frontvokaalin

Frontvokaali, in phonetics and Finnish phonology, refers to a vowel produced with the tongue positioned toward the front of the mouth. This fronting contrasts with back vowels, whose tongue is retracted toward the back of the oral cavity, and with central vowels that occupy a mid position. The term is used to describe a dimension of vowel articulation known as frontness or tongue position.

Articulatory description and categories: Frontvokaalit are classified by tongue height as well as by frontness. Common categories include high (close) front vowels, mid front vowels, and low (open) front vowels. Examples of front vowels in many languages include high front vowels like [i] and [y], mid front vowels like [e] and [ø], and low front vowels like [a] or [æ]. Lip rounding varies by language: many front vowels are unrounded, but some languages contain front rounded vowels such as [y] and [ø], produced with lips rounded while the tongue remains forward.

Phonological role and cross-language patterns: Frontvokaalit interact with other vowels in a language’s vowel system and can influence phenomena such as vowel harmony, phonotactics, and vowel length contrasts. They are a core part of the vowel inventories of most languages, contributing to contrasts between words and to diachronic sound change. In language descriptions, frontvokaalin is typically discussed alongside back vowels and central vowels to map the full vowel space.

Examples and references: English, German, Finnish, and many other languages employ front vowels to varying degrees. IPA transcriptions commonly represent front vowels with symbols like i, e, y, ø, and their rounded or unrounded variants.