Vowels
There is less disagreement over the vowel phonemes in Icelandic than the consonant phonemes. The Old Icelandic vowel system involving phonemic length was transformed to the modern system where phonetic length is automatically determined by the syllable structure. In the process of eliminating vowel length, however, relatively few vowel distinctions have been lost, as the loss of phonemic length has been offset by an increase in the number of quality distinctions and diphthongs.
| Monophthongs | Front | Back |
|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u |
| Near-close | ɪ • ʏ | |
| Open-mid | ɛ • œ | ɔ |
| Open | a | |
Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right of the dot represents a rounded vowel.
| Diphthongs | Front | Back to front | Back |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near-close to close | |||
| Mid to close | ei • øɪ | ou | |
| Open to close | ai | au | |
The diphthongs appear as allophones of the respective monophthongs before /j/.
Read more about this topic: Icelandic Phonology
Famous quotes containing the word vowels:
“These equal syllables alone require,
Though oft the ear the open vowels tire;”
—Alexander Pope (1688–1744)
“As no one can tell what was the Roman pronunciation, each nation makes the Latin conform, for the most part, to the rules of its own language; so that with us of the vowels only A has a peculiar sound.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Playing “bop” is like playing Scrabble with all the vowels missing.”
—Duke Ellington (1899–1974)