Stressed vowels BATH

In BATH words there is competition between the short forms [a ~ æ] and long forms [a: ~ æ: ˘ ~ a:], with [a] the most common realization, occurring in all regions. Of the long realizations, [a:] is also fairly common, whilst [a:] is less so, though it too is not regionally restricted. Wells states that “[t]he situation in the BATH words is not altogether clear” (1982: 387), and the same could be said now that SAWD material for the whole of rural Wales has been made available. Nevertheless, Parry’s (1999: 214) phonemic map for chaff shows /a/ dominating, with a few instances of /a:/ in the mid- and south-eastern border areas. His phonetic map for draught (Parry 1999: 217) shows a similar distribution of [a] and [a:], with one significant difference: an area dominated by [a:] in the north-west corner of Wales. The general picture (as Wells concluded) seems to be of confrontation between a non-standard short /a/ and a standard-influenced long /a:/, with the short vowel more than holding its own. However, whilst it is clearly sensible to differentiate between two phonemes here (a short and a long), this is one of those areas in Welsh English phonology where there is fluidity, as indicated also by the sporadic occurrence of the long vowel in TRAP words. On the other hand, it is likely that variation between the short and long forms can be correlated to some extent with register and social class.