IPA – number 318
IPA – text ʉ
IPA – image
Entity ʉ
X-SAMPA }
Kirshenbaum u"
Sound sample (help·info)

The close central rounded vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is ʉ, and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is }. The IPA symbol is the letter u with a horizontal bar. Both the symbol and the sound are commonly referred to as "barred u".

In most languages this rounded vowel is pronounced with protruded lips (endolabial). However, in a few cases the lips are compressed (exolabial).

There is also a near-close central rounded vowel in some languages.

Close central protruded vowel

Features

• Its vowel height is close, which means the tongue is positioned as close as possible to the roof of the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant.
• Its vowel backness is central, which means the tongue is positioned halfway between a front vowel and a back vowel.
• Its roundedness is protruded, which means that the corners of the lips and drawn together, and the inner surfaces exposed.

Occurrence

Language Word IPA Meaning Notes
Berber Central Morocco Tamazight[1] ? [lːæjˈɡːʉɾ] 'he goes' Allophone of /u/ after velar consonants.
English Australian boot [bʉ̟ːt] 'boot' See Australian English phonology
New Zealand
Cockney[2] [bʉːt] corresponds to /uː/ in other dialects. See English phonology
Estuary[3]
Scouse[4]
Irish ciúin [cʉ̠ːnʲ] 'quiet' Allophone of /uː/ and /u/. See Irish phonology
Russian кюрий[5] [ˈkʲʉrʲɪj] 'curium' Occurs only between palatalized consonants. See Russian phonology

Close central compressed vowel

As there is no official diacritic for compression in the IPA, the spread-lip diacritic [  ͍ ] will be used here with the rounded vowel [ʉ] as an ad hoc symbol. Other possible transcriptions are [ɨ͡β̞] (simultaneous [ɨ] and labial compression) and [ɨ^β] ([ɨ] modified with labial compression).

Features

• Its vowel height is close, which means the tongue is positioned as close as possible to the roof of the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant.
• Its vowel backness is central, which means the tongue is positioned midway between a front vowel and a back vowel.
• Its roundedness is compressed, which means that the margins of the lips approach one another, so that the inner surfaces are not exposed.

Occurs in

Language Word IPA Meaning Notes
Norwegian hus [hʉ͍ːs] 'house' See Norwegian phonology

This vowel is typically transcribed as <ʉ>. It also occurs in some dialects of Swedish, but see also close front compressed vowel. The close back vowels of Norwegian and Swedish are also compressed. See close back compressed vowel.

References

Bibliography

• Abdel-Massih, Ernest T. (1971). A Reference Grammar of Tamazight. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan. 
• Jones, Daniel; Dennis, Ward (1969), The Phonetics of Russian, Cambridge University Press 
• Matthews, William (1938), Cockney, Past and Present: a Short History of the Dialect of London, Detroit: Gale Research Company 
• Przedlacka, Joanna (2001), "Estuary English and RP: Some Recent Findings", Studia Anglica Posnaniensia 36: 35–50 
• Watson, Kevin (2007), "Liverpool English", Journal of the International Phonetic Association 37 (3): 351–360