Catford notes that most languages with rounded front and back vowels use distinct types of labialization, protruded back vowels and compressed front vowels. However, a few, such as the
Scandinavian languages, have protruded front vowels. One of them, Swedish, even contrasts the two types of rounding in front vowels (see
near-close near-front rounded vowel, with Swedish examples of both types of rounding). As there are no diacritics in the IPA to distinguish protruded and compressed rounding, an old diacritic for labialization, , will be used here as an
ad hoc symbol for protruded front vowels. Another possible transcription is or (a close-mid front vowel modified by endolabialization), but that could be misread as a diphthong. For the
close-mid front protruded vowel that is usually transcribed with the symbol , see
near-close front protruded vowel. If the usual symbol is , the vowel is listed here. Acoustically, the sound is in between the more typical compressed close-mid front vowel and the unrounded close-mid front vowel .
Features Occurrence == See also ==