MG:

I agree with your disctinction between aw and ah. There's a big differentce between awwnt and ahhnt. Awwnt has a little more of a chug at the back of the throat when you say it. The mouth is open slightly more for ahhnt.

If I pretend I'm at the doctor's office and just say "Ah"--a nice, long, continuous "Ah"--well, and I put that in first position for "aunt" (i.e., ahnt), the final product is soft and sweet--and also sounds nothing like the way my mom's side of the family pronounces "Aunt."

"Aw," on the other hands, requires that the mouth doesn't open quite as far as for "ah"--and when I say "aw" over and over and compare how it feels coming out to "ah" over and over, I'm struck with "aw's" having produced more vibrations I can feel in my mouth and throat. Wish I had a throat-vibrations-counting machine to test my hypothesis.

My mom's family definitely says, "Awwnt" or "Awnt" or "Ont," but not your "Ahnt," which sounds more refined and prettier to my ear.

I cannot believe I've sat here blathering about aw and ah.