Re: lojban 'a'

[Logical Language Group <lojbab@ACCESS.DIGEX.NET>]

>Out of curiosity, why was [A], which can be easily confused with schwa,
>chosen as an
>acceptable alternative, while "a as in cat" was rejected?  The latter
>seems more distinct.
>
>Rik.

Because for many non-English speakers, a as in cat sounds like Lojban "e".
All of the allowed allophones of "a" are fully open vowels, which schwa
and "a as in cat" are not.  We recommend that English speakers try to
tense their mouth when making Lojban vowels other than y, which alone seems to
 mmake it unlikely that there will be a misunderstanding.

lojbab
----
lojbab                                                lojbab@access.digex.net
Bob LeChevalier, President, The Logical Language Group, Inc.
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