Description of vowels in general and of Polish vowels in detail Contents:

1. Vowel chart and cardinal vowels ............................................................................................................. 2

1.1. Secondary cardinal vowels..................................................................................................................... 2

2. Acoustic structure of vowels .................................................................................................................... 3

2.1. Fundamentals ........................................................................................................................................ 3

2.2. F1, F2 and vowel quality ........................................................................................................................ 3

3. Vowels in the world’s languages .............................................................................................................. 4

3.1. Perception of vowels .............................................................................................................................. 4

3.2. Vowel systems around the world ........................................................................................................... 5

4. Factors affecting vowel quality ................................................................................................................ 5

4.1. Lip rounding ........................................................................................................................................... 5

4.2. Nasalization, nasality............................................................................................................................. 6 4.2.1. Articulatory and acoustic characteristics ...................................................................................... 6 4.2.2. Synchronic and asynchronic articulation ...................................................................................... 7

4.3. Rhotacisation ......................................................................................................................................... 8

4.4. Voice quality .......................................................................................................................................... 9

5. Polish vowels ........................................................................................................................................... 9

5.1. Polish vowel chart .................................................................................................................................. 9

5.2. Lip gestures .......................................................................................................................................... 10

6. Exercises: Oral vowels ............................................................................................................................ 10

6.1. Vowel /y/ in contrast ........................................................................................................................... 10 6.1.1. /ɨ/ - /i/ ......................................................................................................................................... 10 6.1.2. /ɨ/ - /e/ ........................................................................................................................................ 11 6.1.3. /ɨ/ - /ɔ/, /ɨ/ - /u/, /ɨ/ - /a/ ............................................................................................................ 11

6.2. Vowel /a/ in contrast .......................................................................................................................... 12 6.2.1. /a/ - /ɛ/........................................................................................................................................ 12 6.2.2. /a/ - /u/, /a/ - /ɔ/, /a/ - /i/ ........................................................................................................... 12

6.3. Vowel /o/ in contrast .......................................................................................................................... 12 6.3.1. /ɔ/ - /u/ ....................................................................................................................................... 12 6.3.2. /ɔ/ - /ɛ/, /ɔ/ - /i/ .......................................................................................................................... 13

6.4. Vowel /e/ in contrast .......................................................................................................................... 13 6.4.1. /ɛ/ - /u/, /ɛ/ - /i/ .......................................................................................................................... 13

6.5. Vowel /u/ in contrast .......................................................................................................................... 13 6.5.1. /u/ - /i/ ........................................................................................................................................ 13

7. Nasal vowels .......................................................................................................................................... 14

7.1. Word final position .............................................................................................................................. 14

7.2. [ę], [ą] before [l] or [ł] .......................................................................................................................... 14

7.3. [ę], [ą] before a plosive or affricate ..................................................................................................... 14

mid

low

high

mid

low

7.4. [ę], [ą] before a fricative (Fri, except for /ɕ/, /ʑ/) .................................................................................. 16

7.5. [ę], [ą] after a non-palatal consonant (C) and before the alveolo-palatal consonant /ɕ/, /ʑ/ .............. 16

7.6. [ę], [ą] after a palatalized or alveolo-palatal consonant (PC) and before the alveolo-palatal consonant /ɕ/, /ʑ/ .............................................................................................................................................. 17

1. Vowel chart and cardinal vowels

Vowels of the languages are described with a reference to the vowel chart – a space that represents a

continuum of possibilities and shows limits of possible vowel quality. If we want to introduce a new

vowel we can plot it on the vowel chart.

Vowel chart refers to two dimensions which play role in the distinction of a vowel quality: the degree

of backness and height (i.e. the vertical and horizontal position of the body of the tongue respectively).

At the perimeter of the vowel chart, cardinal vowels are located. Their qualities are clearly defined,

therefore can be used as a reference for the description of the quality of other vowels.

In the description of the vowels of a specific language the symbols of the nearest cardinal vowels are

chosen.

Figure 1: Cardinal vowels plotted on the vowel chart.

In the articulation of the four cardinal vowels /i/, /a/, /ɑ/ and /u/ the tongue takes an extreme position:

front high, front low, back low and back high respectively.

The articulatory and acoustic differences between the neighboring vowels are not equal, which is also

reflected in the vowel chart: the smallest distance can be noticed between /a/ and /ɑ/, significantly

greater between /a/ – /u/ and /i/ – /u/. The greatest difference exists between /a/ and /i/ and is reflected

by the longest side of the figure.

1.1. Secondary cardinal vowels

The cardinal vowels have an increasing degree of lip rounding: /i/ – spread lips, /ɑ/ – neutral lip

position, /u/ – fully rounded. In general, the degree of lip rounding increases with vowel backness and

affects formant frequencies (they become lowered), but in an asymmetrical manner: the effect is

greater in F3 for front vowels and in F2 for back vowels.

All vowels which have lip rounding similar to that of the nearest cardinal vowel distances on the

vowel chart are accurately reflected by measurements of the formant frequencies (inversed F1 –

height, the difference between F2 and F1– backness). However, this is not the case when a vowel

differs from the adjacent cardinal vowel in terms of the degree of lip rounding – front rounded or back

unrounded vowels would be misplaced on the chart. Therefore, a space of secondary cardinal vowels

was defined.

high

mid

low

front

central

back

Figure 2: Secondary cardinal vowels: the degree of lip rounding

decreases inversely compared to cardinal vowels (from P. Ladefoged, A course in phonetics).

Secondary cardinal vowels have the same position of the tongue as the cardinal vowels, but an

opposite degree of lip rounding which decreases from /y/ (fully rounded) to /ɯ/ (unrounded).

2. Acoustic structure of vowels

2.1. Fundamentals

Sound wave – a complex wave including a number of harmonics (pure tones).

Vocalic sounds – two vowels of the same pitch (i.e. the rate of repetition of the sound wave as a whole

is the same) have different quality when the overtones (i.e. the smaller variations within each

repetition) differ. These smaller variations result from the filtering effect of the vocal tract which takes

a different shape when different vowels are articulated.

Figure 3: Vowel /ɑ/ and /i/ pronounced at the same pitch (F0=700Hz), you can see different overtones that determine

the quality of the two vowels (from P. Ladefoged, Vowels and consonants).

2.2. F1, F2 and vowel quality

The air in the vocal tract is set into vibration by the pulses of the air from the vocal folds. Every

moment the folds open and close the air above them is set into vibration. The shape of the vocal tract

is complex and thus there will be different resonances – the body of air before the raised tongue (in the

mouth) and behind it (in the throat) will be vibrating at a different frequency. The rate of the vibration

in the front of the vocal tract will be higher, because smaller bodies of air have a higher resonant

frequency. The resonances in the vocal tract are called formants.

You can hear the overtones characteristic of the vowels of a different quality by whispering them. Start

with the front high vowel, go through the vowel chart and finish at the high back vowel (e.g. pik, pyk,

pek, pak, pok, puk). You should get a general impression of a descending pitch (due to lowering of

F2).

Generally, the frequency of F2 decreases as the body of the tongue moves from the front to the back of

the vocal tract. The frequencies of F1 reflect the horizontal position of the tongue and decrease from

low to high vowels.

Figure 4: The range of formant frequencies of Polish vowels pronounced in the context of the 6 Polish vowels

pronounced by 10 speakers (after W. Jassem)

3. Vowels in the world’s languages

In order to describe the vowels in terms of their formant frequencies, tongue and lip gestures we can

refer to a continuous vowel space (Fig.5).

Figure 5: The possible vowel space (from Ladefoged, Vowels and consonants).

3.1. Perception of vowels

The perception of vocalic sounds is very sensitive and listeners can actually distinguish

between vowels whose formant frequencies differ only by 12 Hz in some regions of the vowel space

(D. Kewley-Port, after P. Ladefoged). It is also possible for some listeners to distinguish among 40

vowel heights and from 5 to 30 degrees of vowel backness. However, these distinctions are not

linguistically significant (e.g. they play no role in word disambiguation), but can be used for accent

identification.

3.2. Vowel systems around the world

Generally, there are great differences among languages as regards the number of vowels used, e.g.

some aboriginal languages of Australia use only three vowels, but have a complex consonantal system.

However, the number of vowels can not be taken as a predictor of the number of consonants in the

language, e.g. Hawaiian 5 V and 8 C, Zulu 5 V and 44 C.

Ladefoged: there are probably no languages that use less than 3 vowels and these are symbolized by

letters: i, a, o or i, a, u (uncertain: Kabardian, Caucasus, maybe 2 V). The choice of these vowels is

determined by their position on the perimeter of the vowel space, which ensures an effective way of

distinguishing words.

One of the factors affecting the development of vowel systems was forming patterns. As the auditory

space for possible vowels is triangular, it seems that the most beneficial is the selection of the most

distant vowels (i, a, o or i, a, u) and adding two more vowels, so that the resulting vowel space is

symmetrical.

According to P. Ladefoged, about 20% of the world’s languages use five contrasting vowels and a

preference for odd number of vowels is observed, which is related to the triangular shape of the vowel

space.

Taking into account various languages, vowels are not evenly distributed in the possible vowel space:

the left-hand half of the space (i, e, a) is more densely “populated” than the upper right half (o, u).

The most effective use of vowels is ensured by such distribution in the vowel space, where one vowel

is located at the bottom of the space and others are distributed evenly on either side.

Audio examples of languages using five contrasting vowels (including Spanish, Japanese, Hawaiian

and Swahili) can be found at http://www.phonetics.ucla.edu/vowels/chapter3/table3.html.

Figure 6: The vowel system of Spanish plotted on the possible vowel space.

Figure 7: Vowel chart of Spanish

vowels.

The order of the letters in the Latin alphabet: a, e, i, o, u also reflects the frequency of the occurrence

of the vowels in languages with 5 contrasting vowels (the same concerns Polish vowel system).

More than 5 vowels can be found in: Californian English (14), BBC English (20), German, Swedish

(especially in dialects), Dutch dialect of Weert (28: 12 long, 10 short and 6 diphthongs).

4. Factors affecting vowel quality

4.1. Lip rounding

Lip rounding is another quality (beside tongue height and backness) contrasting vowels. The degree of

lip rounding increases with vowel backness i.e. back vowels are produced with a greater degree of lip

openness than front vowels, therefore they become rounded to a greater extent (cf sec. Błąd! Nie

można odnaleźć źródła odwołania.).

In theory, any vowel can be pronounced with a smaller of greater degree of lip rounding.

Regular (i.e. phonological) distinctions are made in a number of European languages e.g. French or

German.

Figure 8: Vowel contrasts in French.

Figure 9: Vowel contrasts in German.

4.2. Nasalization, nasality

4.2.1. Articulatory and acoustic characteristics

Generally, during the articulation of vowels the velum is raised and the airstream from the lungs is

blocked off from the nasal tract. However, vowels can be also produced with the velum lowered – it

receives a new quality and is described as nasal or nasalized vowel.

The terms nasal and nasalized vowel refer to different acoustic

and articulatory phenomena:

a) nasalized vowels: affected by the nasal characteristics of

surrounding nasal stops – they assimilate to the nasal properties

of the adjacent nasal stop (English)

b) nasal vowels: regardless of the context they have a nasal

resonance (French, Polish): nasal formant ca. 250 Hz, and two

linguistically significant formants above that

The air does not need to escape through the nasal cavity for a sound to be nasal. It is enough if the

nasal tract remains opened during the articulation in which case there is an additional nasal resonance.

Nasalization does not affect all the

oral vowels in the same way:

a) nasal vowels are characterized by

wider bandwidth of F1

b) the F1 of oral vowels is well

defined and has greater amplitude (it

is narrower and darker)

c) increased F2 bandwidth in “men”

and “man”, additionally increased F1

frequency

4.2.2. Synchronic and asynchronic articulation

Nasal vowels can be articulated in two manners depending on the behavior of the soft palate and

“participation” of the nasal cavity:

a) Synchronic articulation (monophtongal nasal vowels as in e.g. French)

The soft palate remains lowered from the start to the end of the articulation of the vowel. The oral and

nasal tract “participate” simultaneously in the articulation of the vowel. Resonances resulting from

changes in the shape of the oral tract (-> tongue position) occur simultaneously with those produced

by airstream vibration in the nasal cavity.

b) asynchronic articulation (diphtongal nasal vowels as in Polish)

Figure 10: Vocal tract during

articulation of a nasal vowel (from W.

Jassem, Acoustic phonetics).

Figure 11: Figure 12: Formant structure of nasalized vowels (top) and

oral (bottom) in the same phonetic context.

The soft palate becomes lowered with some delay relative to the start of vowel articulation. The nasal

resonance is not synchronized with the flow of the airstream through the oral tract and movement of

the body of the tongue. Resonances in the nasal cavity occur with a delay relative to resonances in the

oral tract. In such scenario a diphthong consisting of two segments (an oral vowel followed by a nasal

or nasalized approximant) is produced.

The asynchronic articulation of nasal vowels is reflected in the spectrogram.

The part of the display corresponding to the oral vowel has formant frequencies characteristic of that

vowel. The display changes with the occurrence of the nasal segment – the frequencies of the F2 and

F3 as well as the energy of all the formants decrease. The transitions of F2 are characteristic of the

subsequent nasal segment.

Figure 12: A spectrogram showing the polisegmental structure of Polish nasal vowel [ę].

4.3. Rhotacisation

In the pronunciation of vowels the tip of the tongue remains normally inactive. However, it can be

raised towards the palate (without coming into contact with it) to produce a vowel of a new quality.

This process is known as Rhotacisation or r-coloring.

Figure 13: Vocal tract during articulation of a erotic

or rhotacized vowel (from W. Jassem, Acoustic phonetics).

We distinguish between rhotacized and rhotic vowels on the basis of

similar factors as in case of nasal and nasalized vowels:

a) rhotacized vowels are affected by the characteristics the adjacent

/r/ sound to which they assimilate (e.g. varieties of English and

Chinese)

b) rhotic vowels – the r-colouring occurs irrespective of the adjacent

consonantal /r/ sound, even if there is no /r/ in the nearest context (rare)

The characteristic acoustic feature of the rhotic and rhotacized vowels is the lowered frequency of F3

in comparison to the corresponding oral vowels.

Figure 14: The spectrogram showing the structure of „standard” oral and rhotacized vowels (from P. Ladefoged, A

course in phonetics). The arrow indicates the lowered F3 of the vowel /ɝ/.

4.4. Voice quality

breathy voiced – Gujarati

creaky voiced – Mazatec

tense–voice – Mpi

The number of vowel qualities is very large if we take into account all possible differences in vowel

height, backness, lip rounding, nasalization, Rhotacisation and voice quality.

An example of a very interesting language is !Xóõ (a Bushman language spoken in the region of the

Kalahari Desert):

a rich consonantal system (over 50% of the words begin with a click of some sort, numerous

ejectives),

a complex vowel system: /a/, /o/, /u/: plain (regular voicing), pharyngealized (with a more

constricted pharynx), strident (epiglottalized: lower part of the epiglottis near larynx

tightened) and breathy

5. Polish vowels

5.1. Polish vowel chart

Figure 15: Vowel chart: Polish vowels are marked in red circles.

Vowel contrasts on the basis of the tongue position:

a) in the horizontal space:

high: /i/, /ɨ/, /u/

mid: /ɛ/, /ɔ/

low: /a/

b) in the vertical space:

front: /i/, /ɛ/

front centralised: /ɨ/

central: /a/

back: /u/, /ɔ/

Table 1: Cross sections of the position of the tongue during the articulation of Polish vowel phonemes.

5.2. Lip gestures

As mentioned already the degree of lip rounding increases with vowel backness. Therefore, if we list

Polish vowels from the front ones to the back ones, we will receive a sequence of an increasing lip

rounding:

/i/, /ɨ/, /ɛ/ – spread lips

/a/ – neutral lip position

/ɔ/, /u/ – fully rounded (labialized)

Labialization is a secondary feature, because the quality of the vowels is primarily determined by the

vertical position of the tongue.

6. Exercises: Oral vowels

6.1. Vowel /y/ in contrast

6.1.1. /ɨ/ - /i/

bić-być bitɕ bɨtɕ

wił-wył viw vɨw

tik-tyk tik tɨk

miła-myła miwa mɨwa

piły-pyły piwɨ pɨwɨ

pisk-pysk pisk pɨsk

wybił-wybył vɨbiw vɨbɨw

nowi-nowy nɔvi nɔvɨ

ładni-ładny wadɲi wadnɨ

wyszły-wyszli vɨʃwɨ vɨʃli

My musimy umyć nasz nowy, ładny samochód. mɨ muɕimɨ umɨdʑ naʒ nɔvɨ wadnɨ samɔxut

Zegar tyka: tik - tak, właśnie wybił drugą. zɛgar tɨka tik tak vwaɕɲɛ vɨbiw drugɔw~

Miła pani zmyła lepki pył z twarzy. miwa paɲi zmɨwa lɛpci pɨw s tfaʒɨ

Tymek wypił wielki łyk wody. tɨmɛg vɨpiw vjɛlci wɨg vɔdɨ

6.1.2. /ɨ/ - /e/

syn-sen sɨn sɛn

byk-bek bɨk bɛk

zły-złe zwɨ zwɛ

wy-we vɨ vɛ

tyczka-teczka tɨʧka tɛʧka

wyjście-wejście vɨjɕtɕɛ vɛjɕtɕɛ

nowy-nowe nɔvɨ nɔvɛ

stary-stare starɨ starɛ

dobry-dobre dɔbrɨ dɔbrɛ

młody-młode mwɔdɨ mwɔdɛ

Krysia wyszła ze sklepu i weszła do fryzjera. krɨɕa vɨʃwa zɛ sklɛpu i vɛʃwa dɔ frɨzjɛra

Syn Marzeny miał strasznie zły sen. sɨn maʒɛnɨ mjaw straʃɲɛ zwɨ sɛn

Wy we wtorek macie dzień wolny. vɨ vɛ ftɔrɛg matɕɛ dʑɛɲ vɔlnɨ

Te nowe lody waniliowe są dobre i pożywne. tɛ nɔvɛ lɔdɨ vaɲiljɔvɛ sɔw~ dɔbrɛ i pɔʒɨvnɛ

6.1.3. /ɨ/ - /ɔ/, /ɨ/ - /u/, /ɨ/ - /a/

rym-Rom rɨm rɔm

tym-tom tɨm tɔm

mamy-mamo mamɨ mamɔ

złoty-złoto zwɔtɨ zwɔtɔ

byk-Bóg bɨk buk

domy-domu dɔmɨ dɔmu

stoły-stołu stɔwɨ stɔwu

styl-stal stɨl stal

dym-dam dɨm dam

róży-róża ruʒɨ ruʒa

W tym domu mamy tylko jeden tom poezji. f tɨm dɔmu mamɨ tɨlkɔ jɛdɛn tɔm pɔɛzji

Złoty wazon spadł ze stołu. zwɔtɨ vazɔn spadw zɛ stɔwu

Nie ma róży bez kolców. ɲɛ ma ruʒɨ bɛs kɔltsuf

Ona ma styl i nerwy ze stali. ɔna ma stɨl i nɛrvɨ zɛ stali

6.2. Vowel /a/ in contrast

6.2.1. /a/ - /ɛ/

Ala-Ela ala ɛla

maj-mej maj mɛj

kram-krem kram krɛm

placek-plecak platsɛk plɛtsak

piasek-piesek pjasɛk pjɛsɛk

byłam-byłem bɨwam bɨwɛm

Ala-ale ala alɛ

tamta-tamte tamta tamtɛ

biała-białe bjawa bjawɛ

prosta-proste prɔsta prɔstɛ

Tamte dziewczyny to Ala i Ela. tamtɛ dʑɛfʧɨnɨ tɔ ala i ɛla

W maju byłem w mojej rezydencji nad morzem. v maju bɨwɛm v mɔjɛj rɛzɨdɛntsji nad mɔʒɛm

Obaj mężczyźni mają proste, białe zęby. ɔbaj mɛw~ʃʧɨʑɲi majɔw~ prɔstɛ bjawɛ zɛmbɨ

Poszłam po krem i żel, ale ich nie kupiłam. pɔʃwam pɔ krɛm i ʒɛl alɛ ix ɲɛ kupiwam

6.2.2. /a/ - /u/, /a/ - /ɔ/, /a/ - /i/

bal-ból bal bul

kara-kura kara kura

rocka-roku rɔka rɔku

lat-lot lat lɔt

para-pora para pɔra

jasna-jasno jasna jasnɔ

wysoka-wysoko vɨsɔka vɨsɔkɔ

las-lis las lis

nowa-nowi nɔva nɔvi

jaka-jaki jaka jaci

Pod koniec roku zagra tu koncert wielka gwiazda

rocka. pɔt kɔɲɛdz rɔku zagra tu kɔntsɛrd vjɛlka gvjazda

rɔka

Ta para zna się od lat, pora żeby się pobrali. ta para zna ɕɛ ɔd lat pɔra ʒɛbɨ ɕɛ pɔbrali

Jest bardzo jasno i słońce świeci wysoko na

niebie. jɛzd bardzɔ jasnɔ i swɔɲtsɛ ɕfjɛtɕi vɨsɔkɔ na

ɲɛbjɛ

Jaka matka, taki syn. jaka matka taci sɨn

6.3. Vowel /o/ in contrast

6.3.1. /ɔ/ - /u/

Ola-Ula ɔla ula

oraz-uraz ɔras uras

to-tu tɔ tu

los-luz lɔs lus

mrok-mruk mrɔk mruk

stron-strun strɔn strun

kora- kura kɔra kura

ronda-runda rɔnda runda

miasto-miastu mjastɔ mjastu

państwo-państwu paj~stfɔ paj~stfu

mało-pomału mawɔ pɔmawu

Państwo Urbańscy idą pomału przez miasto. paj~stfɔ urbaj~stsɨ idɔw~ pɔmawu pʃɛz mjastɔ

Ola jest młodsza od Uli o osiem godzin. ɔla jɛzd mwɔʧa ɔd uli ɔ ɔɕɛm gɔdʑin

Pokażę państwu jak dojść do ronda. pɔkaʒɛ paj~stfu jag dɔjʑdʑ dɔ rɔnda

6.3.2. /ɔ/ - /ɛ/, /ɔ/ - /i/

ono-one ɔnɔ ɔnɛ

mocno-mocne mɔtsnɔ mɔtsnɛ

ciemno-ciemne tɕɛmnɔ tɕɛmnɛ

zimno-zimne ʑimnɔ ʑimnɛ

moja-mija mɔja mija

zdrowo-zdrowi zdrɔvɔ zdrɔvi

To dziecko ma ciemne, mocno kręcone włosy i

jasne oczy. tɔ dʑɛtskɔ ma tɕɛmnɛ mɔtsnɔ krɛntsɔnɛ vwɔsɨ i

jasnɛ ɔʧɨ

Choć jedzą niezdrowo, są bardzo zdrowi. xɔdʑ jɛdzɔw~ ɲɛzdrɔvɔ sɔw~ bardzɔ zdrɔvi

Gdy jest zimno, trzeba się ciepło ubrać. gdɨ jɛzd ʑimnɔ ʧɛba ɕɛ tɕɛpwɔ ubratɕ

6.4. Vowel /e/ in contrast

6.4.1. /ɛ/ - /u/, /ɛ/ - /i/

te-tu tɛ tu

pole-polu pɔlɛ pɔlu

stek-stóg stɛk stuk

bez-bis bɛs bis

nowe-nowi nɔvɛ nɔvi

żywe-żywi ʒɨvɛ ʒɨvi

Ci nowi nauczyciele mają nowe, lepsze metody. tɕi nɔvi nauʧɨtɕɛlɛ majɔw~ nɔvɛ lɛpʃɛ mɛtɔdɨ

Artysta zagrał na bis bez akompaniamentu. artɨsta zagraw na biz bɛz akɔmpaɲjamɛntu

Niemili ludzie nie są tu mile widziani. ɲɛmili ludʑɛ ɲɛ sɔw~ tu milɛ vidʑaɲi

6.5. Vowel /u/ in contrast

6.5.1. /u/ - /i/

wół-wił vuw viw

półka-piłka puwka piwka

muły-miły muwɨ miwɨ

stołku-stołki stɔwku stɔwci

fotelu-foteli fɔtɛlu fɔtɛli

hotelu-hoteli xɔtɛlu xɔtɛli

Mój wuj codziennie pił pół szklanki piwa. muj vuj tsɔdʑɛnɲɛ piw puw ʃklaŋci piva

Połóż piłkę na stołku, a nie na fotelu. pɔwuʃ piwkɛ na stɔwku a ɲɛ na fɔtɛlu

Nie lubię hoteli, wolę spać w przydrożnym ɲɛ lubjɛ xɔtɛli vɔlɛ spatɕ f pʃɨdrɔʒnɨm mɔtɛlu

motelu.

7. Nasal vowels

Polish nasal vowels [ą] and [ę] (in ortography) are articulated in the asynchronic manner (see sec. 4.2),

hence they have a polisegmental structure and are realized as diphtongs consisting of an oral vowel /ɔ/

and /ɛ/ followed by a nasal stop /m/, /n/, /ɲ/, /ŋ/ or nasalized approximant /w~/ or /j~/.

There are no contexts in which Polish nasal vowels are realized as monophtongs (i.e. articulated in the

synchronic manner).

7.1. Word final position

– ą -> /ɔw~/

e.g. idą /idɔw~/ drogą /drogɔw~/

– ę -> /ɛw~/ or /ɛ/

e.g. idę /idɛw~/ or /idɛ/

drogę /drogɛw~/ or /drogɛ/

widzę-widzą vidzɛw~ vidzɔw~

lubię-lubią lubjɛw~ lubjɔw~

biorę-biorą bjɔrɛw~ bjɔrɔw~

liczę-liczą litʃɛw~ litʃɔw~

grzeję-grzeją gʒɛjɛw~ gʒɛjɔw~

myje-myję mɨjɛ mɨjɛw~

daje-daję dajɛ dajɛw~

żyje-żyję ʒɨjɛ ʒɨjɛw~

mało-małą mawɔ mawɔw~

cało-całą tsawɔ tsawɔw~

zimno-zimną ʑimnɔ ʑimnɔw~

ciemno-ciemną mawɔ mawɔw~

7.2. [ę], [ą] before [l] or [ł]

pronounced as /e/, /o/ followed by /l/ or /w/:

ę + l -> /ɛ/ + /l/, e.g. zaczęli /zaʧɛli/

ę + ł -> / ɛ / + /w/ e.g. wzięła /vʑɛwa/

ą + ł -> /ɔ/ + /w/ e.g. kopnął /kɔpnɔw/

zaczął zatʃɔw

uśmiechnął uɕmjɛxnɔw

płynęła pwɨnɛwa

wzięliśmy vʑɛliɕmɨ

kopnęli kɔpnɛli

odpoczęli ɔtpɔtʃɛli

Pływacy odpoczęli chwilę i popłynęli dalej. pwɨvatsɨ ɔtpɔtʃɛli xfilɛ i pɔpwɨnɛli dalɛj

Zaczął oglądać film ale zaraz zasnął. zatʃɔw ɔglɔndatɕ film alɛ zaraz zasnɔw

Zdjęła okulary i uśmiechnęła się do mnie. zdjɛwa ɔkularɨ i uɕmjɛxnɛwa ɕɛ dɔ mɲɛ

7.3. [ę], [ą] before a plosive or affricate

pronounced as /e/, /o/ followed by a nasal (Nas), a plosive (Plo) or an affricate (Aff); the nasal

has the same place of articulation as the adjacent plosive or affricate

ę, ą + Plo -> / ɛ /, /ɔ/ + Nas + Plo

before bilabial plosives /p/, /b/: dąb /dɔmp/, zęby /zɛmby/

dąb dɔmp

skąpy skɔmpɨ

trąba trɔmba

zęby zɛmbɨ

kłęby kwɛmbɨ

sęp sɛmp

Gołębie, jastrzębie i sępy to ptaki. gɔwɛmbjɛ jastʃɛmbjɛ i sɛmpɨ tɔ ptaci

Wziął kąpiel z bąbelkami i umył zęby. vʑɔw kɔmpjɛl z bɔmbɛlkami i umɨw zɛmbɨ

W orkiestrze dąbrowskiej są bębny i trąby. v ɔrcjɛstʃɛ dɔmbrɔfscjɛj sɔw~ bɛmbnɨ i trɔmbɨ

before dental plosives /t/, /d/: zamknięty /zamkɲɛnty/, piąta /pjɔnta/

before palatal or velar plosives

/c/, /ɟ/, /k/, /g/: ręka /rɛŋka/, ciągle /ʨɔŋglɛ/

łąka wɔŋka

pociąg pɔtɕɔŋk

ciągle tɕɔŋglɛ

ręka rɛŋka

błękit bwɛŋcit

księga kɕɛŋga

Księgowy ciągle spóźnia się na pociąg. kɕɛŋgɔvɨ tɕɔŋglɛ spuʑɲa ɕɛ na pɔtɕɔŋk

Dziękuję za piękne rękawiczki. dʑɛŋkujɛ za pjɛŋknɛ rɛŋkavitʃci

Na Węgrzech mąka jest dużo tańsza. na vɛŋgʒɛx mɔŋka jɛzd duʒɔ taj~ʃa

ę, ą + Aff -> /e/, /o/ + Nas + Aff

before post-dental affricates /ts/, /dz/: między /mjendzɨ/, zając /zajonts/

before alveolar affricates /ʧ/, /ʤ/: tęcza /teṇʧa/, rączka /roṇʧka/

zając zajɔnts

pieniądze pjeɲɔndze

rączka rɔṇtʃka

zamknięty zamkɲentɨ

błędy bwendɨ

ręce rentse

między mjendzɨ

tęcza teṇtʃa

Będę spędzać więcej czasu na łące. bende spendzadʑ vjentsej tʃasu na wɔntse

Od pączków boli go żołądek. ɔt pɔṇtʃkuv bɔli gɔ ʒɔwɔndek

W tym miesiącu jest stale zajęty i zmęczony. f tɨm mjeɕɔntsu jest stale zajentɨ i zmeṇtʃɔnɨ

W piątek oglądałam interesujący film. f pjɔnteg ɔglɔndawam interesujɔntsɨ film

before alveolo-palatal affricates /ʨ/, /ʥ/: pięć /pjɛɲʨ/, usiądzie /uɕɔɲʥɛ/

zdjąć zdjɔɲtɕ

sądzić sɔɲdʑitɕ

błądzić bwɔɲdʑitɕ

pięć pjɛɲtɕ

zdjęcia zdjɛɲtɕa

będzie bɛɲdʑɛ

Sędzia zarządził pięć minut przerwy. sɛɲdʑa zaʒɔɲdʑiw pjɛɲdʑ minut pʃɛrvɨ

Na przyjęciu będzie dziesięć osób. na pʃɨjɛɲtɕu bɛɲdʑɛ dʑɛɕɛɲdʑ ɔsup

Na zdjęciu siedzę w pierwszym rzędzie. na zdjɛɲtɕu ɕɛdzɛ f pjɛrfʃɨm ʒɛɲdʑɛ

7.4. [ę], [ą] before a fricative (Fri, except for /ɕ/, /ʑ/)

ę, ą + Fri (-/ɕ/, /ʑ/) -> /ɛw~/, /ɔw~/ + Fri e.g. często /ʧɛw~stɔ/ , brązowy /brɔw~zɔvy/

Śląsk ɕlɔw~sk

często tʃɛw~stɔ

brązowy brɔw~zɔvɨ

język jɛw~zɨk

wąż vɔw~ʃ

mężczyzna mɛw~ʃtʃɨzna

książę kɕɔw~ʒɛ

księżna kɕɛw~ʒna

wąchać vɔw~xatɕ

węch vɛw~x

wąwóz vɔw~vus

przedsięwzięcie pʃɛtɕɛw~vʑɛɲtɕɛ

Książę śląski ma gęste wąsy. kɕɔw~ʒɛ ɕlɔw~sci ma gɛw~stɛ vɔw~sɨ

Często czytam książki w obcych językach. tʃɛw~stɔ tʃɨtam kɕɔw~ʃci v ɔptsɨx jɛw~zɨkax

Mój mąż ma świetny węch. muj mɔw~ʒ ma ɕfjɛtnɨ vɛw~x

Ten mężczyzna pracuje w mięsnym. tɛn mɛw~ʃtʃɨzna pratsujɛ v mjɛw~snɨm

7.5. [ę], [ą] after a non-palatal consonant (C) and before the alveolo-palatal consonant /ɕ/, /ʑ/

C + ę, ą + /ɕ/ /ʑ/ -> C + /ɛw~/, /ɔw~/ + /ɕ/ /ʑ/ e.g. sąsiad /sɔw~ɕat/

or

C + ę, ą + /ɕ/ /ʑ/ -> C + /ɛj~/, /ɔj~/ + /ɕ/ /ʑ/ e.g. szczęście /ʃʧɛj~ɕʨɛ/

wąsik vɔw~ɕik

sąsiad sɔw~ɕat

szczęście ʃtʃɛw~ɕtɕɛ

więzienie vjɛj~ʑɛɲɛ

zwięźle zvjɛj~ʑlɛ

Sąsiad z wąsikiem hoduje gęsi. sɔw~ɕad z vɔw~ɕicjɛm xɔdujɛ gɛw~ɕi

Kazano więźniowi usiąść i mówić zwięźle. kazanɔ vjɛj~ʑɲɔvi uɕɔj~ʑdʑ i muvidʑ zvjɛj~ʑlɛ

Ten nieszczęśnik cierpi na zanik mięśni. tɛn ɲɛʃtʃɛw~ɕɲik tɕɛrpi na zaɲig mjɛj~ɕɲi

7.6. [ę], [ą] after a palatalized or alveolo-palatal consonant (PC) and before the alveolo-palatal

consonant /ɕ/, /ʑ/

PC + ę, ą + /ɕ/ /ʑ/ -> PC + /ɛj~/, /ɔj~/ + /ɕ/ /ʑ/ e.g. usiąść /uɕɔj~ɕʨ/