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--- "Mark J. Reed" <markjreed@hidden.email> wrote: > On Tue, Jun 01, 2004 at 01:43:59PM -0700, Anton > Sherwood wrote: > > As I understand the term, a falling diphthong is > > one whose core is its first element, like /aj/. > >Is one of us confused? > Apparently so. I thought falling diphthongs where > ones where the first element was the higher > (semi)vowel (the i/j or u/w), and therefore the > tongue has to "fall" in the course of pronouncing > the syllable. > Judges? According to the Wikipedia article on diphthongs <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphthong>: : Falling diphtongs are stressed on the first element; : raising diphthongs on the second. In Closing : diphthongs, the second element is closer than the : first; in opening diphthongs, more opened. Some : languages contrast short and long diphthongs. which seems to agree with Anton. (So if Wikipedia is correct and if we're describing /ja/ as a diphthong, it's a raising opening ones.) -- Tristan. Find local movie times and trailers on Yahoo! Movies. http://au.movies.yahoo.com