Re: Vowel Harmony Asthetically Pleasing?

On Sunday, December 26, 2004, at 10:25 , Joe wrote:

> # 1 wrote:
>
>> Adam F. wrote:
>>
>>> I am looking for opinions. Who finds vowel harmony in general to be
>>> asthetically pleasing and what do you think of my sketch?
[snip]

>> It seems to be harmonic except the "a[A]" that is the only unrounded
>> vowel
>> of your back vowels,
>>
>> It is a little out of the harmony compared with the others of its group
>>
>>
>
> Indeed.  I'd add a rounded front group and an  unrounded back group:
OK - but why must Adam ape the Turkish type of vowel harmony? It is not by
any means the only sort of vowel harmony found in natlangs.

> Rounded front:
> ü[y], ö[2], (å with umlaut, perhaps?)[&\]
Yes, I was forgetting in my previous mail that Finnish vowel harmony
concerns the _rounded_ high and mid vowels as well as the unrounded low
vowels. The high & mid unrounded front vowels are neutral as regards vowel
harmony.

But Adam was asking about his scheme - it seems quite naturalistic to me.

> Rounded back:
> u[u], o[o], å[Q]
>
> Unrounded back:
> ì[M], è[7],  a[A]
Which would give Jo a scheme like the Turkish, but with three vowel levels
in each series instead of two. But then we would lose Adam's central
vowels - and I rather like them  :)

Ray
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