ABSTRACT
§ 157. In the Byers Green dialect the vowel most frequently employed in weakly accented syllables is [ə]. The sound occurs even when, for historical reasons, one would expect the highfront vowel [i] (cf. the B.Gn. treatment of ME. i and e, §§ 198, 178). That the traditional [i] has been reduced to [ə] seems improbable. It is much more likely that a process of sound substitution has taken place, a different type of pronunciation having been adopted by dialect speakers. Among the younger generation the vowel [ə] is undoubtedly preferred in unstressed positions. For further information upon the development of the different ME. sounds in B.Gn., the reader may refer to the sections below where each sound has been discussed individually.
