Phonemic inventory

Syllable structure

(C₁)V(C₂)

C₁: a consonant
V: a vowel
C₂: one of /m n̻ p t̻ k ʔ s̻ h/

Allophony

• [p t̻ k] persistently become aspirated after a glottal fricative.
• Short non-glottal stop unaspirated voiceless obstruents [p t̻ k s̻] become voiced [b d̻ g z̻] between a voiced phone and a voiced phone.
• Short non-glottal stop non-prenasalised stops [pʰ t̻ʰ kʰ ...] become fricatives [ɸ ɹ̻ x ...] between a vowel and a vowel. Alveolar stops become approximants; aspirated stops become unaspirated; [t̻ʰ] become [ɹ̻].
• [g] become [ɣ] between a vowel and a vowel or an approximant.
• Non-pharyngeal velar obstruents [kʰ k x ...] become palatal [cʰ c ç ...] before a front high vowel.
• Back vowels [u ɔ] become unrounded central [ɨ ɜ] after a palatal obstruent.
• Voiceless stops [pʰ t̻ʰ c ...] persistently become ejective [pʼ t̻ʼ cʼ ...] after a non-nasal glottal stop. Aspirated stops become unaspirated.
• Consonants [m cʰ β ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a following obstruent or nasal and become voiceless word-finally. Before a voiced consonant other than [ɹ̻], ejective consonants become implosives; aspirated consonants become unaspirated. Before a voiceless obstruent or pause, nasals become non-nasal.
• Voiceless stops [pʰ t̻ cʼ ...] persistently assimilate in glottalisation to a following non-nasal consonant other than an approximant. Before a glottalised consonant, aspirated stops become unaspirated.
• Non-glottalised unaspirated obstruents [p ɟ s̻ ...] assimilate in voice to a preceding obstruent.
• Unaspirated non-nasal consonants other than implosives [p cʼ s̻ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a preceding non-nasal consonant other than an approximant. After a voiced obstruent, ejective consonants become implosives.
• Non-pharyngeal non-palatal consonants [m t̻ʼ ɸ ...] become front [mʲ t̻ʼʲ ɸʲ ...] after a palatal obstruent.
• Non-implosive obstruents [pʰ t̻ʰʲ ɸ ...] assimilate in voice to a following obstruent. Before a voiced obstruent, ejective stops become implosives; aspirated stops become unaspirated.
• Alveolar stops or nasals [n̻ t̻ʼ t̻ʼʲ ...] are persistently deleted between a stop and a stop or nasal.
• Alveolar stops or nasals [n̻ t̻ʼ t̻ʼʲ ...] are persistently deleted between a stop or nasal and a stop.
• Nasals [m mʲ n̻ n̻ʲ] become nasals and assimilate in place of articulation to a following obstruent or nasal.
• Before a non-nasal alveolar fricative, non-sibilant coronal non-implosive stops become non-nasal alveolar affricate sibilants; [ɗ̰̻ ɗ̰̻ʲ] become [n̻ n̻ʲ].
• Consonants other than implosives [m t̻ʲ t͡s̻ʼʲ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a preceding consonant other than an approximant. After a voiced obstruent or nasal, aspirated consonants become unaspirated; ejective consonants other than obstruent sibilants or [ʔʲ] become implosives; [t͡s̻ʼ t͡s̻ʼʲ] become [n̻ n̻ʲ]; [hʲ] become [j]; [ʔʲ] become [j]. After a voiceless consonant other than an approximant, nasals become non-nasal.
• Non-nasal voiced phones other than fricatives or implosives or approximants [b g u ...] become creaky-voiced [ɓ̰ ṵ ...] after a creaky-voiced implosive. Stops other than affricate sibilants become implosives; affricates become non-sibilant coronal non-glottalised nasals.
• Non-low central vowels [ɨ ɨ̰ ɜ ɜ̰] become front [i ḭ ɛ ɛ̰] after a front consonant.
• Nasals [m n̻ ɲ ...] become non-nasal approximants [ ɹ̻ j ...] before a non-nasal voiced approximant except a semivowel. Bilabial nasals become non-bilabial semivowels; [ŋ] are deleted.
• Velar obstruents or nasals [ŋ k g ...] become uvular [ɴ q ɢ ...] after a back mid-low vowel.

Some words

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