Phonemic inventory

Syllable structure

(C₁)(R)V(C₂)

C₁: a consonant
R: an approximant; i.e. one of /l ʎ w ʟ/
V: a vowel
C₂: a consonant other than a voiced stop (/b d g d͡ʒ/)

Allophony

• Non-nasal consonants other than approximants [b g f ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a following consonant other than an approximant. Before a voiced stop or nasal, sonorants are deleted.
• Vowels [i e ɛ̃ ...] assimilate in frontness or palatalisation to a following consonant. Before a palatal consonant, low vowels become non-low.
• Coronal consonants [n t͡ʃ z ...] persistently assimilate in laminality to a following coronal consonant. Before an apical consonant, palatoalveolar obstruents become alveolar.
• Stops [p t t͡s ...] become glottalised [pʼ tʼ t͡sʼ ...] before a glottal stop. Voiced stops become implosives.
• Stops [p d t͡s ...] assimilate in glottalisation to a preceding non-nasal consonant other than an approximant. After a glottalised consonant, non-implosive voiced stops become implosives.
• Unrounded central vowels [ɨ ɘ ɜ̃ ...] become back [ɯ ɤ ʌ̃ ...] before a semivowel.
• Non-low lax vowels [ɪ ɛ ɜ̃ ...] become tense [i e ɘ̃ ...] before a high semivowel.
• [b d̻ d g ɠ d͡z d͡ʒ] become fricatives between a vowel or semivowel and a vowel or an approximant. Velar stops become rounded semivowels.
• Non-ejective voiced vowels and non-lateral non-glottal stop voiced consonants other than fricatives or sonorants [b ɯ o ...] become creaky-voiced [ɓ̰ ɯ̰ o̰ ...] before a creaky-voiced implosive. Non-implosive stops become implosives.
• [ɲ] become [ṉʲ] before a palatoalveolar obstruent.
• Non-glottalised voiceless stops [p t t͡s ...] persistently become aspirated [pʰ tʰ t͡sʰ ...] before a glottal fricative.
• Unrounded vowels [i ẽ ɜ̰ ...] become rounded [y ø̃ ɞ̰ ...] before a rounded semivowel. Central low vowels become back.
• Nasals [m n ɲ ...] become nasals and assimilate in place of articulation to a following obstruent or nasal.
• [w] become [ʊ̯] before a lax vowel.
• Non-palatal or velar obstruents or nasals [m t d͡ʒ ...] assimilate in dorsality and uvularity and palatalisation and whether palatal or palatalised velar to a following obstruent or nasal and become non-palatal or velar word-finally. Before [ɲ], labial obstruents become coronal palatalised; bilabial stops become affricates. Before a palatal or velar stop or nasal, coronal obstruents or nasals other than [ṉʲ] become non-velar non-palatal or velar; non-coronal obstruents or nasals become non-labial; alveolar laminal obstruents or nasals become apical. Before a velar stop or nasal, non-coronal fricatives become rounded semivowels; [ɓ] become [g]; [f] become [w].
• Coronal consonants [n̻ ɗ̻ʲ ɗ͡zʲ ...] assimilate in laminality to a following coronal consonant. Before an apical consonant, palatoalveolar obstruents or nasals become alveolar.
• Non-nasal consonants other than implosives or approximants [pʰ k t͡ɕ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a preceding consonant other than an approximant. After a voiced obstruent or nasal, aspirated consonants become unaspirated; ejective consonants become implosives.
• Non-glottalised stops [pʰ dʲ t͡sʰ ...] become glottalised [pʼ ɗʲ̰ t͡sʼ ...] before a glottal stop. Non-implosive voiced stops become implosives; aspirated stops become unaspirated.
• Non-front palatoalveolar obstruents or nasals [ṉ t͡ʃʼ ɗ͡ʒ̰ ...] persistently become non-retroflexed alveolar [n̻ t͡sʼ̻ ɗ͡z̻̰ ...] before a non-retroflexed alveolar fricative.
• Non-front palatoalveolar obstruents or nasals [ṉ t͡ʃʼ ɗ͡ʒ̰ ...] persistently become non-retroflexed alveolar [n̻ t͡sʼ̻ ɗ͡z̻̰ ...] before a non-retroflexed alveolar consonant except a non-affricate stop or nasal or a stop or nasal.
• Unrounded consonants [m ɓ ɗ͡z̻ʲ̰ ...] persistently become rounded [mʷ ɓʷ ɗ͡z̻ʲʷ̰ ...] before a rounded semivowel.
• Non-glottalised unaspirated voiceless stops [p t t͡s̻ʲʷ ...] persistently become aspirated [pʰ tʰ t͡sʰ̻ʲʷ ...] after an aspirated consonant.

Some words

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