Y

Y
Y y
Usage
Writing systemLatin script
TypeAlphabetic and logographic
Language of originLatin language
Sound values
  • [j]
  • [i]
  • []
  • [ɪ]
  • [ɘ]
  • [ə]
  • [ɯ]
  • [ɛː]
  • [ɥ]
  • [ɣ̟]
  • [ɛi]
  • [y]
  • [ʏ]
  • [ɨ]
  • [ʔ]
  • [ʝ]
  • [ɟ͡ʝ]
  • [d͡ʒ]
  • [d͡z]
  • [ʒ]
  • [ʃ]
  • [θ]
  • [ð]
  • [θ̠]
  • [z]
  • /w/
  • //
In UnicodeU+0059, U+0079
Alphabetical position25
History
Development
          • Υ υ
            • Y y
Time period54 CE to present
Sisters
Other
Associated graphsy(x), ly, ny
Writing directionLeft-to-right

Y, or y, is the twenty-fifth and penultimate letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. According to some authorities, it is the sixth (or seventh if including W) vowel letter of the English alphabet.[1] Its name in English is wye[2] (pronounced /ˈw/ ), plural wyes.[3]

In the English writing system, it mostly represents a vowel and seldom a consonant, and in other orthographies it may represent a vowel or a consonant.

  1. ^ "The Truth About 'Y': It's Mostly a Vowel". Merriam-Webster. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  2. ^ Also spelled wy, and the plural is wyes.
  3. ^ "Y", Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition (1989); Merriam-Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged (1993); "wy", op. cit.