Mid central vowel

The mid central vowel is a type of vowel sound, used in some spoken languages. A reduced mid central vowel is known as a schwa. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents either sound is Template:Angbr IPA, a rotated lowercase letter e.

While the Handbook of the International Phonetic Association does not define the roundedness of ,Template:Sfnp a schwa is more often unrounded than rounded. The phonetician Jane Setter describes the pronunciation of the unrounded variant as follows: "a sound which can be produced by basically relaxing the articulators in the oral cavity and vocalising." To produce the rounded variant, all that needs to be done in addition to that is to round the lips.

Afrikaans contrasts unrounded and rounded mid central vowels; the latter is usually transcribed with Template:Angbr IPA. The contrast is not very stable, and many speakers use an unrounded vowel in both cases.Template:Sfnp

DanishTemplate:Sfnp and LuxembourgishTemplate:Sfnp have a mid central vowel that is variably rounded. In other languages, the change in rounding is accompanied with the change in height or backness. For instance, in Dutch, the unrounded allophone of is mid central unrounded , but its word-final rounded allophone is close-mid front rounded Template:IPAblink, close to the main allophone of .Template:Sfnp

"Mid central vowel" and "schwa" do not always mean the same thing, and the symbol Template:Angbr IPA is often used for any obscure vowel, regardless of its precise quality. For instance, the unstressed English vowel transcribed Template:Angbr IPA and called "schwa" is a central unrounded vowel that can be close-mid Template:IPAblink, mid or open-mid Template:IPAblink, depending on the environment.Template:Sfnp The French vowel transcribed that way is closer to Template:IPAblink.

If a mid-central vowel of a language is not a reduced vowel, or if it may be stressed, it may be more unambiguous to transcribe it with one of the other mid-central vowel letters: Template:Angbr IPA for an unrounded vowel or Template:Angbr IPA for a rounded vowel.

Mid central unrounded vowel

The mid central unrounded vowel is frequently written with the symbol Template:Angbr IPA. If greater precision is desired, the symbol for the close-mid central unrounded vowel may be used with a lowering diacritic, Template:Angbr IPA, or for the open-mid central unrounded vowel with a raising diacritic, Template:Angbr IPA.

Occurrence

Language		Word	IPA	Meaning	Notes
Albanian			[ɲə]	'one'
Afrikaans	StandardTemplate:Sfnp			'light'	Also described as open-mid Template:IPAblink.Template:Sfnp See Afrikaans phonology
	Many speakersTemplate:Sfnp			'air'	Many speakers merge with , even in formal speech.Template:Sfnp See Afrikaans phonology
Arabic	Damascene	كرمال	[kɪɾ.məːl]	'for the sake of'	Realized as /a/ by some speakers.
Bhojpuri				'to do'
Catalan	Balearic			'dry'	Stressable schwa that corresponds to the open-mid Template:IPAblink in Eastern dialects and the close-mid Template:IPAblink in Western dialects. See Catalan phonology
	EasternTemplate:Sfnp			'with'	Reduced vowel. The exact height, backness and rounding are variable.Template:Sfnp See Catalan phonology
	Some Western accentsTemplate:Sfnp
Chinese	Hokkien	()		'snail'
	Mandarin	根/gēn	{{errorTemplate:Main other|Audio file "Zh-gēn.ogg" not found}}Template:Category handlerTemplate:Category handler	'root'	See Standard Chinese phonology
Chuvash		ăман		'worm'
Danish	StandardTemplate:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp			'mare'	Sometimes realized as rounded .Template:Sfnp See Danish phonology
Dutch	StandardTemplate:Sfnp			'runner'	The backness varies between near-front and central, whereas the height varies between close-mid and open-mid. Many speakers feel that this vowel is simply an unstressed allophone of Template:IPAslink.Template:Sfnp See Dutch phonology
English	Most dialectsTemplate:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp	arena		'arena'	Reduced vowel; varies in height between close-mid and open-mid. Word-final can be as low as Template:IPAblink.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp See English phonology
	Cultivated South AfricanTemplate:Sfnp	bird		'bird'	May be transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA. Other South African varieties use a higher, more front and rounded vowel Template:IPAblink. See South African English phonology
	NorfolkTemplate:Sfnp
	Received PronunciationTemplate:Sfnp				Often transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA. It is sulcalized, which means the tongue is grooved like in . 'Upper Crust RP' speakers pronounce a near-open vowel Template:IPAblink, but for some other speakers it may actually be open-mid Template:IPAblink. This vowel corresponds to rhotacized Template:IPAblink in rhotic dialects.
	GeordieTemplate:Sfnp	bust		'bust'	Spoken by some middle class speakers, mostly female; other speakers use Template:IPAblink. Corresponds to Template:IPAslink or Template:IPAslink in other dialects.
	IndianTemplate:Sfnp				May be lower. Some Indian varieties merge Template:IPAslink or Template:IPAslink with like Welsh English.
	WalesTemplate:Sfnp				May also be further back; it corresponds to Template:IPAslink or Template:IPAslink in other dialects.
	YorkshireTemplate:Sfnp				Middle class pronunciation. Other speakers use Template:IPAblink. Corresponds to Template:IPAslink or Template:IPAslink in other dialects.
Faroese	Tórshavn			'yellow'	See Faroese phonology
	Northeastern dialects
Galician	Some dialects			'milk'	Alternative realization of final unstressed or (normally )
				'to die'	Alternative realization of unstressed or in any position
German	StandardTemplate:Sfnp		{{errorTemplate:Main other|Audio file "De-Beschlag.ogg" not found}}Template:Category handlerTemplate:Category handler	'fitting'	See Standard German phonology
	Southern German accentsTemplate:Sfnp			'or'	Used instead of Template:IPAblink.Template:Sfnp See Standard German phonology
Georgian		/Template:Transliteration	[dəɡas]	1st person singular 'to stand'	Phonetically inserted to break up consonant clusters. See Georgian phonology
Kashmiri				'how many'
Kashubian		Kaszëbë		'Kashubia'
KensiuTemplate:Sfnp				'to be bald'	Contrasts with a rhotacized close-mid Template:IPAblink.Template:Sfnp
Khanty				'early'	Reduced vowel. Occurs only in unstressed syllables. See Khanty phonology
Khmer		Template:Transliteration		'to transport'	See Khmer phonology
Korean	Southern Gyeongsang dialect			'spider'	In southern gyeongsang, The sounds ㅡ(eu)/ɯ/ and ㅓ(eo)/ʌ/ merge with /ə/.
				'net'
Kurdish	Sorani (Central)	/		'cosmos'	See Kurdish phonology
	Palewani (Southern)
LuxembourgishTemplate:Sfnp				'thin'	More often realized as slightly rounded .Template:Sfnp See Luxembourgish phonology
Malay	Standard Indonesian		[bə.rat]	'heavy'	See Malay phonology
	Standard Malaysian
	Johor-Riau		[a.pə]	'what'	Realization of /a/ at the end of words and before /h/. See Malay phonology
	Terengganu				Realization of /a/ at the end of words and before /h/. See Terengganu Malay
	Jakarta		[da.təŋ]	'to come'	Usually occurs around Jakarta, often inherited from earlier Proto-Malayic syllable *-CəC. For the dialects in Sumatra in which the word-final /a/ letter ([a]) changes to an [ə] sound, see Malay phonology.
	Palembang
Moksha			[tərvaˑ]	'lip'	See Moksha phonology
Norwegian	Many dialectsTemplate:Sfnp			'the strongest'	Occurs only in unstressed syllables. The example word is from Urban East Norwegian. Some dialects (e.g. Trondheimsk) lack this sound.Template:Sfnp See Norwegian phonology
Neapolitan				"Sanctified"	The final schwa sound might become "mute" or left out entirely. Schwa sounds might also be denoted with a diaeresis (E.G Santificammö) but it is not universal. See Neapolitan Phonology
PlautdietschTemplate:Sfnp				'means'	The example word is from the Canadian Old Colony variety, in which the vowel is somewhat fronted .Template:Sfnp
Portuguese	Brazilian			'apple'	Possible realization of final stressed /ɐ̃/. Also can be open-mid .Template:Sfnp
Romanian				'hairy'	See Romanian phonology
Russian	Standard			'cow'	See Russian phonology
Serbo-CroatianTemplate:Sfnp				'garden'	is a possible phonetic realization of the syllabic trill when it occurs between consonants.Template:Sfnp See Serbo-Croatian phonology
Swedish	SouthernTemplate:Sfnp			'mitten'	Corresponds to a slightly retracted front vowel in Central Standard Swedish.Template:Sfnp See Swedish phonology
Tyap				'ɡood'
Welsh			[mənɪð]	'mountain'	See Welsh phonology

Mid central rounded vowel

Template:Infobox IPA/core1 Languages may have a mid central rounded vowel (a rounded ), distinct from both the close-mid and open-mid vowels. However, since no language is known to distinguish all three, there is no separate IPA symbol for the mid vowel, and the symbol Template:Angbr IPA for the close-mid central rounded vowel is generally used instead. If precision is desired, the lowering diacritic can be used, Template:Angbr IPA, or the more rounded diacritic with the schwa symbol, Template:Angbr IPA, or the raising diacritic with the open-mid central rounded vowel symbol, Template:Angbr IPA, although it is rare to use such precision.

Occurrence

Language		Word	IPA	Meaning	Notes
Afrikaans	StandardTemplate:Sfnp			'air'	Also described as open-mid Template:IPAblink,Template:Sfnp typically transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA. Many speakers merge and , even in formal speech.Template:Sfnp See Afrikaans phonology
Danish	StandardTemplate:Sfnp			'mare'	Possible realization of .Template:Sfnp See Danish phonology
Dutch	Southern			'hut'	Found in certain accents, e.g. in Bruges. Close-mid Template:IPAblink in Standard Dutch. See Dutch phonology
English	California			'foot'	Part of the California vowel shift. Typically transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA.
FrenchTemplate:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp			{{errorTemplate:Main other|Audio file "Fr-je.ogg" not found}}Template:Category handlerTemplate:Category handler	'I'	Only somewhat rounded;Template:Sfnp may be transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA or Template:Angbr IPA. Also described as close-mid Template:IPAblink. May be more front for a number of speakers. See French phonology
German	Chemnitz dialectTemplate:Sfnp			'bliss'	Typically transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA.Template:Sfnp
Irish	MunsterTemplate:Sfnp			'school'	Allophone of between a broad and a slender consonant.Template:Sfnp See Irish phonology
LuxembourgishTemplate:Sfnp				'thin'	Only slightly rounded; less often realized as unrounded .Template:Sfnp See Luxembourgish phonology
Norwegian	Urban EastTemplate:Sfnp			'nut'	Also described as open-mid front Template:IPAblink;Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp typically transcribed in IPA with Template:Angbr IPA or Template:Angbr IPA. See Norwegian phonology
Plautdietsch	Canadian Old ColonyTemplate:Sfnp			'bumps'	Mid-centralized from Template:IPAblink, to which it corresponds in other dialects.Template:Sfnp
Swedish	Central StandardTemplate:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp		{{errorTemplate:Main other|Audio file "sv-full.ogg" not found}}Template:Category handlerTemplate:Category handler	'full'	Pronounced with compressed lips, more closely transcribed or . Less often described as close-mid Template:IPAblink.Template:Sfnp See Swedish phonology
Tajik	Northern dialects	/Template:Transliteration		'mountain'	Typically described as close-mid Template:IPAblink. See Tajik phonology

References

• A summary of the presentation can be found here.
• Template:Accents of English

External links

• Template:Phoible