View source for Pronunciation of English ⟨a⟩

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{{Use American English|date=January 2019}}
{{English phonology topics}}
{{IPA notice}}
There are a variety of [[English phonology|pronunciations in Modern English]] and in historical forms of the language for words spelled with the [[A|letter {{vr|a}}]]. Most of these go back to the [[low vowel]] (the "short A") of earlier [[Middle English]], which later developed both long and short forms. The sound of the long vowel was altered in the [[Great Vowel Shift]], but later a new long A (or "broad A") developed which was not subject to the shift. These processes have produced the main four pronunciations of {{vr|a}} in present-day English: those found in the words ''trap'', ''face'', ''father'' and ''square'' (with the phonetic output depending on whether the dialect is [[Rhoticity in English|rhotic]] or not, and, in rhotic dialects, whether or not the [[Mary–merry merger]] occurs). Separate developments have produced additional pronunciations in words like ''wash'', ''talk'' and ''comma''.

==Overview==
{{unreferenced section|date=January 2017}}
Late [[Middle English phonology|Middle English]] had two [[phoneme]]s {{IPA|/a/}} and {{IPA|/aː/}}, differing only in [[Vowel length|length]]. The {{IPA|/a/}} ("short A") was found in words such as ''cat'' {{IPA|[kat]}} and ''trap'' {{IPA|[trap]}}, and also before {{IPA|/r/}} in words such as ''start'' {{IPA|[start]}}. The {{IPA|/aː/}} ("long A") was found in words such as ''face'' {{IPA|[faːs]}}, and before {{IPA|/r/}} in words such as ''scare'' {{IPA|[skaːr]}}. This long A was generally a result of Middle English [[open syllable lengthening]]. For a summary of the various developments in Old and Middle English that led to these vowels, see [[English historical vowel correspondences]].

As a result of the [[Great Vowel Shift]], the long {{IPA|[aː]}} of ''face'' was [[raising (phonetics)|raised]], initially to {{IPA|[æː]}} and later to {{IPA|[ɛː]}}. After 1700 it was raised even further, and then [[Diphthongization|diphthongized]], leading to the modern standard pronunciation {{IPA|/eɪ/}}. Additionally, the short {{IPA|[a]}} of ''trap'' was [[fronting (phonetics)|fronted]] to {{IPA|[æ]}}; this change became accepted in standard speech during the 17th century. Today there is much regional variation in the realization of this vowel; in [[Received Pronunciation|RP]] there has been a recent trend for it to be lowered again to a fully open {{IPA|[a]}}.

These trends, allowed to operate unrestrictedly, would have left standard English without any vowels in the {{IPA|[a]}} or {{IPA|[aː]}} area by the late 17th century. However, this putative gap was filled by the following special developments:
* In two environments, Middle English {{IPA|[a]}} developed to {{IPA|[aː]}} rather than {{IPA|[æ]}}
** Before non-prevocalic {{IPA|/r/}} (e.g. in ''start'', ''star''; but not in ''carry''), {{IPA|[a]}} developed to {{IPA|[aː]}} in all words
** Before some fricatives, broadening happened inconsistently and sporadically
* Words that had Middle English {{IPA|[au]}} had a regular development to {{IPA|[ɒː]}} (for example, ''paw''). However, before a nasal, such words sometimes instead developed to {{IPA|[aː]}} (e.g. ''palm'').

The {{IPA|[aː]}} of the late 17th century has generally backed to {{IPA|[ɑː]}} in several varieties of contemporary English, for example in Received Pronunciation.

The following table shows some developments of Middle English {{IPA|/a/}} in Received Pronunciation. The word ''gate'', which derived from Middle English {{IPA|/aː/}}, has also been included for comparison.

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan=2 |
! ''gate''
! ''cast''
! ''cart''
! ''cat''
! ''glad''
|-
! colspan=2 | Middle English
| {{IPA|[ɡaːt]}}
| rowspan=6 valign=top|{{IPA|[kast]}}
| rowspan=5 valign=top|{{IPA|[kart]}}
| rowspan=7 valign=top|{{IPA|[kat]}}
| rowspan=7 valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡlad]}}
|-
! rowspan=4|[[Great Vowel Shift]]
! valign=top|Phase 1
| valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡæːt]}}
|-
! valign=top|Phase 2
| valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡɛːt]}}
|-
! valign=top|Phase 3
| valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡeːt]}}
|-
! valign=top|Phase 4
| rowspan=8 valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡeɪt]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | Lengthening before {{IPA|/r/}}
| rowspan=3 valign=3|{{IPA|[kaːrt]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | Lengthening before {{IPA|/f,θ,s/}}
| rowspan=2 valign=top|{{IPA|[kaːst]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | Fronting of {{IPA|/a/}}
| rowspan=4 valign=top|{{IPA|[kæt]}}
| rowspan=3 valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡlæd]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | Backing of {{IPA|/aː/}}
| rowspan=4 valign=top|{{IPA|[kɑːst]}}
| {{IPA|[kɑːrt]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | {{IPA|/r/}}-dropping
| rowspan=3 valign=top|{{IPA|[kɑːt]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | [[#Bad–lad split|''bad–lad'' split]]<ref name="badlad">Only some speakers, mainly from London.</ref>
| {{IPA|[ɡlæːd]}}
|-
! colspan=2 | Lowering of {{IPA|/æ/}}<ref name="dejongetal"/><ref name="cepd18"/><ref name="wellswhatever"/>
| valign=top|{{IPA|[kat]}}
| valign=top|{{IPA|[ɡla(ː)d]}}
|}

The table below shows the results of these developments in some contemporary varieties of English:

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" | 
! [[Received Pronunciation|RP]]
! [[Northern England English|NE]]
! [[Scottish English|SCO]]
! [[Hiberno-English|IRL]]<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p3vDuPNG7nUC|title=Irish English: History and Present-Day Forms|last=Hickey|first=Raymond|date=2007-11-08|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9781139465847|language=en}}</ref>
! [[General American|GA]]
! [[AusE]]
! [[NZE]]
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | Lengthening before {{IPA|/r/}}
| ✔
| ✔
|
|variable
| ✔
| ✔
| ✔
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | Lengthening before {{IPA|/f,θ,s/}}
| ✔
|
|
|variable
|
| variable
| ✔
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | Fronting of {{IPA|/a/}}
| ✔
|
|
| ✔
| ✔
| ✔
| ✔
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | Backing of {{IPA|/aː/}}
| ✔
|
|
| 
| ✔
| partly
| partly
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | ''R''-dropping
| ✔
| ✔
|
|
|
| ✔
| ✔
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | [[bad–lad split|''bad–lad'' split]]
| ✔<ref name="badlad"/>
|
|
|
|✔
|✔
|
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" |[[/æ/ tensing|{{IPA|/æ/|cat=no}} tensing]]
|
|
|
|
|✔<ref name=Labov>Labov et al. (2006), p. 182.</ref>
|
|
|-align="center"
! colspan="2" | Lowering of {{IPA|/æ/}}<ref name="dejongetal"/><ref name="cepd18"/><ref name="wellswhatever"/>
| ✔
|
|
|variable
|
| ✔
|
|-
! rowspan="6" | Output for
! ''gate''
| {{IPA|[ɡɛɪt]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡeːt]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡet]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡeːθ̠]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡeɪt]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡæɪt]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡæɪt]}}
|-
! ''cast''
| {{IPA|[kɑːst]}}
| {{IPA|[kast]}}
| {{IPA|[kast]}}
| {{IPA|[kæs(ː)t~ka(ː)st]}}
| {{IPA|[kæst]}}*
| {{IPA|[kast]~[kɐːst]}}
| {{IPA|[kɐːst]}}
|-
! ''cart''
| {{IPA|[kɑːt]}}
| {{IPA|[kaːt]}}
| {{IPA|[kaɹt]}}
| {{IPA|[kæ(ː)ɻθ̠~kä(ː)ɻθ̠]}}
| {{IPA|[kɑːɹt]}}
| {{IPA|[kɐːt]}}
| {{IPA|[kɐːt]}}
|-
! ''cat''
| {{IPA|[kat]}}
| {{IPA|[kat]}}
| {{IPA|[kat]}}
| {{IPA|[kæθ̠~kaθ̠]}}
| {{IPA|[kæt]}}
| {{IPA|[kat]}}
| {{IPA|[kɛt]}}
|-
! ''glad''
| {{IPA|[ɡla(ː)d]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡlad]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡlad]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡlæd~ɡlad]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡlæd]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡlaːd]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡlɛd]}}
|-
! ''gas''
| {{IPA|[ɡas]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡas]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡas]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡæs~ɡas]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡæs]*}}
| {{IPA|[ɡas]}}
| {{IPA|[ɡɛs]}}
|}
<nowiki>*</nowiki> May undergo {{IPA|/æ/}}-tensing.

==Old and Middle English==
{{further|Phonological history of Old English|Middle English phonology}}

[[Old English phonology|Old English]] (OE) had an [[open back unrounded vowel|open back]] vowel {{IPA|/ɑ/}}, [[Old English orthography|written]] {{angbr|a}}, as well as a [[near-open front unrounded vowel|front]] vowel {{IPA|/æ/}}, written [[æ|{{angbr|æ}}]]. These had corresponding long vowels {{IPA|/ɑː/}} and {{IPA|/æː/}} but were not normally distinguished from the short vowels in spelling although modern editions of Old English texts often mark them as {{angbr|ā}} and {{angbr|ǣ}}. In the [[low vowel]] area, there was also a pair of short and long diphthongs, {{IPA|/æɑ/}} and {{IPA|/æːɑ/}}, written {{angbr|ea}} (the long one also {{angbr|ēa}} in modern editions).

In [[Middle English phonology|Middle English]] (ME), the short {{IPA|/ɑ/, /æ/ and /æɑ/}} became merged into a single vowel {{IPA|/a/}}, written {{angbr|a}}. In some cases (before certain pairs of consonants) the corresponding long vowels also developed into this short {{IPA|/a/}}. Mostly, however, OE {{IPA|/æː/}} and {{IPA|/æːɑ/}} were raised to become Middle English {{IPA|/ɛː/}} (the sound that often gives {{vr|ea}} in modern spelling), and OE {{IPA|/ɑː/}} was raised and rounded to become ME {{IPA|/ɔː/}} (often {{angbr|o}}, {{angbr|oa}} in modern spelling). For more details, see [[English historical vowel correspondences]].

During the Middle English period, like other short vowels, the {{IPA|/a/}} was [[open syllable lengthening|lengthened in open syllables]]. Later, with the gradual loss of unstressed endings, many such syllables ceased to be open, but the vowel remained long.

For example, the word ''name'' originally had two syllables, the first being open, so the {{IPA|/a/}} was lengthened; later, the final vowel was dropped, leaving a closed syllable with a long vowel. As a result, there were now two phonemes {{IPA|/a/}} and {{IPA|/aː/}}, both written {{angbr|a}}, the long one being often indicated by a [[silent e|silent {{angbr|e}}]] after the following consonant (or, in some cases, by a pronounced vowel after the following consonant, as in ''naked'' and ''bacon'').

==Further development of Middle English {{IPA|/aː/}}==
{{further|Great Vowel Shift|Phonological history of English diphthongs}}
As a result of the [[Great Vowel Shift]], the long {{IPA|/aː/}} that resulted from Middle English open syllable lengthening was [[raising (phonetics)|raised]], initially to {{IPA|[æː]}} and later to {{IPA|[ɛː]}}. {{IPA|[æː]}} "seems to have been the normal pronunciation in careful speech before 1650, and {{IPA|[ɛː]}} after 1650".<ref>Dobson, p. 594</ref> After 1700 it was raised even further, and then diphthongized, leading to the modern standard pronunciation {{IPA|/eɪ/}}, found in words like ''name'', ''face'', ''bacon''. However, some accents, in the north of England and in Scotland, for example, retain a monophthongal pronunciation of this vowel, while other accents have a variety of different diphthongs.

[[English-language vowel changes before historic /r/|Before (historic) /r/]], in words like ''square'', the vowel has become {{IPA|[ɛə]}} (often practically {{IPA|[ɛː]}}) in modern RP, and {{IPA|[ɛ]}} in General American.{{sfnp|Wells|1982|pp=141, 155}}

==Changes in realization of {{IPA|/a/}}==
Independently of the development of the long vowel, the short {{IPA|/a/}} came to be [[fronting (phonetics)|fronted]] and raised to {{IPAblink|æ}}. This change was mostly confined to "vulgar or popular" speech in the 16th century, but it gradually replaced the more conservative {{IPA|[a]}} in the 17th century, and was "generally accepted by careful speakers by about 1670".<ref>Dobson, p. 548</ref>

This vowel (that of ''trap'', ''cat'', ''man'', ''bad'', etc.) is now normally denoted as {{IPA|/æ/}}. In present-day RP, however, it has lowered to a fully front {{IPAblink|a}}.<ref name="dejongetal">{{Harvcoltxt|de Jong|McDougall|Hudson|Nolan|2007|pp=1814–1815}}</ref><ref name="cepd18">{{Harvcoltxt|Roach|2011|p=?}}</ref><ref name="wellswhatever">{{cite web|url=http://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/wells/rphappened.htm|title=Wells: Whatever happened to Received Pronunciation?|date=1997|access-date=10 February 2015}}</ref> Such a quality is also found in the accents of northern England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and the Caribbean. Raised pronunciations are also found in Southern Hemisphere English, and are also associated with [[Cockney]].{{sfnp|Wells|1982|p=129}} For the possibility of phonemic length differentiation, see [[#Bad–lad split|''bad–lad'' split]], below.

==Development of the new long A==
In Modern English, a new phoneme {{IPA|/ɑː/}} developed that did not exist in [[Middle English]]. The phoneme {{IPA|/ɑː/}} comes from three sources: the word ''father'' lengthening from {{IPA|/a/}} to {{IPA|/aː/}} for an unknown reason (thus splitting from ''gather'');{{sfnp|Wells|1982|p=206}} the [[compensatory lengthening]] of the short {{IPA|/a/}} in words like ''calm'', ''palm'', ''psalm'' when {{IPA|/l/}} was lost in this environment; and the lengthening of {{IPA|/a/}} before {{IPA|/r/}} in words like ''car'', ''card'', ''hard'', ''part'', etc. In most dialects that developed the [[#Trap–bath split|broad A]] class, words containing it joined this new phoneme {{IPA|/ɑː/}} as well. The new phoneme also became common in [[onomatopoeic]] words like ''baa'', ''ah'', ''ha ha'', as well as in foreign borrowed words like ''spa'', <!--French-->
''taco'', <!-- Mexican Spanish -->
''llama'', <!-- Spanish < Quechua -->
''drama'', <!-- late Latin < Greek -->
''piranha'', <!-- Portuguese < Tupi -->
''Bahamas'', <!--Spanish (baja mar) -->
''pasta'', <!-- Italian -->
''Bach'', <!-- German -->
many of which vary between {{IPA|/ɑː/}} and {{IPA|/æ/}} among different dialects of English.

Some of these developments are discussed in detail in the following sections.

===Before /r/===
{{see also|English-language vowel changes before historic /r/}}
In late Middle English, pairs such as ''cat'', ''cart'', were pronounced {{IPA|[kat]}}, {{IPA|[kart]}} respectively, distinguished only by the presence or absence of {{IPA|[r]}}. However, by the late 17th century they were also distinguished by the quality and length of the vowel. In ''cat'', the vowel had been fronted{{what|date=March 2024}} to {{IPA|/kæt/}}, while in ''cart'' it had been lengthened to {{IPA|/kaːrt/}}. This latter change seems to have first occurred in the dialects of southern England in the early 15th century, but did not affect Standard English until the later 17th century.<ref>Dobson, pp. 517–519</ref> It has affected most varieties of contemporary English, which have distinct vowels in pairs such as ''cat'', ''cart''. In [[non-rhotic]] accents, the {{IPA|/r/}} of ''cart'' has been lost; in modern RP the word is pronounced {{IPA|/kɑːt/}}, distinguished from ''cat'' only by the quality and length of the vowel.

This lengthening occurred when {{IPA|/a/}} was followed by non-pre-vocalic {{IPA|/r/}}; it did not generally apply before intervocalic {{IPA|/r/}} (when the {{IPA|/r/}} was followed by another vowel). Hence the first vowel of ''carrot'' and ''marry'' has normally remained the same as that of ''cat'' (but see the [[mary–marry–merry merger|''mary–marry–merry'' merger]]). However, inflected forms and derivatives of words ending in (historic) {{IPA|/r/}} generally inherit the lengthened vowel, so words like ''barring'' and ''starry'' have {{IPA|/ɑː/}} as do ''bar'' and ''star''.

===Before fricatives===
Unlike lengthening before nonprevocalic {{IPA|/r/}}, which applied universally in Standard English, lengthening, or '''broadening''', before fricatives was inconsistent and sporadic. This seems to have first occurred in the dialects of Southern England between about 1500 and 1650. It penetrated into Standard English from these dialects around the mid-17th century.

The primary environment which favored broadening was before preconsonantal or morpheme-final voiceless fricatives {{IPA|/f, θ, s/}}. The voiceless fricative {{IPA|/ʃ/}} has never promoted broadening in Standard English in words like ''ash'' and ''crash''. There is, however, evidence that such broadening did occur in dialects.<ref>Dobson p. 533</ref>

Once broadening affected a particular word, it tended to spread by [[Analogy#Linguistics|analogy]] to its inflectional derivatives. For example, from ''pass'' ({{IPA|[paːs]}}) there was also ''passing'' {{IPA|[ˈpaːsɪŋ]}}. This introduced broadening into the environment _sV, from which it was otherwise excluded (compare ''passage'' which is not an inflectional form, and was never affected by broadening).

In a phenomenon going back to Middle English, {{IPA|[f, θ]}} alternate with their voiced equivalents {{IPA|[v, ð]}}. For example, late Middle English ''path'' {{IPA|[paθ]}} alternated with ''paths'' {{IPA|[paðz]}}. When broadening applied to words such as ''path'', it naturally extended to these derivatives: thus when {{IPA|[paθ]}} broadened to {{IPA|[paːθ]}}, {{IPA|[paðz]}} also broadened to {{IPA|[paːðz]}}. This introduced broadening into the environment before a voiced fricative.

Broadening affected Standard English extremely inconsistently. It seems to have been favored when {{IPA|/a/}} was adjacent to labial consonants or {{IPA|/r/}}.<ref name="d531">Dobson, p. 531</ref> It is apparent that it occurred most commonly in short words, especially monosyllables, that were common and well-established in English at the time broadening took place (c. 1500–1650). Words of 3 or more syllables were hardly ever subject to broadening. Learned words, neologisms (such as ''gas'', first found in the late 17th century), and Latinate or Greek borrowings were rarely broadened.

A particularly interesting case is that of the word ''father''. In late Middle English this was generally pronounced {{IPA|[ˈfaðər]}}, thus rhyming with ''gather'' {{IPA|[ˈɡaðər]}}. Broadening of ''father'' is notable both in two respects:
* its occurrence before an intervocalic voiced fricative {{IPA|[ð]}}
* its distribution in many accents that do not otherwise have broadening, such as those of North America.
The Oxford English Dictionary describes the broadening of ''father'' as "anomalous".<ref>Oxford English Dictionary, online edition, entry ''father'', retrieved 2011-02-01</ref> Dobson, however, sees broadening in ''father'' as due to the influence of the adjacent {{IPA|/f/}} and {{IPA|/r/}} combined. ''Rather'' and ''lather'' appear to have been subject to broadening later, and in fewer varieties of English, by analogy with ''father''.<ref>Dobson 531–532</ref>

The table below represents the results of broadening before fricatives in contemporary Received Pronunciation.<ref>Words are classified according to their pronunciations given in {{cite book
|title=Longman pronunciation dictionary
|first=John C.
|last= Wells
|publisher=Longman
|location=Harlow, England
|year=1990
}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Environment
! RP {{IPA|/æ/}} as in TRAP ("flat A")
! RP {{IPA|/ɑː/}} as in PALM or FAther ("broad A")
|-
| _{{IPA|[f]}}$
| ''carafe''*, ''chiffchaff'', ''gaffe'', ''naff'', ''riffraff''
| calf**, chaff*, giraffe, ''graph'' (''telegraph'', see above), half**, laugh**, staff
|-
| _{{IPA|[f]}}C
| Daphne, hermaphrodite, kaftan, naphtha
| aft, after, craft, daft, draft/draught**, graft, laughter**, raft, rafter, shaft
|-
|_{{IPA|[θ]}}$
| hath, ''math'' (abbrev. for mathematics)
| bath, lath*, path
|-
|_{{IPA|[θ]}}C
| athlete, ''decathlon'' (pentathlon, ''biathlon'', etc.), ''maths''
|
|-
|_{{IPA|[s]}}$
| alas*, ass (donkey), ass (term of abuse)*, crass, ''gas'', lass, mass (amount), Mass (religious service)*
| brass, class, glass, grass, pass
|-
|_{{IPA|[sp]}}
| asp, aspect, aspen, ''aspic'' (jelly), ''aspirant'', ''aspirin'', ''Diaspora'', exasperate*, jasper
| clasp, gasp, grasp, hasp*, rasp
|-
|_{{IPA|[st]}}
| ''aster'', ''asteroid'', ''astronaut'' (astronomical, etc.), bastion, ''blastocyst'' (''blastopore'', etc.), ''canasta'', castanets, chastity, ''elastic''*, fantastic, ''gastric'', gymnastic, hast, Jocasta, mastic, masticate, mastiff*, ''mastitis'', ''mastoid'', ''mastodon'', ''masturbate''*, monastic, onomastic, ''pasta'', pastel, plastic*, procrastinate, ''Rastafarian'', ''raster'', ''sarcastic'', scholastic, ''spastic''
| aghast, ''avast'', bastard*, blast, cast, caster, fast, ghastly, last, mast, master, nasty, past, ''pasteurize''*, pastime, pastor, pastoral*, pasture, plaster, repast, vast
|-
|_{{IPA|[sk]}}
|''Alaska'', ''Basque''*, emasculate, gasket, Madagascar, ''mascot'', masculine, masquerade*, ''Nebraska'', paschal*, ''vascular''
|ask, bask, basket, cask, casket, flask, mask, masque*, rascal, task
|-
|_{{IPA|[sf]}}
|blasphemy*
|
<!-- |-
|_{{IPA|[v]}}
|avarice, average, avid, avocado, cavalry, cavern, clavicle (clavichord, etc.), davenport, depravity, extravagant, gravel, gravity, have, havoc, lavatory, maverick, navigator (navigable, etc.), savage, tavern, travesty, unravel
|calve, halve, Java, lava, octavo, (salve), Slav, -->
|-
|_{{IPA|[ð]}}
|''blather'', fathom, gather, ''slather''
|father, lather*, rather
|-
|other (see below)
|
|calve**, castle, fasten, halve**, raspberry
|}

* <nowiki>*</nowiki> indicates that the other pronunciation is also current in RP.
* <nowiki>**</nowiki> indicates that this word had late Middle English {{IPA|/au/}} (possibly in addition to late Middle English {{IPA|/a/}})
* Words in ''italics'' were first recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary later than 1650

In general, all these words, to the extent that they existed in Middle English, had {{IPA|/a/}} ("short A" as in ''trap'') which was broadened to {{IPA|[aː]}}. The exceptions are:
* ''half'' and ''calf'', which had been pronounced with {{IPA|[half, kalf]}} in early Middle English before developing around the early 15th century to {{IPA|[hauf, kauf]}} by [[L-vocalization|''L''-vocalization]].<ref>Dobson, p. 988</ref> In accents of England the development was subsequently the same as that in words such as ''palm'' (see below). The North American development to {{IPA|[æ]}} as in ''trap'' seems to be the result of shortening from {{IPA|[hauf, kauf]}} to {{IPA|[haf, kaf]}}, although there is little evidence of this development.<ref>Dobswon, p. 500</ref>
* ''laugh'', ''laughter'' and ''draft/draught'', which all had {{IPA|[auχ]}} in Middle English. This first changed to {{IPA|[auf]}} (accepted in Standard English from about 1625, but earlier in dialects),<ref>Dobson, p. 947</ref> and was then shortened to {{IPA|[af]}}.<ref>Dobson, pp. 500–501</ref> The subsequent development was similar to other words with {{IPA|[af]}}, such as ''staff''. The development of ''draft/draught'' is notable: in the 17th century it was usually spelled ''draught'' and pronounced to rhyme with ''caught'', making clear its derivation from the verb ''to draw''. The pronunciation with {{IPA|[f]}} was rare, and its use in current English is a historical accident resulting, according to Dobson, from the establishment of the spelling variant ''draft''.<ref>Dobson, p. 501</ref>

The words ''castle'', ''fasten'' and ''raspberry'' are special cases where subsequent sound changes have altered the conditions initially responsible for lengthening. In ''castle'' and ''fasten'', the {{IPA|/t/}} was pronounced, according to a slight majority of 16th and 17th century sources.<ref>Dobson, pp. 968–969</ref> In ''raspberry'' we find {{IPA|/s/}} rather than {{IPA|/z/}}.<ref>Dobson, p. 941</ref>

The pattern of lengthening shown here for Received Pronunciation is generally found in southern England, the Caribbean, and the Southern hemisphere (parts of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa). In North America, with the possible exception of older Boston accents, broadening is found only in ''father'' (the success of broadening in this word alone in North America unexplained){{sfnp|Wells|1982|p=206}} and ''pasta'' (which follows the general pattern for recent Italian loanwords, cf. ''mafia''). In the Boston area there has historically been a tendency to copy RP lengthening which perhaps reached its zenith in the 1930s{{sfnp|Wells|1982|p=?}} but has since receded in the face of general North American norms.

In Irish English broadening is found only in ''father'' (which may, however, also have the FACE vowel). In Scottish and Ulster English the great majority of speakers have no distinction between TRAP and PALM (the ''Sam''–''psalm'' merger). In Welsh English Wells finds broadening generally only in ''father'', with some variation.{{sfnp|Wells|1982|p=387}} In the north of England, broadening is usually found only in ''father'' and ''half'', and in some regions ''master''.{{sfnp|Wells|1982|pp=352–355}}

===Before nasals===
There was a class of Middle English words in which {{IPA|/au/}} varied with {{IPA|/a/}} before a [[nasal consonant|nasal]]. These are nearly all [[loanword]]s from [[French language|French]], in which uncertainty about how to realize the [[nasalization]] of the French vowel resulted in two varying pronunciations in English. (One might compare the different ways in which modern French loanwords like ''envelope'' are pronounced in contemporary varieties of English.)

Words with Middle English with the {{IPA|/au/}} diphthong [[Phonological history of English low back vowels|generally developed]] to {{IPA|[ɒː]}}{{verification needed|date=January 2017}} in Early Modern English (e.g. ''paw'', ''daughter''). However, in some of the words with the {{IPA|/a ~ au/}} alternation, especially short words in common use, the vowel instead developed into a long A. In words like ''change'' and ''angel'', this development preceded the [[Great Vowel Shift]], and so the resulting long A followed the normal development to modern {{IPA|/eɪ/}}. In other cases, however, the long A appeared later, and thus did not undergo the Great Vowel Shift, but instead merged with the long A that had developed before {{IPA|/r/}} and some fricatives (as described above). Thus words like ''dance'' and ''example'' have come to be pronounced (in modern RP, although mostly not in General American) with the {{IPA|/ɑː/}} vowel of ''start'' and ''bath''.

Words in this category may therefore have ended up with a variety of pronunciations in modern standard English: {{IPA|/æ/}} (where the short A pronunciation survived), {{IPA|/ɑː/}} (where the pronunciation with lengthened A was adopted), {{IPA|/ɔː/}} (where the normal development of the AU diphthong was followed), and {{IPA|/eɪ/}} (where the A was lengthened before the Great Vowel Shift). The table below shows the pronunciation of many of these words, classified according to the [[lexical set]]s of John Wells: {{sc2|TRAP}} for {{IPA|/æ/}}, {{sc2|BATH}} for RP {{IPA|/ɑː/}} vs. General American {{IPA|/æ/}}, {{sc2|PALM}} for {{IPA|/ɑː/}}, {{sc2|THOUGHT}} for {{IPA|/ɔː/}}, {{sc2|FACE}} for {{IPA|/eɪ/}}. Although these words were often spelled with both {{angbr|a}} and {{angbr|au}} in Middle English, the current English spelling generally reflects the pronunciation, with {{angbr|au}} used only for those words which have {{IPA|/ɔː/}}; one common exception is ''aunt''.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Environment
! {{sc2|TRAP}} lexical set
! {{sc2|BATH}} lexical set
! {{sc2|PALM}} lexical set
! {{sc2|THOUGHT}} lexical set
! {{sc2|FACE}} lexical set
|-
| _{{IPA|[m]}}$
|
|
| alms, balm, calm, palm, psalm, qualm<ref>given as THOUGHT by OED first edition</ref>
| shawm
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[mp]}}
| champion, rampant, stamp*
| example, sample
|
|
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[mb]}}
| amber
|
|
|
| chamber
|-
| _{{IPA|[mf]}}
| pamphlet
|
|
|
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[nt]}}
| ant*, lantern, phantom, rant, scant
| advantage, aunt, can't*, chant, grant, plant, slant, vantage
|
| daunt, flaunt*, gaunt*, gauntlet, haunt, jaunt*, saunter, taunt, vaunt
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[nd]}}
| abandon, grand, random
| command, demand, Flanders, remand, reprimand, slander
|
| jaundice, laundry, Maundy
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[n(t)ʃ]}}
| franchise
| avalanche, blanch, branch, ranch*, stanch, stanchion
|
| haunch, launch, paunch, staunch
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[n(d)ʒ]}}
| evangelist, phalange
|
|
|
| angel, arrange, change, danger, grange, mange, range, strange
|-
| _{{IPA|[ŋk]}}
| bank ("bench/financial institution"), canker, flank, plank, ranco(u)r, sanctity
|
|
|
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[ŋɡ]}}
| anger*, angle, strangle
|
|
|
|
|-
| _{{IPA|[ns]}}
| ancestor, finance, ransom, romance
| answer*, chance, chancellor, dance, enhance, France, lance, lancet, prance, stance, trance, transfer (trans-)
|
| launce
| ancient
|-
| Other
| salmon
| almond
|
|
|
|}
<nowiki/>* Not a French loanword

In some cases, both the {{IPA|/a/}} and the {{IPA|/au/}} forms have survived into Modern English. For example, from ''Sandre'', a Norman French form of the name [[Alexander]], the Modern English surnames ''Sanders'' and ''Saunders'' are both derived.<ref>{{cite book
|title=The origin of English surnames, part 1
|year=1967
|first=Percy Hide
|last=Reaney
|publisher=Routledge & K. Paul
|page=145
|oclc=247393450
}}</ref>

== {{sc2|TRAP–BATH}} split ==
{{main|trap–bath split}}

{{listen
|filename=Trap-bath_split.ogg
|title=T{{sc2|RAP–BATH}} split
|description=An example of the {{sc2|TRAP–BATH}} split
}}
The '''{{sc2|TRAP–BATH}} split''' is a [[Phonological change#Phonemic splits|vowel split]] that occurs mainly in the southern and mainstream varieties of [[English in England]] (including [[Received Pronunciation]]), in the [[Southern Hemisphere]] accents of English ([[Australian English]], [[New Zealand English]], [[South African English]]), and also to a lesser extent in older [[Boston English]], by which the [[Early Modern English]] phoneme {{IPA|/æ/}} was lengthened in certain environments and ultimately merged with the long {{IPA|/ɑː/}} of ''father''.{{sfnp|Wells|1982|pp=100–101, 134, 232–233}} Similar changes took place in words with {{angbr|o}}; see [[lot–cloth split|''lot–cloth'' split]].
<!-- -->

{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+ class="nowrap" | Minimal pairs created by the split
! {{IPA|/æ/}}
! {{IPA|/ɑː/}}
! Notes
|-
| aff
| half
| With [[h-dropping]].
|-
| ant
| aunt
|
|-
| asp
| hasp
| With h-dropping.
|-
| baff
| bath
| With [[th-fronting]].
|-
| bat
| bath
| With [[th-stopping]].
|-
| caf
| calf
|
|-
| cant
| can't
|
|-
| hath
| half
| With th-fronting.
|-
| have
| halve
|
|-
| lat
| lath
| With th-stopping and ''lat'' meaning 'latitude'.
|-
| pat
| path
| With th-stopping.
|}

=={{sc2|TRAP–STRUT}} merger==
The {{sc2|TRAP–STRUT}} merger is a merger of {{IPA|/æ/}} and {{IPA|/ʌ/}} occasionally occurring in [[Received Pronunciation]]. It is the outcome of lowering the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel to {{IPAblink|a}} for those speakers who have a fronted {{sc2|STRUT}} vowel. The merger is likely not categorical, which means that the phonemes remain distinct in their underlying form. In contemporary RP, {{IPAblink|a}} is the norm for {{sc2|TRAP}}, whereas {{sc2|STRUT}} is usually backer and somewhat higher than {{sc2|TRAP}}, {{IPAblink|ɐ}} or even {{IPAblink|ʌ}}. In the early days of {{sc2|TRAP}}-lowering, the fully open pronunciation of {{sc2|TRAP}} was typically heard as a merger regardless of the exact phonetic realization of {{sc2|STRUT}}.{{sfnp|Wells|1982|pp=291–292}}{{sfnp|Cruttenden|2014|pp=119–120, 122}}

In [[Cockney]], {{IPA|/æ/}} and {{IPA|/ʌ/}} can come close as {{IPAblink|æ}} and {{IPAblink|ɐ|ɐ̟}}. Thus, Cockney may be an example of a language variety that contrasts near-front and fully front vowels of the same height, roundedness and length, though the former tends to undergo lengthening before {{IPA|/d/}} (see [[bad–lad split]]).{{sfnp|Wells|1982|p=305}}

In General Australian English, the vowels are distinguished as {{IPAblink|a}} and {{IPAblink|ä}} before non-nasal consonants.{{sfnp|Cox|Fletcher|2017|pp=65, 179}}

A three-way merger of {{IPA|/æ/}}, {{IPA|/ʌ/}} and {{IPA|/ɑː/}} is a common pronunciation error among L2 speakers of English whose native language is Italian, Spanish or Catalan.{{sfnp|Swan|2001|p=91}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://pronunciationstudio.com/italian-speakers-english-pronunciation-errors/|title = Italian Speakers' English Pronunciation Errors|date = 22 November 2013}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+ class="nowrap" | Homophonous pairs
! {{IPA|/æ/}}
! {{IPA|/ʌ/}}
! IPA
! Notes
|-
| back
| buck
| {{IPA|ˈbak}}
|
|-
| bad
| bud
| {{IPA|ˈbad}}
|
|-
| ban
| bun
| {{IPA|ˈban}}
|
|-
| bat
| but
| {{IPA|ˈbat}}
| With the strong form of ''but''.
|-
| bat
| butt
| {{IPA|ˈbat}}
|
|-
| cal
| cull
| {{IPA|ˈkal}}
|
|-
| cant
| cunt
| {{IPA|ˈkant}}
|
|-
| cap
| cup
| {{IPA|ˈkap}}
|
|-
| carry
| curry
| {{IPA|ˈkari}}
|
|-
| cat
| cut
| {{IPA|ˈkat}}
|
|-
| fan
| fun
| {{IPA|ˈfan}}
|
|-
| gat
| gut
| {{IPA|ˈgat}}
|
|-
| Harry
| hurry
| {{IPA|ˈhari}}
|
|-
| hat
| hut
| {{IPA|ˈhat}}
|
|-
| lack
| luck
| {{IPA|ˈlak}}
|
|-
| mad
| mud
| {{IPA|ˈmad}}
|
|-
| pat
| putt
| {{IPA|ˈpat}}
|
|-
| sack
| suck
| {{IPA|ˈsak}}
|
|-
| Sam
| sum
| {{IPA|ˈsam}}
|
|-
| tack
| tuck
| {{IPA|ˈtak}}
|
|}

== {{sc2|STRUT–PALM}} merger ==
{{main|Rhoticity in English#Strut–palm–start merger}}

The {{sc2|STRUT–PALM}} merger is a merger of {{IPA|/ʌ/}} and {{IPA|/ɑː/}} that occurs in Black [[South African English]] and commonly also in non-native speech.

==''Bad–lad'' split==
The '''bad–lad split''' has been described as a [[phonemic split]] of the Early Modern English short [[vowel]] phoneme {{IPA|/æ/}} into a short {{IPA|/æ/}} and a long {{IPA|/æː/}}. This split is found in [[Australian English]] and some varieties of [[English English]] in which ''bad'' (with long {{IPA|[æː]}}) and ''lad'' (with short {{IPA|[æ]}}) do not rhyme.{{sfnp|Wells|1982|pp=288–289, 596}}{{sfnp|Horvath|Horvath|2001|p=?}}{{sfnp|Leitner|2004|p=?}}

The phoneme {{IPA|/æ/}} is usually lengthened to {{IPA|/æː/}} when it comes before an {{IPA|/m/}} or {{IPA|/n/}}, within the same syllable. It is furthermore lengthened in the adjectives ''bad'', ''glad'' and ''mad''; ''family'' also sometimes has a long vowel, regardless of whether it is pronounced as two or three [[syllable]]s. Some speakers and regional varieties also use {{IPA|/æː/}} before {{IPA|/ɡ/}}, {{IPA|/ŋ/}}, {{IPA|/l/}} and/or {{IPA|/dʒ/}}; such lengthening may be more irregular than others. Lengthening is prohibited in the [[past tense]] of [[English irregular verbs|irregular verb]]s and [[function word]]s and in modern [[contraction (grammar)|contractions]] of polysyllabic words where the {{IPA|/æ/}} was before a consonant followed by a vowel. Lengthening is not stopped by the addition of word-level [[suffix]]es.

British dialects with the bad–lad split have instead [[#Trap–bath split|broad {{IPA|/ɑː/|cat=no}}]] in some words where an {{IPA|/m/}} or {{IPA|/n/}} follows the vowel. In this circumstance, Australian speakers usually (but not universally) use {{IPA|/æː/}}, except in the words ''aunt'', ''can't'' and ''shan't'', which have broad {{IPA|/aː/}}.

[[Daniel Jones (phonetician)|Daniel Jones]] noted for RP that some speakers had a [[phonemic contrast]] between a long and a short {{IPA|/æ/}}, which he wrote as {{IPA|/æː/}} and {{IPA|/æ/}}, respectively. Thus, in ''An outline of English phonetics'' (1962, ninth edition, Cambridge: W. Heffer & Sons) he noted that ''sad'', ''bad'' generally had {{IPA|/æː/}} but ''lad'', ''pad'' had {{IPA|/æ/}}. In his pronouncing dictionary, he recorded several minimal pairs, for example ''bad'' {{IPA|/bæːd/}}, ''bade'' {{IPA|/bæd/}} (also pronounced {{IPA|/ˈbeɪd/}}). He noted that for some speakers, ''jam'' actually represented two different pronunciations, one pronounced {{IPA|/dʒæːm/}} meaning 'fruit conserve', the other {{IPA|/dʒæm/}} meaning 'crush, wedging'. Later editions of this dictionary, edited by [[Alfred C. Gimson]], dropped this distinction.{{Citation needed|date=April 2010|reason=The word 'lad' *does* in fact have a long /æː/ in most British accents affected by the split today; a more accurate name would be the bad–had split, with the latter retaining short /æ/ in the vast majority of these accents.}}

Outside of England, ''can'' meaning 'able to' remains {{IPA|/kæn/}}, whereas the noun ''can'' 'container' or the verb ''can'' 'to put into a container' is {{IPA|/kæːn/}}; this is similar to the situation found in [[/æ/ raising]] in some varieties of [[American English]]. A common [[minimal pair]] for modern RP speakers is ''band'' {{IPA|/bæːnd/}} and ''banned'' {{IPA|/bænd/}}. Australian speakers who use 'span' as the past tense of 'spin' also have a minimal pair between longer {{IPA|/spæːn/}} (meaning width or the transitive verb with a river or divide) and {{IPA|/spæn/}}, the past tense of 'spin' ({{IPA|/spæn/}}).<!-- this claim may be from,<ref>{{Citation
| last=Blake
| first= B. J.
| year=1985
| title='Short a' in Melbourne English
| journal=Journal of the International Phonetic Association
| volume=15
| pages=6–20
| doi=10.1017/S0025100300002899
}}</ref> but I don't have access to it to confirm --> Other minimal pairs found in Australian English include 'Manning' (the surname) {{IPA|/ˈmænɪŋ/}} and 'manning' (the present participle and gerund of the verb 'to man') {{IPA|/ˈmæːnɪŋ/}} as well as 'planet' {{IPA|/ˈplænət/}} versus 'plan it' {{IPA|/ˈplæːnət/}}.

Apart from Jones's, [[dictionaries]] rarely show a difference between these varieties of {{IPA|/æ/}}.

Experimental recordings of RP-speaking [[Cambridge University]] undergraduates has indicated that after [[Coarticulation|coarticulatory effects]] are taken into account, words such as ''bag'', ''that'', ''gab'', ''Ann'', ''ban'', ''damp'', ''mad'', ''bad'', and ''sad'' may have slightly longer {{IPA|/æː/}} vowels than relatively shorter words such as ''lad'', ''snag'', ''pad'', ''Pam'', and ''plan''. However, no evidence of consistent duration differentiation was found in the possible minimal pairs [[Vipera berus|''adder'']]/[[Mathematician|''adder'']], ''cad''/[[Computer-aided design|''CAD'']], ''can'' (noun)/''can'' (verb), ''dam''/''damn'', [[Fruit preserves|''jam'']]/[[Traffic congestion|''jam'']], ''lam''/''lamb'', ''manning''/''Manning'', [[Mass (liturgy)|''mass'']]/''[[mass]]'', ''sad''/[[Seasonal affective disorder|''SAD'']].<ref name="Kettig2016">{{cite journal|last1=Kettig|first1=Thomas|title=The BAD-LAD split: Secondary /æ/-lengthening in Southern Standard British English|journal=Proceedings of the Linguistics Society of America|date=2016|volume=1|pages=32|doi=10.3765/plsa.v1i0.3732|doi-access=free}}</ref> This casts doubt on its status as a true phonemic split among RP-speakers, and has been described instead as [[Historical linguistics#Diachronic and synchronic analysis|diachronically]] stable, lexically specific sub-phonemic variation.<ref name="Kettig2017">{{cite journal|last1=Kettig|first1=Thomas|title=Diachronically stable, lexically specific variation: The phonological representation of secondary /æ/-lengthening|journal=Phonetics and Phonology in Europe (Conference)|date=12 June 2017|hdl=10125/55398}}</ref>

== {{IPA|/æ/}} raising ==
{{main|/æ/ raising}}

In the [[sociolinguistics]] of English, '''{{IPA|/æ/}} raising''' is a process that occurs in many [[Accent (dialect)|accent]]s of [[American English]], and to some degree in [[Canadian English]], by which {{IPAc-en|audio=near-open front unrounded vowel.ogg|æ}}, the "short ''a''" vowel found in such words as ''ash, bath, man, lamp, pal, rag, sack, trap,'' etc., is [[tenseness|tensed]]: pronounced as more raised, and lengthened and/or [[diphthong]]ized in various environments. The realization of this "tense" (as opposed to "lax") {{IPA|/æ/}} varies from {{IPAblink|ɛː}} to {{IPA|[ɛə]}} to {{IPA|[eə]}} to {{IPA|[ɪə]}}, depending on the speaker's [[Regional accents of English speakers|regional accent]]. The most commonly tensed variant of {{IPA|/æ/}} throughout North American English is when it appears before [[nasal consonants]] (thus, for example, in ''fan'' as opposed to ''fat'').<ref>Boberg, Charles (Spring 2001). "Phonological Status of Western New England." ''American Speech'', Volume 76, Number 1. pp. 3-29 (Article). Duke University Press. p. 11: "The vowel {{IPA|/æ/}} is generally tensed and raised [...] only before nasals, a raising environment for most speakers of North American English."</ref>

== In foreign borrowings ==
Many foreign borrowed words such as ''taco'', ''llama'', ''drama'', ''piranha'', ''Bahamas'', ''pasta'', ''Bach'', ''pecan'', ''pajamas'' etc. vary as to whether or not they have the {{sc2|PALM}} vowel or the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel in various dialects in English. In Canada and Northern England, many speakers pronounce such words with the same vowel as {{sc2|TRAP}}, whereas in American, Australian and New Zealand English as well as RP, they usually have the same vowel as {{sc2|PALM}} (although ''taco'' and ''pasta'' have the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel in RP). However the pronunciation of certain words can vary even in regions which either usually assign the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel or usually assign the {{sc2|PALM}} vowel to such words; ''pajamas'' and ''pecan'', for instance, vary among Americans as to whether or not they have {{IPA|/æ/ or /ɑː/}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www4.uwm.edu/FLL/linguistics/dialect/staticmaps/q_21.html|title = Foreign Languages and Literature – UW-Milwaukee}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www4.uwm.edu/FLL/linguistics/dialect/staticmaps/q_20.html|title = Foreign Languages and Literature – UW-Milwaukee}}</ref>

== Other pronunciations ==
Other pronunciations of the letter {{vr|a}} in English have come about through:
*[[Front vowel|Fronting]] of the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel to a vowel close to {{IPA|[ɛ]}}, as in conservative RP of the early 20th century (see {{slink|Received Pronunciation|Historical variation}}). This never led to a merger with the {{sc2|DRESS}} vowel in RP, but a fronted pronunciation of the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel is also found in [[Singapore English]], (typically) along with a partial or full [[met-mat merger]],<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Leimgruber |first1=Jakob R. E. |title=Singapore English |journal=Language and Linguistics Compass |date=January 2011 |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=47–62 (2.1.1 Mergers) |doi=10.1111/j.1749-818X.2010.00262.x |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227726975_Singapore_English}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Fernandez |first1=Keith Jayden |title=A perceptual investigation of the DRESS-TRAP vowel merger in Singapore English |date=16 April 2018 |url=https://scholarbank.nus.edu.sg/handle/10635/143511}}</ref> as well as in non-native speech, such as in L1 speakers of German (see {{slink|Standard German phonology|Loanwords from English}}).
*[[Rounded vowel|Rounding]] caused by a following [[dark L]] (which may no longer be pronounced), to produce (in RP) {{IPA|/ɔː/}}, e.g. in ''also'', ''alter'', ''ball'', ''call'', ''chalk'', ''halt'', ''talk'', etc. See [[English-language vowel changes before historic /l/]].
*Rounding following {{IPA|/w/}}, resulting in the same two vowels as above, as in ''wash'', ''what'', ''quantity'', ''water'', ''warm''. This change is typically blocked before a [[velar consonant]], as in ''wag'', ''quack'' and ''twang'', and is also absent in ''swam'' (the [[English irregular verbs|irregular past tense]] of ''swim''). See [[Phonological history of English low back vowels#17th-century changes|Phonological history of English low back vowels (17th-century changes)]].
*[[Stress and vowel reduction in English|Reduction]] to [[schwa]] in most unstressed syllables, as in ''about'', ''along'', ''Hilary'', ''comma'', ''solar'', ''standard'', ''breakfast''. (Like other instances of schwa, this can combine with a following {{IPA|/l/}}, {{IPA|/m/}} or {{IPA|/n/}} to produce a [[syllabic consonant]] in certain environments, as in ''rival''.) Another possible reduced pronunciation [[weak vowel merger|(depending on dialect)]] is {{IPA|/ɪ/}} in cases where the reduction of {{sc2|FACE}} vowel might be expected, ''-ace'', ''-age'', ''-ate'' (only adjectives and nouns), as in the second syllables of ''palace'', ''message'' and ''private'', etc. 
*Irregular developments in a few words, particularly ''any'' and ''many''. In the case of ''any'', the spelling represents the pronunciation in the Midland dialect of [[Middle English]], while the modern pronunciation comes from that of the southern dialect (the alternative spelling ''eny'' is also found in texts up to around 1530; the spelling ''ony'', representing a northern dialect pronunciation, is also found).<ref>Taavitsainen, I., Melchers, G., Pahtap, P., ''Writing in Nonstandard English'', John Benjamins 2000, p. 193.</ref> The situation is similar with ''many'' (with the spellings ''meny'' and ''mony'' formerly occurring).<ref>Bergs, A., ''English Historical Linguistics'', de Gruyter 2012, p. 495.</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of Latin-script digraphs]]
* [[Phonological history of English]]
* [[Phonological history of English vowels]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* {{Citation
|last1=Cox
|first1=Felicity
|last2=Fletcher
|first2=Janet
|year=2017
|orig-year=First published 2012
|title=Australian English Pronunciation and Transcription
|edition=2nd
|publisher=Cambridge University Press
|isbn=978-1-316-63926-9
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZBs3DwAAQBAJ
}}
* {{Citation
|last=Cruttenden
|first=Alan
|year=2014
|title=Gimson's Pronunciation of English
|publisher=Routledge
|edition=8th
|isbn=9781444183092
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M2nMAgAAQBAJ
}}
* {{cite book
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* Horvath, Barbara M. and Ronald J. Horvath. (2001). Short A in Australian English: A geolinguistic study. In ''English in Australia'', ed. D. Blair and P. Collins, 341&ndash;55. Amsterdam: John Benjamins
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* {{Accents of English}}

;For {{IPA|æ}}-tensing
*Benua, L. 1995. Identity effects in [[morphology (linguistics)|morphological]] truncation. In ''Papers in [[optimality theory]]'', ed. J. N. Beckman, L. Walsh Dickey, and S. Urbanczyk. [[University of Massachusetts Amherst|UMass]] Occasional Papers 18. [[Amherst, Massachusetts|Amherst]]: GLSA, 77–136.
*Ferguson, C. A. 1972. "Short a" in Philadelphia English. In ''Studies in linguistics in honor of George L. Trager'', ed. M. E. Smith, 259–74. [[The Hague]]: Mouton.
*Kahn, D. 1976. Syllable-based generalizations in English phonology. [[PhD]] [[dissertation]], [[UCLA]]. Reproduced by the [[Indiana University Bloomington|Indiana University]] Linguistics Club.
* [[William Labov|Labov, W.]] 1966. ''The social stratification of English in New York City.'' [[Washington, D.C.]]: Center for Applied Linguistics.
*Labov, W. 1972. ''Sociolinguistic patterns''. Philadelphia: [[University of Pennsylvania]] Press.
*Labov, W. 1981. Resolving the [[Neogrammarian]] controversy. ''Language'' 57:267–308.
*Labov, W. 2005. [http://www.ling.upenn.edu/~wlabov/Papers/TD.pdf Transmission and Diffusion].
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*Trager, G. L. 1934. What conditions limit variants of a phoneme? ''American Speech'' 9:313–15.
*Trager, G. L. 1940. One phonemic entity becomes two: The case of "short ''a''". ''American Speech'' 15:255–58.
*Trager, G. L. 1941. {{IPA|ə ˈnəwt on æ ənd æ˔ˑ in əˈmerikən ˈiŋɡliʃ.}} ''Maître Phonétique'' 17–19. {{JSTOR|44708001}}
*Wood, Jim. 2011. Short-a in Northern New England. ''Journal of English Linguistics'' 39:135-165.

==External links==
* [http://www.bl.uk/soundsfamiliar Sounds Familiar?] – Listen to examples of regional accents and dialects on the British Library's 'Sounds Familiar' website, including an audio "bath" map of the UK

{{History of English}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phonological History of English Short A}}
[[Category:Splits and mergers in English phonology]]
[[Category:Australian English]]
[[Category:American English]]