[e]→[ɛ]Certainty: 5/5Commonality: 4/5

Lowering Laxing ATR Harmony Kwa Germanic Romance

Close-mid front unrounded vowel to Open-mid front unrounded vowel

The shift from 'e' to 'ɛ' (eps) is a process of vowel lowering, where the tongue position moves slightly down in the mouth.

Phonetic Effects

Lowering, Laxing

Language Examples

Akan (Twi/Fante) Kwa

e [+ATR]→ɛ [-ATR]— ATR vowel harmony: Akan contrasts [+ATR] /e/ with [-ATR] /ɛ/. Suffix vowels alternate based on root ATR value; e.g., 'ode' vs 'odɛ' minimal pairs.

English Germanic

late [e:] (Early Modern)→let [ɛ] (in certain environments)— Vowel shortening and lowering in closed syllables.

French Romance

Latin e [e:]→French è [ɛ]— Opening of mid-vowels in stressed open syllables.

Related Transformations

Reverse Lowering

More Romance Shifts

[ã] → [õ] — Raising [a] → [ã] — Assimilatory Nasalization [a] → [∅] — Elision [a] → [ʔ] — Glottalization [a] → [ə] — Vowel Reduction

Sources & References

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