umlaut
linguistics
Quick Summary
In linguistics, an umlaut refers to a vowel change caused by assimilation to a succeeding sound, or a vowel that results from this change. It can also refer to a diacritical mark, the diaeresis (¨), placed over a vowel to indicate a more central or front articulation. This mark is common in German and other Germanic languages. For example, the vowel change from 'o' to 'ö' in German, as seen in Gott (god) and Götter (gods), is an instance of umlaut. The term "umlaut" itself comes from German, meaning "around sound".123
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