ABSTRACT The paper discusses the early i-/y-spellings which may indicate the narrowing of the long mid close vowel [e: i:] even before the 15th century, a date generally considered the initial stage of the Great Vowel Shift. The change, especially round before [r], with only a few examples in other contexts, shows a pattern typical of lexical diffusion. As regards regional distribution, the early raising was in all probability initiated in the non-Western areas of England, most of the relevant evidence coming from Eastern and Northern dialects.
