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Is the diphthong /aʊ/ generally realized as [ɑʊ] in British English?

English Language & Usage Asked on June 1, 2021

I noticed that the diphthong /aʊ/ is pronounced by most British English speakers as [ɑʊ] (I may be inaccurate here).

You can see the vowel /a/ on the vowel diagram below:

Vowel Chart

I understand this diagram quite well and the vowel /a/ is located at left bottom, so when I pronounce the diphthong /aʊ/ with the vowel /a/ (as shown in the diagram), it doesn’t sound like the one pronounced by native British English speakers at all. But when I pronounce the diphthong /aʊ/ with the BATH vowel (Southern British English BATH: /ɑː/), it sounds quite normal.

Also listen to the following YouTube videos you will observe:

(copied with exact time)

Is the diphthong /aʊ/ generally realized as [ɑʊ] in Southern British English (also called "Modern RP")? (I would also be interested to know how American speakers pronounce it generally.)

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