The aim of this study is to examine the pronunciation of orthographic <ä, äh> in Standard Austrian German. Various factors, such as the historical development of e-vowels, various prescriptions for pronunciation, regional differences in...
moreThe aim of this study is to examine the pronunciation of orthographic <ä, äh> in Standard Austrian German. Various factors, such as the historical development of e-vowels, various prescriptions for pronunciation, regional differences in pronunciation standards, the questionable phonological status of /ɛː/, as well as the influences of the situation's formality, have an impact on the phonetic realisation. In general,the expected [eː]-pronunciation for <ä, äh> has been confirmed. Only the group of older males exhibited a higher F1 for <ä, äh> than for <e, ee, eh>. An auditory analysis revealed that in read speech, sporadically [ɛː] is used for <ä, äh>, whereas in spontaneous speech, only [eː] occurs. These occasional exceptions can be explained by old prescriptive norms, which still exist in some speakers' minds and can be activated in reading tasks due to the influence of orthography and the formality of the situation.
