Phonemic inventory

Syllable structure

(C₁)V(gʲ)(C₃)

C₁: a consonant
V: a vowel
C₃: a non-front consonant (i.e. not /kʲʰ kʲ gʲ sʲ̻ j/) other than /b d̻ g ɢ/

Allophony

• Unaspirated voiceless stops [p t̻ k ...] become aspirated [pʰ tʰ̻ kʰ ...] before a glottal fricative.
• Voiced stops [b d̻ g ...] become breathy-voiced [b̤ d̤̻ g̤ ...] before a glottal fricative.
• Velar stops [kʰ k g̤ g] become velar fronted [kʰ̟ k̟ g̤̟ g̟] before a front high vowel or a high palatal semivowel.
• Alveolar stops or nasals [n̻ tʰ̻ d̤̻ ...] are persistently deleted between an obstruent and a stop or nasal.
• Dorsal stops [kʲʰ k̟ g̤ ...] persistently assimilate in uvularity to a following dorsal consonant other than [j]. Before an uvular stop, non-back stops become uvular; palatalised velar stops become non-palatalised velar uvular.
• [ʔ] become [h] between a vowel or semivowel and a vowel or semivowel.
• Mid-high vowels [e o] become lax [ɛ ɔ] before a vowel or resonant except a vowel or a non-palatoalveolar semivowel or an approximant lateral.
• Obstruents [pʰ kʲ g̤ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a following consonant other than a resonant and become voiceless word-finally. Before a voiced stop or nasal, obstruents other than stops become stops; [f] become [b].
• Consonants [m gʲ̤ ɢ̤ ...] assimilate in voice to a preceding consonant other than a resonant. After a voiceless consonant, nasals become non-nasal. After a voiced stop or nasal, fricatives become stops or nasals; [f] become [b]; [ʔ] are deleted.
• Nasals [m n̻] persistently become nasals and assimilate in place of articulation to a following obstruent or nasal.
• Before an alveolar approximant lateral, obstruent sibilants become non-sibilant coronal alveolar obstruent laterals; non-sibilant coronal stops become non-nasal alveolar affricate laterals.
• Non-back vowels and non-velarised semivowels other than [a], i.e. [j̥ j e ...], become central [h ɘ ...] after a non-front consonant. Semivowels become glottal fricatives.
• High tense semivowels [j̥ j] become mid-high [e̯̥ e̯] after a non-high vowel.
• Semivowels [j̥ j e̯̥ e̯] assimilate in uvularity to a preceding vowel or semivowel.
• Unaspirated voiceless stops [p k̟ t͡ɬ̻ ...] become ejective [pʼ k̟ʼ t͡ɬʼ̻ ...] after a non-nasal glottal stop.
• Ejective stops [pʼ k̟ʼ t͡ɬʼ̻ ...] become non-ejective [p k̟ t͡ɬ̻ ...] before a non-nasal phone except a non-nasal vowel or resonant or word-finally.
• Stops [pʰ gʲ ɢ ...] persistently assimilate in aspiration to a following consonant other than a resonant. Before an aspirated consonant, ejective stops become non-ejective.
• Labial obstruents or nasals [m pʰ b̤ ...] assimilate in dorsality and uvularity and palatalisation and whether palatal or palatalised velar to a following obstruent or nasal and become non-dorsal word-finally. Before an uvular stop or nasal, [f] become [h]. Before a palatal or velar stop or nasal, [f] become [hʲ]. Before a dorsal stop or nasal, obstruents or nasals become non-labial.
• Non-ejective unaspirated resonants [ɾ̥̻ l̥̻ j ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a preceding non-nasal consonant other than a resonant.
• Unaspirated stops [p gʲ t͡ɬʼ̻ ...] persistently become aspirated [pʰ gʲ̤ t͡ɬʰ̻ ...] after an aspirated consonant. Ejective stops become non-ejective.
• Dorsal consonants [ŋʲ kʰ̟ g ...] become rounded [ŋʷ kʰʷ gʷ ...] before a high rounded vowel. Non-back consonants become back; palatalised velar stops or nasals become non-palatalised velar velar or uvular; semivowels become velar or uvular.
• Central vowels [ɨ ɘ ɜ a] become back [ɯ ɤ ʌ ɑ] after a back semivowel.
• Voiced vowels [i e ɜ ...] become creaky-voiced [ḭ ḛ ɜ̰ ...] before a glottal stop.
• Short stops other than unaspirated voiced stops [pʰ k̟ qʼʷ ...] become fricatives [ɸ h hʷ ...] between a vowel or semivowel and a vowel or semivowel. Breathy-voiced stops become stops; [pʰ b̤ pʰʲ b̤ʲ tʰ̻ d̤̻ gʲ̤ g̤̟ g̤ g̤ʷ ɢ̤ ɢ̤ʷ t͡ɬʰ̻ d͡ɮ̤̻ t͡ɬʰʲ̻ d͡ɮ̤ʲ̻ t͡sʰ̻ d͡z̤̻ t͡sʰʲ̻ d͡z̤ʲ̻] become [ɸ b ɸʲ bʲ θ d̻ gʲ g̟ g gʷ ɢ ɢʷ ɬ̻ d͡ɮ̻ ɬʲ̻ d͡ɮʲ̻ s̻ d͡z̻ sʲ̻ d͡zʲ̻]; ejective stops become non-ejective; unaspirated dorsal stops become glottal fricatives; palatal or velar voiceless stops become glottals; velar voiceless stops become non-back; uvular voiceless stops become non-back glottals.
• Non-back consonants other than uvular consonants or [hʷ j̥ j], i.e. [m kʲʰ t͡sʼ̻ ...], persistently assimilate in palatalisation to a following consonant. Before a consonant, palatalised velar stops or nasals become non-palatalised velar back.
• Consonants [m kʲʼ t͡sʰ̻ ...] persistently assimilate in voice to a following consonant other than a resonant. Before a voiced consonant other than a resonant, ejective consonants become non-ejective; fricatives become stops or nasals; [f fʲ] become [b bʲ]. Before a voiceless consonant other than a resonant, nasals become non-nasal.
• Nasals [m n̻ ŋ̟ ...] become nasals and assimilate in place of articulation between an obstruent or nasal and an obstruent or nasal.
• Unaspirated voiced vowels and non-glottal fricative voiced consonants [m gʷ u ...] become breathy-voiced [m̤ g̤ʷ ṳ ...] before a breathy-voiced consonant. Creaky-voiced vowels become non-creaky-voiced.
• Vowels [i ḛ ɜ̤ ...] become nasal [ĩ ḛ̃ ɜ̤̃ ...] before a nasal.

Some words

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