[ʌ]→[u]Certainty: 5/5Commonality: 4/5
Open-mid back unrounded vowel to Close back rounded vowel
The shift from the unrounded [ʌ] to a rounded back vowel like [u] or its short equivalent [ʊ] is a significant feature in English dialectology. Historically, it represents the preservation of an older phonetic state (the lack of the 'FOOT-STRUT split') or a dialectal reversal where the unrounded vowel rounds and raises.
Phonetic Effects
Rounding, Raising, Foot-Strut Merger
Language Examples
bus [bʌs]→[bʊs]— The STRUT vowel retains a rounded [ʊ] quality, reflecting the absence of the FOOT-STRUT split in Northern dialects.
up [ʌp]→[ʊp]
about [aʊt]→[ʌʊt]— Canadian Raising shifts the onset of the MOUTH diphthong from [a] to [ʌ] before voiceless consonants; outsiders may perceive the raised [ʌ] onset as [u].
Related Transformations
More Raising Shifts
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