Phonemic inventory

Syllable structure

(C₁)V(C₂)

C₁: a consonant
V: a vowel
C₂: a consonant

Allophony

• Stops or nasals [m ŋ t ...] are persistently deleted between a stop or nasal and a stop or nasal.
• Lax vowels other than [a], i.e. [ɛ ɔ], become tense [e o] before a nasal.
• Non-nasal consonants [p k s ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a following obstruent or nasal and become voiceless word-finally. Before a nasal, [s] become [d͡z]; [ʔ] are deleted.
• Obstruents other than [s], i.e. [p t k ...], become glottalised [pʼ tʼ kʼ ...] after a non-nasal glottal stop. [b d g] become [ɓ̰ ɗ̰ ]; [d͡z] become [ɾ].
• Non-glottal fricative consonants [m tʼ ɗ̰ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a preceding obstruent. After a voiced stop, non-implosive ejective stops become implosives; [s] become [d͡z]; [ʔ] are deleted. After a voiceless obstruent, nasals become non-nasal; implosives become non-glottalised.
• Obstruents other than [ɓ̥ ɗ̥ s], i.e. [p tʼ g ...], assimilate in glottalisation to a following non-nasal consonant other than a resonant and become non-glottalised word-finally. Before a glottalised consonant, [b d g] become [ɓ̰ ɗ̰ ]; [d͡z] become [ɾ].
• Voiced vowels [i e ɛ ...] persistently become creaky-voiced [ḭ ḛ ɛ̰ ...] before a creaky-voiced implosive.
• Low vowels [a a̰] persistently become non-low [ɜ ɜ̰] before a nasal.
• Unrounded non-bilabial consonants [n kʼ t͡s ...] become rounded [nʷ kʼʷ t͡sʷ ...] before a rounded semivowel.
• High semivowels [w̥ w] become mid-high [o̯̥ o̯] after a non-high vowel.
• Non-ejective non-nasal voiced vowels and non-glottal stop non-nasal voiced consonants other than taps or [w o̯], i.e. [b ɗ e ...], become creaky-voiced [ɓ̰ ɗ̰ ḛ ...] after a creaky-voiced implosive. Non-implosive stops other than affricate sibilants become implosives; affricates become non-glottalised resonants.
• Mid-low vowels [ɛ ɜ ɔ ...] become low [æ a ɒ ...] before a vowel or a non-bilabial resonant except a vowel or a non-bilabial non-palatoalveolar semivowel.
• Non-low tense vowels and tense semivowels [w̥ i e ...] assimilate in highness or uvularity to a preceding semivowel.
• Non-glottalised non-implosive voiceless stops [p tʷ kʷ ...] persistently become aspirated [pʰ tʰʷ kʰʷ ...] word-finally.
• Consonants [m k t͡sʰ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a following consonant other than a resonant. Before a voiceless consonant other than a resonant, nasals become non-nasal; creaky-voiced implosives become non-glottalised. Before a voiced stop or nasal, aspirated stops become unaspirated; ejective consonants other than obstruent sibilants or [ʔʷ] become implosives; [t͡sʼ t͡sʼʷ] become [ɾ ɾʷ]; fricatives become stops or nasals; [ʔʷ] become [w].
• Front vowels [i e ɛ̰ ...] become central [ɨ ɘ ɜ̰ ...] before a back semivowel.
• Non-glottalised unaspirated non-implosive voiceless stops [p tʷ kʷ ...] become aspirated [pʰ tʰʷ kʰʷ ...] after an aspirated stop.

Some words

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