Near-close near-back vowel

The near-close near-back vowel, or near-high near-back vowel, is a type of vowel sound, used in some vocal languages. The IPA symbol for the near-close near-back rounded vowel is $\langle\rangle$. It is informally called "horseshoe u". Prior to 1989, there was an alternate IPA symbol for this sound, $\langle\rangle$, called "closed omega"; use of this symbol is no longer sanctioned by the IPA. In Americanist phonetic notation, the symbol $\langle\rangle$ (a small capital U, not Greek lowercase upsilon) is used.

The IPA prefers the terms "close" and "open" for vowels, and the name of the article follows this. However, a large number of linguists, perhaps a majority, prefer the terms "high" and "low".

Some languages may have a near-close near-back unrounded vowel, which can be represented with $\langle\rangle$ or $\langle\rangle$ in the IPA.