What was the Great Vowel Shift?
The Great Vowel Shift was a massive but gradual change affecting the sound of long vowels of English from the 12th -18th centuries, but mainly in the 15th and 16th centuries at the very end of the Middle English period. The long vowels of Middle English shifted upwards, meaning that a vowel that used to be pronounced in one place in the mouth would be pronounced higher up in the mouth in Modern English. Originally, the long vowels were essentially the same as those found in Latin. However, during the Great Vowel Shift, the two highest long vowels became diphthongs and the other five underwent an increase in tongue height and one of them came to the front. The low- and mid-long vowels were raised, (รค) and () becoming () and (), for example, while the high long vowels () and () became the diphthongs () and (ou). The Great Vowel Shift changed the whole vowel system of British English. Diphthongization of high front /i:/ (the ee sound in meet) and high back /u:/ (as in fool) led to instabi
