Phonetic Structure Vowels Gradation Consonants Mutation Vowels All

Phonetic Structure Vowels. Gradation. Consonants. Mutation.

Vowels �All OE vowels, including diphthongs. Can be either short or long. �Monophtongs: a æ e i o u y å �Diphthongs : ea eo ie io

�æ sounded like Mn. E {æ} in man, hat �y was sounded like German ü in Mütter �ā may occur in any type of syllable. It corresponds to Goth. ai, e. g. stān “stone”, hātan “call”

Gradation �In Indo-European languages there is a special kind of vowel alternation, usually called gradation, or ablaut. reisan “rise “ rias risum risans kiusan “choose” kaus kusum kusans bindan “bind” band bundum bundans

�The original Germanic gradation system, which was rather clearly preserved in the 4 th century gothic text, has been to a great extent obscured even in the earliest OE texts, owing to a number of phonetic changes. �Let’s see the alternation i/a/ zero: reisan- rais- risum -risans

Consonants Labial: p, b, m, f, v Consonants Velar: c, z, h Dental: t, d, ₫, n, s, r, l

Mutation � By mutation , or umlaut we mean a change of vowel caused by partial assimilation to the following vowel. � i- mutation the most important type of mutation is that caused by an i (or j) of the following syllable. This type is usually referred to as mutation. Mutation brings about a complete change in vowel quality: one phoneme is replaced by another. In OE i-mutation affects practically all vowels. Only short e and I have no connection with it. *fullian > fyllan

� Monophtongs �a > e framian > fremman “perform” sandian > sendan “send” namnian > nemnan “name” æ > e tælian > tellan “tell” sælian > sellan “give” o > e ofstain > efstan “hurry”

Diphtongs �ea > ie earmiþu > iermþu “poverty” �ēa > īe zelēafian > zel īefan “believe” � eo > ie afeorrian > afierran “remove”. This ie also often becomes ī, ŷ : afirran, afyrran

� The i-mutation was significant for the phonemic structure of OE. As a result of it a new phoneme arose which was different from the original one. �The phoneme (e) which appeared as a result of imutation of (æ) as in tellan , net had existed in the words etan “eat ”.

�a short /ɑ/. Spelling variations like ‹land› ~ ‹lond› "land" suggest it may have had a rounded allophone [ɒ] before [n] in some cases) �ā long /ɑː/. Rarely found in manuscripts, but usually distinguished from short ‹a› in modern editions. �æ short /æ/. Before 800 the digraph ‹ae› is often found instead of ‹æ›. During the 8 th century ‹æ› began to be used more frequently was standard after 800. In 9 th century Kentish manuscripts, a form of ‹æ› that was missing the upper hook of the ‹a› part was used. Kentish ‹æ› may be either /æ/ or /e/ although this is difficult to determine. �ǽ long /æː/. Rarely found in manuscripts, but usually distinguished from short ‹æ› in modern editions.

�e short /e/. �ę either Kentish /æ/ or /e/ although this is difficult to determine. A modern editorial substitution for a form of ‹æ› missing the upper hook of the ‹a› found in 9 th century texts. �ē long /eː/. Rarely found in manuscripts, but usually distinguished from short ‹e› in modern editions. �ea short /æɑ/; after ‹ċ›, ‹ġ›, sometimes /æ/ or /ɑ/. �ēa long /æːɑ/. Rarely found in manuscripts, but usually distinguished from short ‹ea› in modern editions. After ‹ċ›, ‹ġ›, sometimes /æː/. �eo short /eo/; after ‹ċ›, ‹ġ›, sometimes /o/ �ēo Long /eːo/. Rarely found in manuscripts, but usually distinguished from short ‹eo› in modern editions.

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