9.The vowels.

1. The basic vowel symbols are a, e, i, o, u. They could be both short and long. The set of vowels in Proto-Germanic can be represented in the following way:

back vowels: ā, ō, ū; front vowels: ī, ē.

Note: According to Zhluktenko, originally there were only four long vowels in PG : æ, ī, ū, ō. Later in West Germanic languages æ > ā. Apart from ē, that developed from PIE ē through æ, in Old Germanic languages there appeared one more ē that resulted from diphthong ai in unstressed syllable (Goth. haihait).

In tracing vowel changes in Old Germanic languages we have to distinguish between stressed and unstressed syllables, since these give different results.

There was a strict difference between short and long vowels. There were 8 monophthongs and 3 diphthongs in PG.

PG Vowels

Front Back

Short i, e a, u

Long i, e o, u

Diphthongs: /ai/, /eu/, /au/.

IE short /a/ and /o/ merged in PG short /a/.

IE short /i/, /e/, /u/ could correspond to PG /e/, /i/, /o/.

IE long vowels were unchanged. /i/>/i/, /u/>/u/. IE long /a/ and /o/ merged in PG long /o/.

In Early PG there were 4 long vowels: /i/, /u/, /o/ /e/. Then appeared /a/.

High підняття

i u

Front e Mid o Back

a

Low

10. Umlaut– is a case of regressive assimilation, when the vowel is changed under the influence of the following vowel.

1) i-umlaut (Front Mutation)

2) u-umlaut (Back Mutation)

I-Umlaut /a/, /o/, /u/ change into /e/, if the following vowel is /i/, /i/ or /j/.

Later i, i and j disappeared or changed to e. (dailjan – delan)

I-Umlaut in OE took place in prewritten period on the territory of the British Isles.

*a> æ> e

*a> æ

*o> e

*o> oe> e

*u> y:

*u> y

I-Umlaut in OHG

In OHG Mutation took place starting from the 8^th century.

a> a(e)

a > æ

o> ö

o> oe

u> ü

U-Umlaut (Back Mutation)

OE: 7-8 centuries

The short frot vowels æ, e, I were diphthongized when the back vowels u, o, a were present in the following syllable.

i> io OE sifon> siofon

e> eo OE efor> eofor

æ> ea OE saro> searu

This process differs from I-Umlaut in 3 respects:

• it effected almost exclusively short vowels

• it effected only front vowels

• its results are less unifor m

Palatal mutation before ‘h’

e> eo> ie> i

OE cneht> cneoht> cnieht> cniht