Latin alpha explained

Latin alpha
Letter:	Ɑ ɑ
Imagealt:	The letter Latin alpha with a script-a shape, as in the International phonetic alphabet
Script:	Latin script
Type:	alphabet
Language:	International Phonetic Alphabet, General Alphabet of Cameroon Languages
Phonemes:	[{{IPAlink|ɑ}}]
Unicode:	U+2C6D, U+0251
Fam1:	A a/Α α
Usageperiod:	1890s to present
Sisters:	A, Ɒ
Direction:	Left-to-Right
Typedesc:	ic

Latin alpha (majuscule: Ɑ, minuscule: ɑ), script a, or single-story a is a letter of the Latin alphabet based on one lowercase form of a, or on the Greek lowercase alpha (α).

Usage

Although is normally just an allograph of (a), there are instances in which the two letters are distinguished:

• In the International Phonetic Alphabet, (IPA|ɑ) represents an open back unrounded vowel, while (IPA|a) represents an open front unrounded vowel. It has the shape of a script-a.
• Also in the General Alphabet of Cameroon Languages, (Ɑ ɑ) usually represents an open back unrounded vowel, while (A a) represents an open front unrounded vowel. The former is used in the orthographies of several languages of Cameroon, including:
  • Feʼfeʼ^{[1] [2]}
  • Mbembe^[3]
  • Mbo (?): but not Akoose, though it does have phonemes /aa/ and /ɑɑ/;^[4] nor Bakaka.^[5]
  • in some languages, the script-a form (also called literacy form) of the letter (A a), with the lowercase much like the IPA (ɑ), is used and should not be confused with the Latin alpha (Ɑ ɑ) of the GACL; for example, in Muyang, the literacy (A a) represents an open-mid central unrounded vowel but it is not (Ɑ ɑ); the Latin alpha is not used.^[6]
• In typography, it is sometimes referred to as the single-story a, to distinguish it from double-story a.

In Cameroon languages, (Ɑ ɑ) must look like the classical lowercase Greek alpha to better differentiate it from the letter a in script form.

is used in the Uralic Phonetic Alphabet.^[7]

is used in the Teuthonista phonetic transcription system.^[8]

is used in Americanist phonetic notation.^[9]

Typography

Encoding and forms

See also

• Latin turned alpha
• G, which also has two distinct minuscule forms

Notes and References

1. Web site: Priest . Lorna A. . Constable . Peter G. . 2005 . Proposal to Encode Additional Latin Phonetic and Orthographic Characters . March 17, 2013 .
2. Web site: L'alphabet camerounais leçon 1.2 . French . March 17, 2013 .
3. Web site: EYOH, Julius A. . Echebi Emmanuel SANDAMU . 2009 . Mbembe Orthography Guide . March 17, 2013 .
4. Web site: HEDINGER, Robert . 2011 . Akoose . Among the short vowels the two a-sounds and the two o-sounds are in complementary distribution and therefore do not have to be distinguished in the orthography. However, there is a problem in the long vowels where the two pairs of sounds distinguish between distinct words. Up to now they have not been distinguished and it seems this doesn’t cause any problem to readers. . Orthography Guide --> . March 17, 2013 .
5. Web site: SPIELMANN, Kent . 1998 . Mkaa' Orthography Review (Bakaka) . March 17, 2013 .
6. Web site: SMITH, Tony . 2001 . Alphabet et orthographe Muyang . French . March 17, 2013 .
7. Web site: L2/02-141: Uralic Phonetic Alphabet characters for the UCS. 2002-03-20. Michael. Everson. Michael Everson. etal.
8. Web site: L2/11-202: Revised proposal to encode "Teuthonista" phonetic characters in the UCS. 2011-06-02. Michael. Everson. Alois. Dicklberger. Karl. Pentzlin. Eveline. Wandl-Vogt.
9. Web site: L2/12-266: Proposal for Two Phonetic Characters. 2012-07-31. Luanne von. Schneidemesser. etal.