From: fournet.arnaud
Message: 58695
Date: 2008-05-20
----- Original Message -----
From: "Rick McCallister" <gabaroo6958@...>
>
> Is /aeN/ (where N is nasal) an unstable sound by
> nature?
> English does seem to have an abnormally large number
> of variants for this sound
> I've heard <can> as /kan/ /ka:n/ /kaen/ /ke@.../ /keyn/
> (more often can't as keynt), /kEn/ /kE:n/ /kE@.../ /kIn/
> /ki@.../ /kOn/ (at least in can't as "cawn't") /kyaen/,
> /kyen/ /kyEn/ /kyIn/
> Maybe one of the whippersnappers on the list can do a
> thesis on this
>
===========
The nasal feature tends to blur the real nature of the vowel.
So it's quite understandable.
Most nasalized vowels are unstable and tend to disappear
Cf. Old English, Russian,
And French has only three left aN eN oN
the others were lost.
Arnaud