Jebero (Chebero, Xebero, Xihuila) is a moribund Amazonian language spoken by the Jebero people of
Jeberos, Peru. It is spoken by only a small number of older adults and belongs to the
Cahuapanan family together with
Chayahuita.
/i/ varies between close front unrounded [
i], near-close front unrounded [
i̞] and close-mid front unrounded [
e].[2]
/u/ varies between near-close near-front rounded [
ʊ] and close-mid back weakly rounded [
o̜], with the latter realization being the most usual.[2]
/ɘ/ varies between mid near-front unrounded [
ɛ̽] and close-mid central unrounded [
ɘ].[2]
/ɘ/ is shorter than the other vowels, particularly between voiceless consonants.[2]
The sequence /ɘn/ is sometimes realized as a syllabic [n̩].[2]
/a/ varies between open central unrounded [
ä] and near-open retracted front [
æ̠].[2] The vowel chart in
Valenzuela & Gussenhoven (2013) puts /a/ in the near-open central position [
ɐ].
In closed syllables, /a/ is realized as open-mid central unrounded [
ɜ].[2]