| Open front rounded vowel | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ɶ | |||
| IPA Number | 312 | ||
| Audio sample | |||
| Encoding | |||
| Entity (decimal) | ɶ | ||
| Unicode (hex) | U+0276 | ||
| X-SAMPA | & | ||
| Braille |
 | ||
| |||
| IPA: Vowels | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Legend: unrounded • rounded |
The (near) open front rounded vowel, or (near) low front rounded vowel,
[1] is a type of
vowel sound that has not been confirmed to be
phonemic in any
spoken
language.[
citation needed] The symbol in the
International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is ⟨ɶ⟩, and the equivalent
X-SAMPA symbol is &. The letter ⟨ɶ⟩ is a
small caps rendition of ⟨
Œ⟩. ⟨œ⟩, the lowercase version of the ligature, is used for the
open-mid front rounded vowel.
While the IPA chart lists it as a fully open vowel, the rounded equivalent of [a], Ladefoged [2] characterizes it as near-open, the rounded equivalent of [æ].
A phoneme generally transcribed by this symbol is reported from the Bavarian dialect of Amstetten. However, it is phonetically open-mid, [ œ]. [3]
It occurs allophonically in Weert Limburgish [4] as well as in some speakers of Danish [5] and Swedish. [6] Certain transcriptions of Danish use ⟨ɶ⟩ to denote an open-mid front rounded vowel [ œ]. [5]
In Maastrichtian Limburgish, the vowel transcribed with ⟨ɶː⟩ in the Mestreechter Taol dictionary is phonetically near-open central [ ɐ̹ː]. It is a phonological open-mid front rounded vowel, the long counterpart of /œ/. [7]
Riad (2014) reports that [ɶː] in Stockholm Swedish is sometimes difficult to distinguish from [ ɒː], which is the main realization of the /ɑː/ phoneme, a sign that both vowels are phonetically very close. [6]
Features
- Its vowel height is open, also known as low, which means the tongue is positioned far from the roof of the mouth – that is, low in the mouth.
- Its vowel backness is front, which means the tongue is positioned forward in the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant. Rounded front vowels are often centralized, which means that often they are in fact near-front.
- It is rounded, which means that the lips are rounded rather than spread or relaxed.
Occurrence
| Language | Word | IPA | Meaning | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Danish | Some speakers [5] | grøn | [ˈkʁɶ̝nˀ] | 'green' | Near-open; [8] allophone of /ø/ between /ʁ/ and /v/ as well as an allophone of /œ/ between /ʁ/ and a nasal. [9] Other speakers pronounce it the same as [ œ]. [5] See Danish phonology |
| Limburgish | Weert dialect [4] | bui | [bɶj] | 'shower' | Allophone of /œ/ before /j/. [4] See Weert dialect phonology |
| Swedish | Stockholm [6] | öra | [ˈɶ̂ːra̠] | 'ear' | Pre-/r/ allophone of /øː/ (sometimes also /œ/) for younger speakers. [6] Open-mid [ œː, œ for other speakers. [6] See Swedish phonology |
See also
Notes
- ^ While the International Phonetic Association prefers the terms "close" and "open" for vowel height, many linguists use "high" and "low".
- ^ Ladefoged, Peter; Maddieson, Ian (1996). The Sounds of the World's Languages. Oxford: Blackwell. p. 290. ISBN 0-631-19815-6.
- ^ Traunmüller (1982), cited in Ladefoged & Maddieson (1996:290)
- ^ a b c Heijmans & Gussenhoven (1998:110)
- ^ a b c d Basbøll (2005:46)
- ^ a b c d e Riad (2014:38)
- ^ Gussenhoven & Aarts (1999:159, 161–162, 164)
- ^ Grønnum (1998:100)
- ^ Grønnum (2005:288)
References
- Basbøll, Hans (2005), The Phonology of Danish, Taylor & Francis, ISBN 0-203-97876-5
- Grønnum, Nina (1998), "Danish", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 28 (1–2): 99–105, doi: 10.1017/S0025100300006290, S2CID 249412109
- Grønnum, Nina (2005), Fonetik og fonologi, Almen og Dansk (3rd ed.), Copenhagen: Akademisk Forlag, ISBN 87-500-3865-6
- Gussenhoven, Carlos; Aarts, Flor (1999), "The dialect of Maastricht" (PDF), Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 29 (2), University of Nijmegen, Centre for Language Studies: 155–166, doi: 10.1017/S0025100300006526, S2CID 145782045
- Heijmans, Linda; Gussenhoven, Carlos (1998), "The Dutch dialect of Weert" (PDF), Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 28 (1–2): 107–112, doi: 10.1017/S0025100300006307, S2CID 145635698
- Ladefoged, Peter; Maddieson, Ian (1996). The Sounds of the World's Languages. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-19815-6.
- Riad, Tomas (2014), The Phonology of Swedish, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-954357-1
- Traunmüller, Hartmut (1982), "Vokalismus in der westniederösterreichischen Mundart.", Zeitschrift für Dialektologie und Linguistik, 2: 289–333