Phonological history of English close front vowels
sound changes
The close and mid-height front vowels of English (vowels of i and e type) have undergone a variety of changes over time and often vary by dialect.
Developments involving long vowels
Merger of /y/ with /i/ and /yː/ with /iː/
Old English had the two vowel pairs /y/–/yː/ (spelled with ⟨y⟩) and /i/–/iː/ (spelled with ⟨i⟩). By Middle English, the distinction in quality collapsed, leaving only the short–long pair /i/–/iː/, which became KIT /ɪ/ and PRICE /aɪ/ in Modern English. Changes in spelling mean that ⟨y⟩ and ⟨i⟩ are not good indicators of the Old English distinction between the four sounds. For example, Modern English bridge derives from Old English bryċġ, while Modern English scythe derives from Old English sīþe. The name of the letter ⟨y⟩ acquired an initial [w] sound in it to keep it distinct from the name of the letter ⟨i⟩.
Until the Great Vowel Shift
Middle English had a long close front vowel /iː/, and two long mid front vowels: the close-mid /eː/ and the open-mid /ɛː/. The three vowels generally correspond to the modern spellings ⟨i⟩, ⟨ee⟩ and ⟨ea⟩ respectively, but other spellings are also possible. The spellings that became established in Early Modern English are mostly still used today, but the qualities of the sounds have changed significantly.
The /iː/ and /eː/ generally corresponded to similar Old English vowels, and /ɛː/ came from Old English /æː/ or /æːɑ̯/.
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