Back Vowel Phonemes

[Herb Stahlke]

I'm beginning to suspect that much of this is not pattern but
idiosyncracy.  There appear to be trends, but there seems to be
more instability, which is not surprising given than the contrast
is collapsing across much of the nation.

Herb

>>> douglas at NB.NET 09/19/00 02:43PM >>>
Another example: myself (SE MI):

[/a/ unrounded; /)/ rounded and farther back]

cop, cob, cot, cod, cock = a
[caught, caudal, caulk = )]
cog, dog, frog = )
lost, loss, toss = )
horror = )
on = ) ... but definitely sometimes a
upon = ) ... maybe sometimes a
off = )
water = a
wash = )
watch, swatch, swat = a
Chicago = a

When I thought about this subject and tried a few examples, I
realized that
I use

gothic [gothic typeface, gothic horror story] = a
Goth, Gothic [Gothic language, Gothic tribes] = )

Probably this is merely an idiosyncratic error, but I've never
been called
on it. I suppose I knew 'gothic' before I ever heard of Goths.
For comparison

moth, sloth, broth = )
apothecary, hypothesis = a

-- Doug Wilson