Vowels

Vowels are sounds that are pronounced with no air obstruction, when the vocal cords are vibrating, and they are prototypically syllabic. Vowels are defined by three features: height, backness and roundness.

Height
Height is the vertical articulation of the vowel, the proximity between the summit of the tongue and the ceiling of the mouth. the more the jaw is dropped and the less the tongue is raised, the lower (more open) the vowel is; and the less the jaw is dropped and the more the tongue is raised, the higher (closer) the vowel is.

Backness
Backness is the horizontal articulation of the vowel, the position of the summit of the tongue relatively to the teeth. The closer the tongue is to the teeth, the more front the vowel is; and the farther the tongue is from the teeth, the more back the vowel is.

Roundness
Roundness is the position of the lips when pronouncing a vowel. If the lips are rounded and pushed forward, the vowel is rounded; and if the lips are not rounded and pushed forward, the vowel is unrounded.

Vowels in Orish
In Orish, there are three levels of height and three levels of backness that define vowels. Roundness is not phonemic but still important for the quality of the vowels, back vowels are rounded and other vowels are unrounded.