" mid back unrounded vowel between close-mid [ɤ] and open-mid [ʌ] (since no language is known to distinguish all three), ‹ɤ› or ‹ʌ› may be used. If precision is desired, diacritics can be used (i.e. [ɤ̞] or [ʌ̝]).
Features
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- Its vowel height is mid, which means the tongue is positioned halfway between a close-mid vowel and an open-mid vowel.
- Its vowel backness is back, which means the tongue is positioned as far back as possible in the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant.
- Its vowel roundedness is unrounded, which means that the lips are not rounded.
Occurrence
| Language | Word | IPA | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgarian[1] | път | [pɤ̞t] | 'path' | Somewhat fronted |
| Estonian[2] | kõrv | [kɤ̞rv] | 'ear' |
Notes
- Ternes, Elmer; Vladimirova-Buhtz, Tatjana (1999), "Bulgarian", Handbook of the International Phonetic Association, Cambridge University Press, pp. 55–57, ISBN 0-521-63751-1
- Asu, Eva Liina; Teras, Pire (2009), "Estonian", Journal of the International Phonetic Association 39 (3): 367–372
Categories: Vowels
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