Mid central vowel

Vowel sound represented by the schwa, ⟨ə⟩
Mid central vowel
ə
IPA Number322
Audio sample
source · help
Encoding
Entity (decimal)ə
Unicode (hex)U+0259
X-SAMPA@
Braille⠢ (braille pattern dots-26)
Image
IPA: Vowels
Front Central Back
Close
•
•
Near-close
Close-mid
•
•
Mid
ə
Open-mid
Near-open
•
Open
•
•

Legend: unrounded • rounded

The mid central vowel (also known as schwa) is a type of vowel sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is ⟨ə⟩, a rotated lowercase letter e, which is called a "schwa".

While the Handbook of the International Phonetic Association does not define the roundedness of [ə],[1] it 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."[2] 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 ⟨œ⟩. The contrast is not very stable, and many speakers use an unrounded vowel in both cases.[3]

Danish[4] and Luxembourgish[5] have a mid central vowel that is variably rounded. In other languages, the change in rounding is accompanied with the change in height and/or backness. For instance, in Dutch, the unrounded allophone of /ə/ is mid central unrounded [ə], but its word-final rounded allophone is close-mid front rounded [ø̜], close to the main allophone of /ʏ/.[6]

The symbol ⟨ə⟩ is often used for any unstressed obscure vowel, regardless of its precise quality. For instance, the English vowel transcribed ⟨ə⟩ is a central unrounded vowel that can be close-mid [ɘ], mid [ə] or open-mid [ɜ], depending on the environment.[7]

Mid central unrounded vowel

The mid central unrounded vowel is frequently written with the symbol [ə]. If greater precision is desired, the symbol for the close-mid central unrounded vowel may be used with a lowering diacritic, [ɘ̞]. Another possibility is using the symbol for the open-mid central unrounded vowel with a raising diacritic, [ɜ̝].

Features

Occurrence

Language Word IPA Meaning Notes
Albanian një [ɲə] 'one'
Afrikaans Standard[3] lig [ləχ] 'light' Also described as open-mid [ɜ].[8] See Afrikaans phonology
Many speakers[3] lug 'air' Many speakers merge /œ/ with /ə/, even in formal speech.[3] See Afrikaans phonology
Bhojpuri कर [kər] 'to do'
Catalan Balearic sec [ˈsək] 'dry' Stressable schwa that corresponds to the open-mid [ɛ] in Eastern dialects and the close-mid [e] in Western dialects. See Catalan phonology
Eastern[9] amb [əm(b)] 'with' Reduced vowel. The exact height, backness and rounding are variable.[10] See Catalan phonology
Some Western accents[11]
Chinese Hokkien lêr (螺) [lə˧˥] 'snail'
Chuvash ăман [əm'an] 'worm'
Danish Standard[12][13] hoppe [ˈhʌ̹pə] 'mare' Sometimes realized as rounded [ə̹].[4] See Danish phonology
Dutch Standard[6] renner [ˈrɛnər] '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 /ʏ/.[6] See Dutch phonology
English Most dialects[7][14] Tina [ˈtʰiːnə] 'Tina' Reduced vowel; varies in height between close-mid and open-mid. Word-final /ə/ can be as low as [ɐ].[7][14] See English phonology
Cultivated South African[15] bird [bɜ̝ːd] 'bird' May be transcribed in IPA with ⟨ɜː⟩. Other South African varieties use a higher, more front and rounded vowel [øː~ ø̈ː]. See South African English phonology
Norfolk[16]
Received Pronunciation[17] Often transcribed in IPA with ⟨ɜː⟩. It is sulcalized, which means the tongue is grooved like in [ɹ]. 'Upper Crust RP' speakers pronounce a near-open vowel [ɐː], but for some other speakers it may actually be open-mid [ɜː]. This vowel corresponds to rhotacized [ɝ] in rhotic dialects.
Geordie[18] bust [bəst] 'bust' Spoken by some middle class speakers, mostly female; other speakers use [ʊ]. Corresponds to /ɜ/ or /ʌ/ in other dialects.
Indian[19] May be lower. Some Indian varieties merge /ɜ/ or /ʌ/ with /ə/ like Welsh English.
Wales[20] May also be further back; it corresponds to /ɜ/ or /ʌ/ in other dialects.
Yorkshire[21] Middle class pronunciation. Other speakers use [ʊ]. Corresponds to /ɜ/ or /ʌ/ in other dialects.
Faroese Tórshavn vátur [ˈvɔaːtəɹ] 'yellow' See Faroese phonology
Northeastern dialects [ˈvaːtəɹ]
Galician Some dialects leite [ˈlejtə] 'milk' Alternative realization of final unstressed /e/ or /ɛ/ (normally [i~ɪ~e̝])
fenecer [fənəˈs̪eɾ] 'to die' Alternative realization of unstressed /e/ or /ɛ/ in any position
German Standard[22] Beschlag [b̥əˈʃläːk]ⓘ 'fitting' See Standard German phonology
Southern German accents[23] oder [ˈoːdə] 'or' Used instead of [ɐ].[23] See Standard German phonology
Georgian[24] დგას/dgas [dəɡas] 1st person singular 'to stand' Phonetically inserted to break up consonant clusters. See Georgian phonology
Kashmiri کٔژ [kət͡s] 'how many'
Kensiu[25] [təh] 'to be bald' Contrasts with a rhotacized close-mid [ɚ̝].[25]
Khanty[26] аԓәӈ [aɬəŋ] 'early' Reduced vowel. Occurs only in unstressed syllables. See Khanty phonology
Khmer ដឹក dœ̆k [ɗək] 'to transport' See Khmer phonology
Kurdish Sorani (Central) شه‌و/şew [ʃəw] 'night' See Kurdish phonology
Palewani (Southern)
Luxembourgish[5] dënn [d̥ən] 'thin' More often realized as slightly rounded [ə̹].[5] See Luxembourgish phonology
Malay Standard Indonesian lelah [lə.lah] 'tired' See Malay phonology
Standard Malaysian pengadil [pə.ŋä.dɪl] 'referee'
Johor-Riau apa [ä.pə] 'what' Common realization of /a/ at the end of words and before /h/. See Malay phonology
Terengganu Common realization of /a/ at the end of words and before /h/. See Terengganu Malay
Jakartan dialect datang [da.təŋ] 'to come' Usually occurs around Jakarta. If the letter /a/ is located in the last syllable between consonants, the sound changes from [a] to [ə]. For the dialects in Sumatra in which the /a/ letter ([a]) in the last syllable changes to an [ə] sound, see Malay phonology.
Moksha търва [tərvaˑ] 'lip' See Moksha phonology
Norwegian Many dialects[27] sterkeste [²stæɾkəstə] 'the strongest' Occurs only in unstressed syllables. The example word is from Urban East Norwegian. Some dialects (e.g. Trondheimsk) lack this sound.[28] See Norwegian phonology
Plautdietsch[29] bediedt [bəˈdit] 'means' The example word is from the Canadian Old Colony variety, in which the vowel is somewhat fronted [ə̟].[29]
Portuguese Brazilian[30] maçã [maˈsə̃ᵑ] 'apple' Possible realization of final stressed /ɐ̃/. Also can be open-mid [ɜ̃].[31]
Romanian[32] păros [pəˈros] 'hairy' See Romanian phonology
Serbo-Croatian[33] vrt [ʋə̂rt̪] 'garden' [ər] is a possible phonetic realization of the syllabic trill /r̩/ when it occurs between consonants.[33] See Serbo-Croatian phonology
Swedish Southern[34] vante [²väntə] 'mitten' Corresponds to a slightly retracted front vowel [ɛ̠] in Central Standard Swedish.[34] See Swedish phonology
Tyap a̠tan [ətan] 'ɡood'
Welsh mynydd [mənɪð] 'mountain' See Welsh phonology

Mid central rounded vowel

Mid central rounded vowel
ɵ̞
ə̹
ɞ̝
Audio sample
source · help

Languages may have a mid central rounded vowel (a rounded [ə]), 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 [ɵ] for the close-mid central rounded vowel is generally used instead. If precision is desired, the lowering diacritic can be used: [ɵ̞]. This vowel can also be represented by adding the more rounded diacritic to the schwa symbol, or by combining the raising diacritic with the open-mid central rounded vowel symbol, although it is rare to use such symbols.

Features

Occurrence

Language Word IPA Meaning Notes
Afrikaans Standard[3] lug [lɞ̝χ] 'air' Also described as open-mid [ɞ],[8] typically transcribed in IPA with ⟨œ⟩. Many speakers merge /œ/ and /ə/, even in formal speech.[3] See Afrikaans phonology
Danish Standard[4] hoppe [ˈhʌ̹pə̹] 'mare' Possible realization of /ə/.[4] See Danish phonology
Dutch Southern[35] hut [ɦɵ̞t] 'hut' Found in certain accents, e.g. in Bruges. Close-mid [ɵ] in Standard Dutch.[35] See Dutch phonology
English California[36] foot [fɵ̞ʔt] 'foot' Part of the California vowel shift.[36][failed verification] Typically transcribed in IPA with ⟨ʊ⟩.
French[37][38] je [ʒə̹]ⓘ 'I' Only somewhat rounded;[37] may be transcribed in IPA with ⟨ə⟩ or ⟨ɵ⟩. Also described as close-mid [ɵ].[39] May be more front for a number of speakers. See French phonology
German Chemnitz dialect[40] Wonne [ˈv̞ɞ̝nə] 'bliss' Typically transcribed in IPA with ⟨ɞ⟩.[40]
Irish Munster[41] scoil [skɞ̝lʲ] 'school' Allophone of /ɔ/ between a broad and a slender consonant.[41] See Irish phonology
Luxembourgish[5] dënn [d̥ə̹n] 'thin' Only slightly rounded; less often realized as unrounded [ə̜].[5] See Luxembourgish phonology
Norwegian Urban East[42] nøtt [nɞ̝tː] 'nut' Also described as open-mid front [œʷ];[27][43] typically transcribed in IPA with ⟨œ⟩ or ⟨ø⟩. See Norwegian phonology
Plautdietsch Canadian Old Colony[44] butzt [bɵ̞t͡st] 'bumps' Mid-centralized from [ʊ], to which it corresponds in other dialects.[44]
Swedish Central Standard[45][46] full [fɵ̞lː]ⓘ 'full' Pronounced with compressed lips, more closely transcribed [ɵ̞ᵝ] or [ɘ̞ᵝ]. Less often described as close-mid [ø̈].[47] See Swedish phonology
Tajik Northern dialects кӯҳ/kūh [kɵ̞h] 'mountain' Typically described as close-mid [ɵ]. See Tajik phonology

Notes

  1. ^ International Phonetic Association (1999), p. 167.
  2. ^ "A World of Englishes: Is /ə/ "real"?". 19 June 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Wissing (2016), section "The rounded and unrounded mid-central vowels".
  4. ^ a b c d Basbøll (2005), p. 143.
  5. ^ a b c d e Gilles & Trouvain (2013), p. 70.
  6. ^ a b c Collins & Mees (2003), p. 129.
  7. ^ a b c Wells (2008), p. XXV.
  8. ^ a b Wissing (2012), p. 711.
  9. ^ Recasens (1996), pp. 59–60, 104–105.
  10. ^ Recasens (1996), p. 106.
  11. ^ Recasens (1996), p. 98.
  12. ^ Allan, Holmes & Lundskær-Nielsen (2011), p. 2.
  13. ^ Basbøll (2005), pp. 57, 143.
  14. ^ a b Gimson (2014), p. 138.
  15. ^ Lass (2002), p. 116.
  16. ^ Lodge (2009), p. 168.
  17. ^ Roach (2004), p. 242.
  18. ^ Watt & Allen (2003), p. 268. sfnp error: no target: CITEREFWattAllen2003 (help)
  19. ^ Sailaja (2009), pp. 24–25.
  20. ^ Wells (1982), pp. 380–381.
  21. ^ Stoddart, Upton & Widdowson (1999), pp. 74, 76.
  22. ^ Krech et al. (2009), p. 69.
  23. ^ a b Dudenredaktion, Kleiner & Knöbl (2015), p. 40.
  24. ^ McCoy, Priscilla (1999), Harmony and Sonority in Georgian (PDF)
  25. ^ a b Bishop (1996), p. 230.
  26. ^ Bakró-Nagy, Marianne; Laakso, Johanna; Skribnik, Elena, eds. (2022-03-24). The Oxford Guide to the Uralic Languages. Oxford University Press. p. 97. doi:10.1093/oso/9780198767664.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-876766-4.
  27. ^ a b Vanvik (1979), pp. 13, 20.
  28. ^ Vanvik (1979), p. 21.
  29. ^ a b Cox, Driedger & Tucker (2013), p. 224.
  30. ^ Battisti, Elisa; Gomes de Oliveira, Samuel (2019). "Elevação da vogal /a/ em contexto nasal em português brasileiro: estudo preliminar". Lingüística. 35 (1): 36. doi:10.5935/2079-312x.20190003. hdl:10183/197298. ISSN 2079-312X.
  31. ^ Rothe-Neves & Valentim (1996), p. 112.
  32. ^ Chițoran (2001:7) harvcoltxt error: no target: CITEREFChițoran2001 (help)
  33. ^ a b Landau et al. (1999), p. 67.
  34. ^ a b Riad (2014), p. 22.
  35. ^ a b Collins & Mees (2003:128, 131). The source describes the Standard Dutch vowel as front-central [ɵ̟], but more sources (e.g. van Heuven & Genet (2002) and Verhoeven (2005)) describe it as central [ɵ]. As far as the lowered varieties of this vowel are concerned, Collins and Mees do not describe their exact backness.
  36. ^ a b Eckert, Penelope. "Vowel Shifts in California and the Detroit Suburbs". Stanford University.
  37. ^ a b Fougeron & Smith (1993), p. 73.
  38. ^ Lodge (2009), p. 84.
  39. ^ "english speech services | Le FOOT vowel". 15 January 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  40. ^ a b Khan & Weise (2013), p. 236.
  41. ^ a b Ó Sé (2000), p. ?.
  42. ^ Kristoffersen (2000), pp. 16–17.
  43. ^ Kvifte & Gude-Husken (2005), p. 2.
  44. ^ a b Cox, Driedger & Tucker (2013), pp. 224–225.
  45. ^ Engstrand (1999), p. 140.
  46. ^ Rosenqvist (2007), p. 9.
  47. ^ Andersson (2002), p. 272.

References

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  • Andersson, Erik (2002), "Swedish", in König, Ekkehard; van der Auwera, Johan (eds.), The Germanic Languages, Routledge language family descriptions, Routledge, pp. 271–312, ISBN 0-415-28079-6
  • Barbosa, Plínio A.; Albano, Eleonora C. (2004), "Brazilian Portuguese", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 34 (2): 227–232, doi:10.1017/S0025100304001756
  • Basbøll, Hans (2005), The Phonology of Danish, Taylor & Francis, ISBN 0-203-97876-5
  • Bishop, Nancy (1996), "A preliminary description of Kensiu (Maniq) phonology" (PDF), Mon–Khmer Studies Journal, 25
  • Collins, Beverley; Mees, Inger M. (2003) [First published 1981], The Phonetics of English and Dutch (5th ed.), Leiden: Brill Publishers, ISBN 9004103406
  • Cox, Cristopher; Driedger, Jacob M.; Tucker, Benjamin V. (2013), "Mennonite Plautdietsch (Canadian Old Colony)", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 43 (2): 221–229, doi:10.1017/S0025100313000121
  • Dudenredaktion; Kleiner, Stefan; Knöbl, Ralf (2015) [First published 1962], Das Aussprachewörterbuch (in German) (7th ed.), Berlin: Dudenverlag, ISBN 978-3-411-04067-4
  • Engstrand, Olle (1999), "Swedish", Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A Guide to the usage of the International Phonetic Alphabet., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 140–142, ISBN 0-521-63751-1
  • Fougeron, Cecile; Smith, Caroline L (1993), "French", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 23 (2): 73–76, doi:10.1017/S0025100300004874, S2CID 249404451
  • Gilles, Peter; Trouvain, Jürgen (2013), "Luxembourgish" (PDF), Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 43 (1): 67–74, doi:10.1017/S0025100312000278
  • Gimson, Alfred Charles (2014), Cruttenden, Alan (ed.), Gimson's Pronunciation of English (8th ed.), Routledge, ISBN 9781444183092
  • Gussenhoven, Carlos (1992), "Dutch", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 22 (2): 45–47, doi:10.1017/S002510030000459X, S2CID 243772965
  • International Phonetic Association (1999), Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A guide to the use of the International Phonetic Alphabet, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-65236-7
  • Khan, Sameer ud Dowla; Weise, Constanze (2013), "Upper Saxon (Chemnitz dialect)" (PDF), Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 43 (2): 231–241, doi:10.1017/S0025100313000145
  • Krech, Eva Maria; Stock, Eberhard; Hirschfeld, Ursula; Anders, Lutz-Christian (2009), Deutsches Aussprachewörterbuch, Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter, ISBN 978-3-11-018202-6
  • Kristoffersen, Gjert (2000), The Phonology of Norwegian, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-823765-5
  • Kvifte, Bjørn; Gude-Husken, Verena (2005) [First published 1997], Praktische Grammatik der norwegischen Sprache (3rd ed.), Gottfried Egert Verlag, ISBN 3-926972-54-8
  • Landau, Ernestina; Lončarić, Mijo; Horga, Damir; Škarić, Ivo (1999), "Croatian", Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A guide to the use of the International Phonetic Alphabet, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 66–69, ISBN 0-521-65236-7
  • Lass, Roger (2002), "South African English", in Mesthrie, Rajend (ed.), Language in South Africa, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 9780521791052
  • Lee, Wai-Sum; Zee, Eric (2003), "Standard Chinese (Beijing)", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 33 (1): 109–112, doi:10.1017/S0025100303001208
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  • Ó Sé, Diarmuid (2000), Gaeilge Chorca Dhuibhne (in Irish), Dublin: Institiúid Teangeolaíochta Éireann, ISBN 0-946452-97-0
  • Recasens, Daniel (1996), Fonètica descriptiva del català (in Catalan), Barcelona: Institut d'Estudis Catalans, ISBN 84-7283-312-7
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  • Rothe-Neves, Rui; Valentim, Hellen (1996), "On the duration of nasal vowels in Brazilian Portuguese", Diadorim, 12, doi:10.35520/diadorim.2012.v12n0a3974
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External links

  • List of languages with [ə] on PHOIBLE
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IPA topics
IPA
Special topics
Encodings
Pulmonic consonants
Place → Labial Coronal Dorsal Laryngeal
Manner ↓ Bi­labial Labio­dental Linguo­labial Dental Alveolar Post­alveolar Retro­flex Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyn­geal/epi­glottal Glottal
Nasal m̥ m ɱ̊ ɱ n̼ n̥ n ɳ̊ ɳ ɲ̊ ɲ ŋ̊ ŋ ɴ̥ ɴ
Plosive p b p̪ b̪ t̼ d̼ t d ʈ ɖ c ɟ k ɡ q ɢ ʡ ʔ
Sibilant affricate ts dz t̠ʃ d̠ʒ tʂ dʐ tɕ dʑ
Non-sibilant affricate pɸ bβ p̪f b̪v t̪θ d̪ð tɹ̝̊ dɹ̝ t̠ɹ̠̊˔ d̠ɹ̠˔ cç ɟʝ kx ɡɣ qχ ɢʁ ʡʜ ʡʢ ʔh
Sibilant fricative s z ʃ ʒ ʂ ʐ ɕ ʑ
Non-sibilant fricative ɸ β f v θ̼ ð̼ θ ð θ̠ ð̠ ɹ̠̊˔ ɹ̠˔ ɻ̊˔ ɻ˔ ç ʝ x ɣ χ ʁ ħ ʕ h ɦ
Approximant ʋ ɹ ɻ j ɰ ʔ̞
Tap/flap ⱱ̟ ⱱ ɾ̼ ɾ̥ ɾ ɽ̊ ɽ ɢ̆ ʡ̆
Trill ʙ̥ ʙ r̥ r ɽ̊r̥ ɽr ʀ̥ ʀ ʜ ʢ
Lateral affricate tɬ dɮ tꞎ d𝼅 c𝼆 ɟʎ̝ k𝼄 ɡʟ̝
Lateral fricative ɬ ɮ ꞎ 𝼅 𝼆 ʎ̝ 𝼄 ʟ̝
Lateral approximant l ɭ ʎ ʟ ʟ̠
Lateral tap/flap ɺ̥ ɺ 𝼈̥ 𝼈 ʎ̆ ʟ̆

Symbols to the right in a cell are voiced, to the left are voiceless. Shaded areas denote articulations judged impossible.

Non-pulmonic consonants
BL LD D A PA RF P V U EG
Ejective Stop pʼ tʼ ʈʼ cʼ kʼ qʼ ʡʼ
Affricate p̪fʼ t̪θʼ tsʼ t̠ʃʼ tʂʼ tɕʼ kxʼ qχʼ
Fricative ɸʼ fʼ θʼ sʼ ʃʼ ʂʼ ɕʼ xʼ χʼ
Lateral affricate tɬʼ c𝼆ʼ k𝼄ʼ q𝼄ʼ
Lateral fricative ɬʼ
Click
(top: velar;
bottom: uvular) 		Tenuis kʘ
qʘ 		kǀ
qǀ 		kǃ
qǃ 		k𝼊
q𝼊 		kǂ
qǂ
Voiced ɡʘ
ɢʘ 		ɡǀ
ɢǀ 		ɡǃ
ɢǃ 		ɡ𝼊
ɢ𝼊 		ɡǂ
ɢǂ
Nasal ŋʘ
ɴʘ 		ŋǀ
ɴǀ 		ŋǃ
ɴǃ 		ŋ𝼊
ɴ𝼊 		ŋǂ
ɴǂ 		ʞ
 
Tenuis lateral kǁ
qǁ
Voiced lateral ɡǁ
ɢǁ
Nasal lateral ŋǁ
ɴǁ
Implosive Voiced ɓ ɗ ᶑ ʄ ɠ ʛ
Voiceless ɓ̥ ɗ̥ ᶑ̊ ʄ̊ ɠ̊ ʛ̥
Co-articulated consonants
Labial–velar
ɧ
Sj-sound (variable)
Lateral approximant
Velarized alveolar
Labial–velar
Labial–alveolar
Other
Front Central Back
Close
•
•
Near-close
Close-mid
•
•
Mid
ə
Open-mid
Near-open
•
Open
•
•

Legend: unrounded • rounded

ə