View source for W

{{Short description|Twenty-third letter of the Latin alphabet}}
{{distinguish| We (Cyrillic)}}
{{About|the letter of the Latin alphabet}}
{{Redirect|Double U|the DJ|Double U (DJ)}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{pp-move|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2012}}
{{Infobox grapheme
|name=W
|letter=W w
|script=[[Latin script]]
|type=[[Alphabet]]
|typedesc=ic and [[logographic]]
|language=
|phonemes={{flex list|[{{IPAlink|w}}]|[{{IPAlink|v}}]|[{{IPAlink|β}}]|[{{IPAlink|u}}]|[{{IPAlink|uː}}]|[{{IPAlink|ʊ}}]|[{{IPAlink|ɔ}}]|[{{IPAlink|ʋ}}]|[{{IPAlink|ʕʷ}}]|[{{IPAlink|ʙ}}]|[{{IPAlink|ʷ|◌ʷ}}]|[{{IPAlink|ɣ}}]|[{{IPAlink|f}}]}}
|unicode= U+0057, U+0077
|alphanumber=23
|number=
|fam1=<hiero>G43</hiero><hiero>T3</hiero>
|fam2=[[Image:Proto-semiticW-01.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|Waw]]
|fam3=[[File:PhoenicianW-01.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px]]
|fam4=[[Image:Phoenician waw.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|Waw]]
|fam5=[[Image:Early Aramaic character - vav.svg|class=skin-invert-image|20px|Waw]]
|fam6=[[Upsilon|Υ υ]]
|fam7=[[𐌖]]
|fam8=[[Y]]
|fam9=[[V]]
|usageperiod= {{circa}} 600 CE to present
|children={{flex list|{{bull}}[[ʍ]]|{{bull}}[[ɯ]] [[ɰ]]|{{bull}}[[₩]]}}
|sisters={{flex list|[[F]]|[[U]]|[[Ѵ]]|[[У]]|[[Ў]]|[[Ұ]]|[[Ү]]|[[Waw (letter)|ו]]|[[Waw (letter)|و]]|[[Waw (letter)|ܘ]]|[[וּ]]|[[וֹ]]|[[ࠅ]]|[[𐎆]]|[[𐡅]]|[[ወ]]|[[વ]]|[[ૂ]] [[ુ]]|[[उ]]}}
|equivalents=
|associates=[[List of Latin-script digraphs#W|w(x)]]
|direction=Left-to-right
|image=File:Latin_letter_W.svg
|imageclass=skin-invert-image
}}
{{Latin letter info|w}}

'''W''', or '''w''', is the twenty-third [[letter (alphabet)|letter]] of the [[Latin alphabet]], used in the [[English alphabet|modern English alphabet]], the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is [[English alphabet#Letter names|''double-u'']],<ref group="in">Pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ʌ|b|əl|.|j|uː}} {{respell|DUH|bəl|yoo}} in formal situations, but colloquially often {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ʌ|b|ə|j|uː}} {{respell|DUH|bə|yoo}}, {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ʌ|b|j|uː}} {{respell|DUH|bew}}, {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ʌ|b|ə|j|ə}} {{respell|DUH|bə|yə}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ʌ|b|j|ə}} {{respell|DUH|byə}}, with a silent ''l''.</ref> plural ''double-ues''.<ref>"W", ''Oxford English Dictionary,'' 2nd edition (1989); 'W", ''Oxford English Dictionary,'' 2nd edition (1989); ''[[Merriam-Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language]], Unabridged'' (1993) [[Merriam Webster]]</ref><ref>Brown & Kiddle (1870) ''The institutes of grammar,'' p. 19. <br>''Double-ues'' is the plural of the name of the letter; the plural of the letter itself is written W's, ''W''s, w's, or ''w''s.</ref>

==Name==
The name 'double-u' reflects stages in the letter's evolution when it was considered two of the same letter, a double U.

Some speakers shorten the name "double u" into "dub-u" or just "dub"; for example, [[University of Wisconsin]], [[University of Washington]], [[University of Wyoming]], [[University of Waterloo]], [[University of the Western Cape]] and [[University of Western Australia]] are all known colloquially as "U Dub", and the automobile company [[Volkswagen]], abbreviated "VW", is sometimes pronounced "V-Dub".<ref>{{cite web|last=Volkswagen|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgEvy60bZYI| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060502184847/http://youtube.com/watch?v=qgEvy60bZYI| archive-date=2006-05-02|title=VW Unpimp – Drop it like its hot|website=YouTube|access-date=November 3, 2011}}</ref> The fact that many website URLs require a "[[www.]]" prefix has been influential in promoting these shortened pronunciations.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

In other [[West Germanic languages]], its name is monosyllabic: German {{lang|de|We}} {{IPA|/veː/}}, Dutch {{lang|nl|wee}} {{IPA|/ʋeː/}}. In [[Polish language|Polish]] is called "wu" (as "v" and "u"). In many languages, its name literally means "double v": Portuguese ''duplo vê'',<ref group="in">In [[Brazilian Portuguese]], it is ''[[wikt:dáblio#Portuguese|dáblio]]'', which is a loanword from the English ''double-u''.</ref> Spanish ''doble ve'' (though it can be spelled ''uve doble''),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.taringa.net/posts/noticias/7792488/Real-Academia-Espanola-elimina-la-Ch-y-ll-del-alfabeto.html |title=Real Academia Española elimina la Ch y ll del alfabeto |publisher=Taringa! |date=November 5, 2010 |access-date=November 4, 2011 |archive-date=June 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603013419/http://www.taringa.net/posts/noticias/7792488/Real-Academia-Espanola-elimina-la-Ch-y-ll-del-alfabeto.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref group="in">In [[Latin American Spanish]], it is ''doble ve'', similar [[wikt:W#Spanish|regional variations]] exist in other Spanish-speaking countries.</ref> French ''double vé'', [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] ''tvöfalt vaff'', [[Czech language|Czech]] ''dvojité vé'', [[Estonian language|Estonian]] ''kaksisvee'', [[Finnish language|Finnish]] ''kaksois-vee'', etc.

==History==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|- 
! Proto-Sinaitic
! Phoenician<br />[[Waw (letter)|Waw]]
! Western Greek<br />[[Upsilon]]
! Latin<br />V
! Latin<br />W
|-
| [[File:Proto-semiticW-01.png|class=skin-invert-image|40px]]
| [[File:PhoenicianW-01.svg|class=skin-invert-image|frameless|40x40px]]
| [[File:Greek_Upsilon_normal.svg|class=skin-invert-image|40px]]
| [[File:Capitalis monumentalis V.SVG|class=skin-invert-image|x30px|Latin V]]
| [[File:Capitalis monumentalis W.SVG|class=skin-invert-image|x30px|Latin W]]
|}
[[File:William Caslon IV Five Lines Pica No. 2 Italic (cropped).jpg|thumb|This cursive 'w' was popular in calligraphy of the eighteenth century;<ref name="Flawed Typefaces" /><ref name="Berry Roundhand">{{cite web |last1=Berry |first1=John |title=A History: English round hand and 'The Universal Penman' |url=https://blog.typekit.com/alternate/a-history-english-round-hand-and-the-universal-penman/ |website=Typekit |publisher=Adobe Systems |access-date=May 19, 2020 |archive-date=October 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201003034145/https://blog.typekit.com/alternate/a-history-english-round-hand-and-the-universal-penman/ |url-status=live }}</ref> a late appearance in a font of {{Circa|1816}}.<ref name="Caslon IV">{{cite book |last1=Caslon |first1=William IV |title=Untitled fragment of a specimen book of printing types, c. 1816 |date=1816 |publisher=William Caslon IV |location=London |url=https://archive.org/details/ldpd_11344964_000/page/n3/mode/2up |access-date=May 19, 2020}}</ref>]]
The [[Latin alphabet#Classical Latin alphabet|classical Latin alphabet]], from which the modern European alphabets derived, did not have the "W" character. The "W" sounds were represented by the Latin letter "[[V]]" (at the time, not yet distinct from "[[U]]").

The sounds {{IPAslink|w}} (spelled {{angbr|V}}) and {{IPAslink|b}} (spelled {{angbr|B}}) of [[Classical Latin]] developed into the [[voiced bilabial fricative]] {{IPA|/β/}} between [[vowel]]s in [[Vulgar Latin|Early Medieval Latin]]. Therefore, {{angbr|V}} no longer adequately represented the [[voiced labial-velar approximant]] [[sound]] {{IPA|/w/}} of [[Common Germanic|Germanic phonology]].

[[File:Coat of arms of Vyborg.svg|thumb|upright|A letter W appearing in the coat of arms of [[Vyborg]]]]
The [[German language|Germanic]] {{IPA|/w/}} phoneme was, therefore, written as {{angbr|VV}} or {{angbr|uu}} ({{angbr|[[u]]}} and {{angbr|[[v]]}} becoming distinct only by the [[Early Modern period]]) by the earliest writers of [[Old English]] and [[Old High German]], in the 7th or 8th centuries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/why-is-w-pronounced-double-u|title=Why is 'w' pronounced 'double u' rather than 'double v'? : Oxford Dictionaries Online|publisher=Oxforddictionaries.com|access-date=November 4, 2011|archive-date=August 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822083407/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/why-is-w-pronounced-double-u|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Gothic alphabet|Gothic]] (not [[Latin alphabet|Latin-based]]), by contrast, had simply used a letter based on the Greek [[Upsilon|Υ]] for the same sound in the 4th century. The digraph {{angbr|VV}}/{{angbr|uu}} was also used in [[Medieval Latin]] to represent Germanic names, including Gothic ones like [[Wamba, Visigothic king|Wamba]].

It is from this {{angbr|uu}} [[Digraph (orthography)|digraph]] that the modern name "double U" derives. The digraph was commonly used in the spelling of Old High German but only in the earliest texts in Old English, where the {{IPA|/w/}} sound soon came to be represented by borrowing the [[rune]] {{angbr|ᚹ}}, adapted as the Latin letter [[wynn]]: {{angbr|ƿ}}. In early [[Middle English]], following the 11th-century [[Norman Conquest of England|Norman Conquest]], {{angbr|uu}} regained popularity; by 1300, it had taken wynn's place in common use.

Scribal realisation of the digraph could look like a pair of Vs whose branches crossed in the middle: both forms (separate and crossed) appear, for instance, in the "running text" (in Latin) of the [[Bayeux tapestry]] in proper names such as EDVVARDVS and VVILLELMVS (or the same with crossed Vs). Another realisation (common in [[roundhand]], [[kurrent]] and [[blackletter]]) takes the form of an {{angbr|n}} whose rightmost branch curved around, as in a cursive {{angbr|v}} (viz. <math>\mathfrak{w}. </math>)<ref name="Flawed Typefaces">{{cite web|last1=Shaw|first1=Paul|author-link=Paul Shaw (design historian)|title=Flawed Typefaces|url=https://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/05/flawed-typefaces/|website=Print magazine|access-date=June 30, 2015|archive-date=June 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150623071023/http://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/05/flawed-typefaces/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Berry Roundhand" /> It was used up to the nineteenth century in Britain and continues to be familiar in Germany.<ref group="in">Writing manuals that include it include [[Edward Cocker]]'s ''[https://archive.org/details/penstriumphacop00cockgoog/page/n16/mode/2up The Pen's Triumph]'' of 1658 and engravings of the [[roundhand]] calligraphy of Charles Snell and sometimes [[George Bickham the Elder|George Bickham]]. See also [https://twitter.com/hardwig/status/1262389827233865731 Florian Hardwig's gallery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518171944/https://twitter.com/hardwig/status/1262389827233865731 |date=May 18, 2020 }} of images of its use in the German-speaking countries.</ref>

Thus, the shift from the digraph {{angbr|VV}} to the distinct ligature {{angbr|W}} was gradual and was only apparent in [[abecedarium|abecedaria]], explicit listings of all individual letters. It was probably considered a separate letter by the 14th century in both [[Middle English]] and [[Middle Low German|Middle German]] orthography. However, it remained an outsider, not really considered part of the Latin alphabet proper, as expressed by [[Valentin Ickelshamer]] in the 16th century, who complained that:

{{blockquote|Poor ''w'' is so infamous and unknown that many barely know either its name or its shape, not those who aspire to being Latinists, as they have no need of it, nor do the Germans, not even the schoolmasters, know what to do with it or how to call it; some call it ''we'', [... others] call it ''uu'', [...] the [[Swabians]] call it ''auwawau''<ref>"Arm w ist so unmer und unbekannt, dasz man schier weder seinen namen noch sein gestalt waiszt, die Lateiner wöllen sein nit, wie sy dann auch sein nit bedürffen, so wissen die Teütschen sonderlich die schülmaister noch nitt was sy mit im machen oder wie sy in nennen sollen, an ettlichen enden nennet man in we, die aber ein wenig latein haben gesehen, die nennen in mit zwaien unterschidlichen lauten u auff ainander, also uu ... die Schwaben nennen in auwawau, wiewol ich disen kauderwelschen namen also versteh, das es drey u sein, auff grob schwäbisch au genennet." cited after Grimm, ''[[Deutsches Wörterbuch]]''.</ref>}}

In [[Middle High German]] (and possibly already in late Old High German), the West Germanic phoneme {{IPA|/w/}} became realized as {{IPAblink|v}}; this is why, today, the German {{angbr|w}} represents that sound.

==Use in writing systems==
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible"
|+ Pronunciation of {{angbr|w}} by language
! Orthography
! Phonemes
|-
! {{nwr|[[Standard Chinese]]}} ([[Pinyin]])
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Cornish orthography|Cornish]]
| {{IPAslink|ʊ}} (archaic), {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Dutch orthography|Dutch]]
| {{IPAslink|ʋ}}
|-
! [[English orthography|English]]
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[German orthography|German]]
| {{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[Irish Gaelic|Irish]]
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Indonesian orthography|Indonesian]]
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Japanese language|Japanese]] ([[Hepburn romanization|Hepburn]])
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Kashubian alphabet|Kashubian]]
| {{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[Kokborok]]
| {{IPAslink|ɔ}}
|-
! [[Kurdish orthography|Kurdish]]
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Low German]]
| {{IPAslink|ʋ}}
|-
! [[Lower Sorbian language|Lower Sorbian]]
| {{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[North Frisian language|North Frisian]]
|{{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[Old Prussian language|Old Prussian]]
| {{IPAslink|w}} (archaic)
|-
! [[Polish orthography|Polish]]
|{{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[Saterland Frisian language|Saterlandic]]
| {{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[Turkmen orthography|Turkmen]]
| {{IPAslink|β}}
|-
! [[Upper Sorbian language|Upper Sorbian]]
| {{IPAslink|β}}
|-
! [[Walloon orthography|Walloon]]
| {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Welsh orthography|Welsh]]
| {{IPAslink|ʊ}}, {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[West Frisian alphabet|West Frisian]]
| {{IPAslink|v}}, {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
! [[Wymysorys language|Wymysorys]]
| {{IPAslink|v}}
|-
! [[Zhuang alphabet|Zhuang]]
| {{IPAslink|ɯ}}
|}

===English===
English uses {{angbr|w}} to represent {{IPA|/w/}}. There are also a number of words beginning with a written {{angbr|w}} that is [[silent letter|silent]] in most dialects before a (pronounced) {{angbr|r}}, remaining from usage in [[Old English language|Old English]] in which the {{angbr|w}} was pronounced: ''wreak'', ''wrap'', ''wreck'', ''wrench'', ''wroth'', ''wrinkle'', etc. Certain dialects of [[Scottish English]] still distinguish this digraph. {{angbr|w}} represents a vowel sound, {{IPA|/oʊ/}}, in the word [[pwn]], and in the Welsh loanwords [[Cwm (landform)|''cwm'']] and ''[[crwth]]'', it retains the Welsh pronunciation, {{IPA|/ʊ/}}. {{angbr|w}} is also used in digraphs: {{angbr|aw}} {{IPA|/ɔː/}}, {{angbr|ew}} {{IPA|/(j)uː/}}, {{angbr|ow}} {{IPA|/aʊ, oʊ/}}, wherein it is usually an orthographic [[allograph]] of {{angbr|u}} in final positions. It is the [[Letter frequency|fifteenth most frequently used letter]] in the English language, with a frequency of about 2.56% in words.

===Other languages===
In Europe languages with {{angbr|w}} in native words are in a central-western European zone between Cornwall and Poland: English, [[German language|German]], [[Low German language|Low German]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[Frisian languages|Frisian]], [[Welsh language|Welsh]], [[Cornish language|Cornish]], [[Breton language|Breton]], [[Walloon language|Walloon]], [[Polish language|Polish]], [[Kashubian language|Kashubian]], [[Sorbian languages|Sorbian]], [[Wymysorys language|Wymysorys]], [[Resian dialect|Resian]] and [[North Germanic languages|Scandinavian dialects]]. German, Polish, Wymysorys and Kashubian use it for the [[voiced labiodental fricative]] {{IPA|/v/}} (with Polish, related Kashubian and Wymysorys using [[Ł]] for {{IPA|/w/}}, except in conservative and some eastern Polish speech, where Ł still represents the [[dark L]] sound.), and Dutch uses it for {{IPA|/ʋ/}}. Unlike its use in other languages, the letter is used in [[Welsh language|Welsh]] and [[Cornish language|Cornish]] to represent the vowel {{IPA|/u/}} as well as the related approximant consonant {{IPA|/w/}}.[[File:WondersoftheInvisibleWorld-1693.jpg|left|thumb|A 1693 book printing that uses the "double&nbsp;u" alongside the modern letter; this was acceptable if printers did not have the letter in stock or the font had been made without it.]]

The following languages historically used {{angbr|w}} for {{IPA|/v/}} in native words, but later replaced it by {{angbr|v}}: [[Swedish language|Swedish]], [[Finnish language|Finnish]], [[Czech language|Czech]], [[Slovak language|Slovak]], [[Latvian language|Latvian]], [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]], [[Estonian language|Estonian]], [[Ukrainian Latin alphabet|Ukrainian Łatynka]] and [[Belarusian Latin alphabet|Belarusian Łacinka]]. It is also used in modern systems of [[Romanization of Belarusian]] for the letter {{angbr|[[ў]]}}, for example in the BGN/PCGN<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/811510/ROMANIZATION_OF_BELARUSIAN.pdf |title=Belarusian romanization (June 2019) (publishing.service.gov.uk) |access-date=November 16, 2021 |archive-date=October 6, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211006223432/https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/811510/ROMANIZATION_OF_BELARUSIAN.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> system, in contrast to the letter {{angbr|[[ŭ]]}}, which is used in the [[Instruction on transliteration of Belarusian geographical names with letters of Latin script]].

[[File:Kalevala1.jpg|thumb|left|Titlepage of the first edition of the ''Kalevala'', 1835]]
In Swedish and Finnish, traces of this old usage may still be found in proper names. In [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] remains in some aristocratic surnames, e.g. [[Wesselényi (disambiguation)|Wesselényi]].

Modern [[German dialects]] generally have only {{IPA|[v]}} or {{IPA|[ʋ]}} for West Germanic {{IPA|/w/}}, but {{IPA|[w]}} or {{IPA|[β̞]}} is still heard allophonically for {{angbr|w}}, especially in the clusters {{angbr|schw}}, {{angbr|zw}}, and {{angbr|qu}}. Some Bavarian dialects preserve a "light" initial {{IPA|[w]}}, such as in ''wuoz'' (Standard German ''weiß'' {{IPA|[vaɪs]}} '[I] know'). The Classical Latin {{IPA|[β]}} is heard in the Southern German greeting ''Servus'' ('hello' or 'goodbye').

In [[Dutch language|Dutch]], {{angbr|w}} became a [[labiodental approximant]] {{IPA|/ʋ/}} (with the exception of words with -{{angbr|eeuw}}, which have {{IPA|/eːβ/}}, or other diphthongs containing -{{angbr|uw}}). In many Dutch-speaking areas, such as [[Flanders]] and [[Suriname]], the {{IPA|/β/}} pronunciation (or in some areas a {{IPA|/ɥ/}} pronunciation, e.g. Belgian-Dutch ''water'' {{IPA|/'ɥaːtər/}} "water", ''wit'' {{IPA|/ɥɪt/}} "white", ''eeuw'' {{IPA|/eːɥ/}} "century", etc.) is used at all times.

In [[Finnish alphabet|Finnish]], {{angbr|w}} is sometimes seen as a variant of {{angbr|v}} and not a separate letter, but it is a part of the official alphabet. It is, however, recognized and maintained in the spelling of some old names, reflecting an earlier German spelling standard, and in some modern loan words. In all cases, it is pronounced {{IPA|/ʋ/}}. The title of the first edition of the ''[[Kalevala]]'' was spelled ''Kalewala''.

In [[Danish alphabet|Danish]], [[Norwegian alphabet|Norwegian]] and [[Swedish alphabet|Swedish]], {{angbr|w}} is named double-v and not double-u. In these languages, the letter only exists in old names, loanwords and foreign words. (Foreign words are distinguished from loanwords by having a significantly lower level of integration in the language.) It is usually pronounced {{IPA|/v/}}, but in some words of English origin, it may be pronounced {{IPA|/w/}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.denstoredanske.dk/Sprog,_religion_og_filosofi/Sprog/Ortografi/w_W|title=W, w - Gyldendal - Den Store Danske|newspaper=Den Store Danske|access-date=November 7, 2017|archive-date=September 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904141630/http://denstoredanske.dk/Sprog,_religion_og_filosofi/Sprog/Ortografi/w_W|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.svenskaakademien.se/svenska_spraket/svenska_akademiens_ordlista/saol_pa_natet/ordlista |title=Ordlista |access-date=January 29, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120824045619/https://www.svenskaakademien.se/svenska_spraket/svenska_akademiens_ordlista/saol_pa_natet/ordlista |archive-date=August 24, 2012 }}, page 1098</ref> The letter was officially introduced in the Danish and Swedish alphabets as late as 1980 and 2006, respectively, despite having been in use for much longer. It had been recognized since the conception of modern Norwegian with the earliest official orthography rules of 1907.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Aars |first1=Jonathan |last2=Hofgaard |first2=Simon Wright |title=Norske retskrivnings-regler med alfabetiske ordlister |publisher=W. C. Fabritius & Sønner |year=1907 |language=no |pages=19, 84 |url=http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2006081600014#&struct=DIVP19 |access-date=September 18, 2011 |id=NBN 2006081600014 |archive-date=February 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218163256/https://www.nb.no/items/URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2006081600014#&struct=DIVP19 |url-status=live }}</ref> {{angbr|W}} was earlier seen as a variant of {{angbr|v}}, and {{angbr|w}} as a letter (double-v) is still commonly replaced by {{angbr|v}} in speech (e.g. ''WC'' being pronounced as ''VC'', ''www'' as ''VVV'', ''WHO'' as ''VHO'', etc.). The two letters were sorted as equals before {{angbr|w}} was officially recognized, and that practice is still recommended when sorting names in Sweden.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.spraknamnden.se/fragor/arkiv_sprakrad.htm#w |title=Veckans språkråd 2006 |language=sv |date=July 5, 2007 |access-date=September 18, 2011 |archive-date=October 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181014150649/http://www.spraknamnden.se/fragor/arkiv_sprakrad.htm#w |url-status=dead }}</ref> In modern slang, some native speakers may pronounce {{angbr|w}} more closely to the origin of the loanword than the official {{IPA|/v/}} pronunciation.

Multiple dialects of Swedish and Danish use the sound, however. In Denmark, notably in [[Jutland]], the northern half uses it extensively in [[Jutlandic dialect|traditional dialect]], and in multiple places in Sweden. It is used in southern Swedish; for example, the words "wesp" (wisp) and "wann" (water) are traditionally used in [[Halland]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Ordbok öfver Halländska landskapsmålet|last=Peter|first=von Möller|publisher=Berlingska boktryckeriet|year=1858|location=Lund|pages=17}}</ref> In northern and western Sweden, there are also dialects with {{IPA|/w/}}. [[Elfdalian]] is a good example, which is one of many dialects where the [[Old Norse orthography|Old Norse difference]] between v ({{IPA|/w/}}) and f ({{IPA|/v/}} or {{IPA|/f/}}) is preserved. Thus, "warg" from Old Norse "vargr", but "åvå" from Old Norse "hafa".

In the alphabets of most modern Romance languages, {{angbr|w}} is used mostly in foreign names and words recently borrowed (Italian ''il watt'', Spanish ''el kiwi''). In Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese, {{IPA|[w]}} is a non-syllabic variant of {{IPA|/u/}}, spelled {{angbr|u}}. In French, {{angbr|w}} is also used mostly in foreign names and words recently borrowed such as ''wagon'' or ''week''(''-'')''end'', but in the first case it is pronounced {{IPA|[v]}} (because of its German origin; except in Belgium, where it is pronounced [w]) and in the second {{IPA|[w]}}. In most northern French dialects, the former {{angbr|w}} turned finally to {{angbr|v}}, but still exists as a remnant in the place-names of [[Romance Flanders]], [[Picardie]], [[Artois]], [[Champagne]], [[Lorraine|Romance Lorraine]] and sometimes elsewhere ([[Normandy]], [[Île-de-France]]), and in the surnames from the same regions. Walloon as it sounds conserves the {{angbr|w}} pronounced {{IPA|[w]}}. The digraph {{angbr|ou}} is used to render {{angbr|w}} in rare French words such as ''ouest'' "west" and to spell Arabic names transliterated ''-wi'' in English, but ''-oui'' in French (compare Arabic surname [[Badawi]] / Badaoui). In all these languages, as in Scandinavian languages mentioned above, the letter is named "double v" (French {{IPA|/dubləve/}}, Spanish {{IPA|/'dɔble 'uβe/}}) though in Belgium the name {{IPA|/we/}} is also used.

In [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], the letter "w" is called ''wé''. The letter names in Indonesian are always the same with the sounds they produce, especially the consonants.

The [[Japanese language]] uses "W", pronounced ''daburu'', as an ideogram meaning "double".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://no-sword.jp/blog/2006/06/let-pretending-to-be-injured-begin.html |title=Let the pretending to be injured begin |publisher=No-sword.jp |date=June 10, 2006 |access-date=November 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721183954/http://no-sword.jp/blog/2006/06/let-pretending-to-be-injured-begin.html |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It is also used in internet slang to indicate laughter (like [[LOL#Commonly used equivalents in other languages|LOL]]), derived from the word ''warau'' (笑う, meaning "to laugh").

In Italian, while the letter {{angbr|w}} is not considered part of the standard [[Italian alphabet]], the character is often used in place of ''Viva'' (hooray for...), generally in the form in which the branches of the Vs cross in the middle, at least in [[handwriting]] (in fact, it could be considered a [[monogram]]).<ref name="Zingarelli 1945 1713">{{cite book |last=Zingarelli |first=Nicola |title=Vocabolario della lingua italiana |edition=7 |year=1945 |publisher=Nicola Zanichelli |location=Bologna |page=1713}}</ref> The same symbol written upside down indicates ''abbasso'' (down with...).

In the [[Kokborok|Kokborok language]], {{angbr|w}} represents the [[open-mid back rounded vowel]] {{IPA|/ɔ/}}.

In Turkey, the use of the {{angbr|w}} was banned between 1928 and 2013<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Ban on Kurdish letters to be lifted with democracy package - Turkey News|url=https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ban-on-kurdish-letters-to-be-lifted-with-democracy-package-55254|access-date=2022-01-17|website=Hürriyet Daily News|date=September 27, 2013 |language=en|archive-date=January 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117020305/https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ban-on-kurdish-letters-to-be-lifted-with-democracy-package-55254|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Othmann|first=Ronya|title=Kolumne "Import Export": Bei X, Q, W ins Gefängnis|language=de|work=FAZ.NET|url=https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/debatten/tuerkei-die-folgen-des-rassismus-gegenueber-kurden-17473152.html|access-date=2022-01-17|issn=0174-4909|archive-date=January 18, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118182355/https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/debatten/tuerkei-die-folgen-des-rassismus-gegenueber-kurden-17473152.html|url-status=live}}</ref> which was a problem for the [[Kurds in Turkey|Kurdish population in Turkey]] as the {{angbr|w}} was a letter of the [[Kurdish alphabets|Kurdish alphabet]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=2013-09-27|title=Türkei: Erdogan will kurdische Schriftzeichen erlauben|language=de|work=[[Der Spiegel]]|url=https://www.spiegel.de/kultur/gesellschaft/tuerkei-erdogan-will-kurdische-schriftzeichen-erlauben-a-924943.html|access-date=2022-01-17|issn=2195-1349|archive-date=December 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211219021050/https://www.spiegel.de/kultur/gesellschaft/tuerkei-erdogan-will-kurdische-schriftzeichen-erlauben-a-924943.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The use of the letter {{angbr|w}} in the word [[Newroz as celebrated by Kurds|Newroz]], the Kurdish new year, was forbidden,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Refugee Review Tribunal Australia|url=https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/4b6fe30ad.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=January 17, 2022|archive-date=February 18, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218163251/https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/4b6fe30ad.pdf}}</ref> and names which included the letter were not able to be used.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite news|last=Ataman|first=Ferda|date=2009-10-14|title=Zweijähriger Kurde wird wegen Vornamens staatenlos|language=de-DE|work=[[Der Tagesspiegel]]|url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/buchstaben-als-politikum-zweijaehriger-kurde-wird-wegen-vornamens-staatenlos/1616212.html|access-date=2022-01-17|issn=1865-2263|archive-date=January 18, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118184043/https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/buchstaben-als-politikum-zweijaehriger-kurde-wird-wegen-vornamens-staatenlos/1616212.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2008, a court in [[Gaziantep]] reasoned the use of the letter {{angbr|w}} would incite civil unrest.<ref name=":2"/>

In [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]], {{angbr|w}} is called ''{{lang|vi|vê đúp}}'' or {{Lang|vi|vê kép}} ({{Lit|double V}}), from the French ''{{lang|fr|double vé}}''. It is not included in the standard [[Vietnamese alphabet]], but it is often used as a substitute for ''qu-'' in [[literary dialect]] and very informal writing.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ngôn ngữ thời @ của teen|author=Nhật My|work=[[VnExpress]]|publisher=FPT Group|date=May 19, 2009|access-date=April 15, 2014|url=http://vnexpress.net/tin-tuc/thoi-su/ngon-ngu-thoi-cua-teen-2131526.html|language=vi|archive-date=April 16, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140416180245/http://vnexpress.net/tin-tuc/thoi-su/ngon-ngu-thoi-cua-teen-2131526.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Viết tắt chữ Việt trong ngôn ngữ @|author=Trần Tư Bình|journal=Chim Việt Cành Nam|issue=53|date=November 30, 2013|url=https://vietpali.sourceforge.net/binh/VietTatChuVietTrongNgonNgu-ACong.htm|language=vi|access-date=April 15, 2014|archive-date=February 28, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228190514/http://vietpali.sourceforge.net/binh/VietTatChuVietTrongNgonNgu-ACong.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> It's also commonly used for abbreviating ''Ư'' in formal documents, for example ''Trung Ương'' is abbreviated as TW<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://wcag.dongnai.gov.vn/_layouts/mobile/dispform.aspx?List=c55e1211-325f-4687-84c6-990157dfe5f2&View=c3f190ca-4f63-4476-aa51-7375d3286805&ID=4|title=Từ viết tắt: Trung ương|website=wcag.dongnai.gov.vn|access-date=July 4, 2017|archive-date=November 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107222502/http://wcag.dongnai.gov.vn/_layouts/mobile/dispform.aspx?List=c55e1211-325f-4687-84c6-990157dfe5f2&View=c3f190ca-4f63-4476-aa51-7375d3286805&ID=4|url-status=dead}}</ref> even in official documents and document ID number, derived from the [[Telex (input method)|Vietnamese Telex input method]] that usually interpret a single "w" into Vietnamese character "ư".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://dangcongsan.vn/he-thong-van-ban.html|title=Hệ thống văn bản|last=VIỆT NAM|first=ĐẢNG CỘNG SẢN|website=dangcongsan.vn|language=vi-VN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170703231413/http://dangcongsan.vn/he-thong-van-ban.html|archive-date=July 3, 2017|url-status=dead|access-date=July 4, 2017}}</ref>

"W" is the 24th letter in the [[Filipino alphabet|Modern Filipino Alphabet]] and has its English name. However, in the old Filipino alphabet, [[Abakada]], it was the 19th letter and had the name "wah".{{fix|text=is that 'h' a glottal stop?}}<ref>"W, w, pronounced: wah". ''English, Leo James Tagalog-English Dictionary''. 1990., page 1556.</ref>

In [[Washo language|Washo]], lower-case {{angbr|w}} represents a typical {{IPA|/w/}} sound, while upper-case {{angbr|W}} represents a [[Voicelessness|voiceless]] w sound, like the difference between English ''weather'' and ''whether'' for those who maintain the distinction.

===Other systems===
In the [[International Phonetic Alphabet]], {{angbr IPA|w}} is used for the [[voiced labial-velar approximant]].

==Other uses==
{{main article|W (disambiguation)}}
* W is the symbol for the chemical element [[tungsten]], after its German (and alternative English) name, {{lang|de|Wolfram}}.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GmzxkvNhxnIC&q=w+symbol+for+tungsten&pg=PA289 |title=The CRB Commodity Yearbook 2006 with CD-ROM |last=Commodity Research Bureau |date=September 14, 2006 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |access-date=November 7, 2017 |via=Google Books |isbn=9780470083949 |archive-date=February 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218163251/https://books.google.com/books?id=GmzxkvNhxnIC&q=w+symbol+for+tungsten&pg=PA289 |url-status=live}}</ref>
* W is the [[SI]] symbol for the [[watt]], the standard unit of power.
* ''w'' is also often used as a [[Variable (mathematics)|variable]] in mathematics, especially to represent a [[complex number]] or a [[Vector space|vector]].
* Former U.S. president [[George W. Bush]] was given the nickname "Dubya" after the colloquial pronunciation of his middle initial in [[Texas]], where he spent much of his childhood.
* '''''W''''' stands for [[Work (physics)|work]] in physics.

==Related characters==
<!-- Please only list characters (symbols in a writing system, but not just convenience code points in Unicode) that are actually related in terms of origin to the letter that is the topic of this article. Characters that merely look subjectively similar need not apply. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Identifying_reliable_sources before adding more. -->

===Ancestors, descendants and siblings===
*𐤅: [[Phoenician alphabet|Semitic]] letter [[Waw (letter)|Waw]], from which the following symbols originally derive:
*U: Latin letter [[U]]
*V: Latin letter [[V]]
*Ⱳ ⱳ: [[W with hook]]
*{{not a typo|Ꝡ ꝡ}}: Ligature for the Latin letters {{not a typo|[[Ꝡ|VY]]}}
*Ꟃ ꟃ: Anglicana W, used in [[Middle English|medieval English]] and [[Cornish language#Middle Cornish|Cornish]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2017/17238-n4838-anglicana-w.pdf|title=L2/17-238: Proposal to add LATIN LETTER ANGLICANA W to the UCS|date=July 26, 2017|first=Michael|last=Everson|author-link=Michael Everson|access-date=January 15, 2020|archive-date=January 31, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200131222128/http://www.unicode.org/L2/L2017/17238-n4838-anglicana-w.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
*[[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]]-specific symbols related to W: {{IPA link|ʍ}} {{IPA link|ɯ}} {{IPA link|ɰ}} {{IPA link|ʷ}}
*[[Uralic Phonetic Alphabet]]-specific symbols related to W:<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2002/02141-n2419-uralic-phonetic.pdf|title=L2/02-141: Uralic Phonetic Alphabet characters for the UCS|date=March 20, 2002|first1=Michael|last1=Everson|author-link1=Michael Everson|display-authors=etal|website=Unicode.org|access-date=January 15, 2020|archive-date=February 19, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180219081033/http://www.unicode.org/L2/L2002/02141-n2419-uralic-phonetic.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> {{Unichar|1D21|LATIN LETTER SMALL CAPITAL W}} and {{Unichar|1D42|MODIFIER LETTER CAPITAL W}}
*{{not a typo|ʷ}} : Modifier letter small w is used in [[Indo-European studies]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2004/04191-n2788-laryngeals.pdf|title=L2/04-191: Proposal to encode six Indo-Europeanist phonetic characters in the UCS|date=June 7, 2004|first1=Deborah|last1=Anderson|first2=Michael|last2=Everson|website=Unicode.org|access-date=January 15, 2020|archive-date=October 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011014402/http://www.unicode.org/L2/L2004/04191-n2788-laryngeals.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
*{{not a typo|ꭩ}} : Modifier letter small turned w is used in linguistic transcriptions of [[Scots language|Scots]]<ref name="l219075">{{Cite web|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2019/19075r-n5036-scots-phonetics.pdf|title=L2/19-075R: Proposal to add six phonetic characters for Scots to the UCS|date=May 5, 2019|first=Michael|last=Everson|access-date=March 17, 2020|archive-date=June 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613190054/http://www.unicode.org/L2/L2019/19075r-n5036-scots-phonetics.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
*W with [[diacritic]]s: [[Acute accent|Ẃ ẃ]] [[Grave accent|Ẁ ẁ]] [[Circumflex|Ŵ ŵ]] [[Diaeresis (diacritic)|Ẅ ẅ]] [[Dot (diacritic)|Ẇ ẇ Ẉ ẉ]] [[ẘ]]
*װ (double [[vav (letter)|vav]]): the [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]] and [[Modern Hebrew|Hebrew]] equivalent of W
*[[Arabic script|Arabic]] [[wikt:و|و]], has the same origin despite bearing little resemblance to W

===Ligatures and abbreviations===
*₩ : [[Won sign]], capital letter W with double stroke

==Other representations==
{{anchor|Codes for computing}}
===Unicode <span class="anchor" id="Computing codes"></span>===
* {{unichar| 0057}}
* {{unichar| 0077}}
* {{unichar| FF37}}
* {{unichar| FF57}}
*{{unichar2|₩|nlink=}}

===Other===
{{Letter other reps
|NATO=Whiskey
|Morse=·––
|Character=W
|Braille=⠺
|fingerspelling=W
}}
{{clear}}

==See also==
* [[Digamma]] (Ϝ), the archaic Greek letter for /w/
* [[Voiced labio-velar approximant]]
* [[Wh (digraph)]]

==References==
'''Informational notes'''
{{reflist|group="in"}}

'''Citations'''
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons|W}}
{{Wiktionary|W|w}}

{{Latin alphabet|W|}}

[[Category:ISO basic Latin letters]]
[[Category:Latin-script ligatures]]
[[Category:Vowel letters]]