[f]→[u]Certainty: 3/5Commonality: 3/5

Voiceless labiodental fricative to Close back rounded vowel

The shift from the labiodental fricative [f] to the vowel [u] is a form of vocalization. It typically occurs in coda positions where the fricative weakens into a labio-velar glide [w] before merging into a back rounded vowel.

Phonetic Effects

Vocalization, Lenition

Language Examples

Old English to Modern English Germanic

hafoc [v] (OE 'hawk', written with f)→hawk [ɔː]— OE intervocalic /f/ realized as [v] → vocalized to [w/u]: hafoc → hawc → hawk. Note: the vocalizing segment is [v], not [f]; f→u path goes through v→w→u.

Old French Romance

deveir [v]→dû [u]— OF labial [v] before consonant vocalized to [u]: deveir → devoir → dû (had to). Again the vocalizing segment is [v], not [f] directly.

Related Transformations

Reverse Inverse: Voicing

More Romance Shifts

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

Sources & References

Spotted a mistake or have a better example?

EchoDrift is community-driven. You can suggest a change directly through GitHub.

Propose an Edit on GitHub