When do you pronouce in English "a" like e in edinburgh and when "a" like in Amsterdam ?

Question

When do you pronouce in English "a" like e in edinburgh and when "a" like in Amsterdam ?

Answer 1

These are both different letters, with different sounds, so I suppose the answer is, when you use either 'a' or 'e'

Answer 2

When they are Capitals. (Good one)

Answer 3

These are not the only ways to pronounce /a/ in English ... there is also the /a/ in "father" [aː] and the /a/ in "hate" [eɪ], not to mention the /a/ in "call" [ɔ ː]. But the /a/ in "care" for example is not pronounced quite line the /e/ in Edinburgh [ɛ]; it is, rather a diphthong which sounds like the first /e/ in "there" [ɛə]. That sound generally occurs in syllables written containing the sequence /are/ - bare, care, fare etc. - and their derivatives - barest, caring, etcetera.

The /a/ which sounds like /a/ in Amsterdam (but generally shorter), [æ], typically occurs in closed syllables, ie, syllables which end in a consonant, like "pal", "scramble".

But the pronunciation and orthography of English do not relate predictably enough to enable us to make rules which have predictive reliability.