you also hear the schwa in fil^m in south african english, but i always assumed that was due to non-English-native (Afrikaner and African) influence. lynne -- M. Lynne Murphy, Assistant Professor in Linguistics Department of English, Baylor University PO Box 97404, Waco, TX 76798 USA Phone: 254-710-6983 Fax: 254-710-3894 http://www.baylor.edu/~M_Lynne_Murphy