"the thirty seventh letter of the alphabet, the eighth of the vowels. It was introduced in the Armenian alphabet towards the end of the XIIth century to facilitate or distinguish the two different pronunciations of the syllable աւ, which is generally pronounced ""av"" when followed by a vowel, as աւետարան;
on the contrary, when followed by a consonant, it is pronounced like the English ""o"", as աւգնեմ, աւրհնեմ, աւրէնք."