English Phonotypic Alphabet

[1][2] The English Phonotypic Alphabet is a phonetic alphabet developed by Sir Isaac Pitman and Alexander John Ellis originally as an English language spelling reform.[3] Although never gaining wide acceptance, elements of it were incorporated into the modern International Phonetic Alphabet.[2]

Letters of the English phonotypic Alphabet
Additional letters for other languages in 1845.
The American version of the alphabet of 1855, as reprinted in a medical dictionary in 1871
An early version of the alphabet, 1843

It was originally published in June 1845.[4] Subsequently, adaptations were published which extended the alphabet to the German, Arabic, Spanish, Tuscan, French, Welsh, Italian, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese and Sanskrit languages.[5]

Letters

The letters are as follows (with some approximations to accommodate Unicode)

Late 1843 (English)

At this stage, long vowels had a cross-bar, and short vowels did not

Long vowels

Ɨ /iː/, E /eɪ/, A /ɑː/, Ɵ /ɔː/, Ʉ /oʊ/?, ꭐ-bar /uː/

Short vowels

I /ɪ/, ⵎ /ɛ/, Ʌ /æ/, O /ɒ/, U /ʌ/, ꭐ /ʊ/

(a proper ⟨ꭐ⟩ was taller and without the dot, like ⟨Ɯ⟩ but with the middle stem not so tall as the others, and did not have a serif at the bottom right)

Diphthongs

Ɯ /juː/, ⅄ /aɪ/, Ȣ /aʊ/?

Reduced ('obscure') vowels

Ǝ /ə/, ⵎ /ᵊ/

Consonants

P B, T D, Є J /tʃ dʒ/, K G

F V, Θ Δ /θ ð/, S Z, Σ Σ /ʃ ʒ/,

L R, M N, И /ŋ/, Y W H.

_a /eɪ/
(Ā)ᶐ /ɑː/
Ɵɵ /ɔː/
_ɷ /oʊ/
Ɯɯ /uː/
Ii /ɪ/
Ee /ɛ/
Aɑ /æ/
Oo /ɒ/
Uu /ʌ/
_(ꭐ)
_ᶙ /juː/
Yy /j/
Ww /w/
Hh /h/
Pp /p/
Bb /b/
Tt /t/
Dd /d/
Єꞔ /tʃ/
Jj /dʒ/
Cc /k/
Gg /ɡ/
Ff /f/
Vv /v/
Ꞁ(ⱦ) /θ/
Ƌ(đ) /ð/
Ss /s/
Zz /z/
Σʃ /ʃ/
(Ʒ)ʒ /ʒ/
Rr /r/
Ll /l/
Mm /m/
Nn /n/
(Ŋ)ŋ /ŋ/

References
  1. Mailer, Norman. The naked and the dead. ISBN 0-241-34049-7. OCLC 1022794385.
  2. Coulmas, Florian (1999-03-12). "English Phonotypic Alphabet". The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Writing Systems. Wiley. ISBN 9780631214816.
  3. Daniels, Peter T. (1996). The World's Writing Systems. Oxford University Press. p. 831. ISBN 9780195079937.
  4. Completion of the Phonotypic Alphabet, The Phonotypic Journal, 5 Nelson Place, Bath, Phonographic Institution, vol. 4, no 42, June 1845, p. 105-106
  5. Extension of the Phonotypic Alphabet, The Phonotypic Journal, 5 Nelson Place, Bath, Phonographic Institution, vol. 4, no 43, June 1845, p. 121–123
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