Efenol: Difference between revisions

** Central Efenol is the only major variety to preserve /ɲ/ (Spanish <Ñ>) as a distinct phoneme. The sound may still be found in other dialects as an allophone of /n/.

* Mid-high phonemes /e/ and /o/. Notice that unlike Spanish <e> and <o> which are actually true mid vowels [e̞] and [o̞], Standard Efenol /e/ and /o/ are true mid-high [e] and [o].

It should be noted that voiced fricatives like /ð/ are more common in word-medial or word-final position than matching voiced plosives like /d/ while the opposite takes place word-initially: words beginning with /ð/ are near non-existing while words beginning with /d/ are common. Northern-like orthographies take advantage of this fact by re-using one letter representations for initial voiced stops (such as <d> for /d/) and for non-initial fricatives (<d> for non-initial /ð/). For example, the Efenol word for 'decided', decendeded from Spanish "decidido", becomes the 10-letter long Western Efenol word "dethidhidh" in a western-like orthography but is mereley 7 letters long in Northern Efenol: "dezidid" despite the word having identical pronunciation in both varieties: /de.θi.ˈðið/. It should be noted that northern-like orthographies often look closer to Spanish while western-like orthographies typically have a more ideosyncratic look.

* Marking long vowels with a circumflex accent, e.g. <â> for the long version of <a>.

* Using digraphs with the letter <h> as their second element.

* Using the letter <c> for the phoneme /k/ even before /e/ and /i/ (Eastern Efenol's orthography being an exception to this).

* Using <cg>, <pb> and <td> to mark lenited 'c', 'p' and 't'.

The last point makes it possible to distinguish words like ''madher'' /ma.ˈðeɾ/ (wood) from ''mádher'' /ˈma.ðeɾ/ (mother) although it fails to determine whether a word like ''mîrchël'' (Wednesday) would be /miːɾ.ˈxɛl/ (as expected by a lack of acute accents) or /ˈmiːɾ.xɛl/ (with a missing acute accent over the <î> as it already carries a circumflex accent). Luckily, in the case of ''"mîrchel"'', both pronunciations are valid and synonymous.

Key features of western-like orthographies include the usage of digraphs for most fricatives such as <ch> for /x/, <th> for /θ/ and <dh> for /ð/. Except for <r>, which is pronounced /r/ word-initially or /ɾ/ otherwise, letters and digraphs retain the same pronunciation regardless of their position within a word.

| Also <á> if stressed and not in the final syllable.

| Represents a lenited < b > /b/.

| Represents a lenited <pw> /p/ (descended from a Spanish /kw/).

| Always represents a /k/ sound (other than in digraphs), unlike English or Spanish <c>.

| Represents a mutated <pw> /p/ (descended from a Spanish /kw/).

| Represents a lenited <c> /k/ unless the word is preceded by a determiner or possessive,

in that case the /g/ sound is spelled as <g>.

| Also <é> if stressed and not in the final syllable. Some Western Efenol speakers

| Represents a lenited, lexeme-initial <g> /g/. Pronounced as either a glottal stop or as a

digraph <mm> /m/. Not used in North-Western Efenol.

digraph <nn> /n/. Not used in North-Western Efenol.

digraph <ng> /ŋ/ (or <nn> /n/ in Central Efenol). Not used in North-Western Efenol

| Also <í> if stressed and not in the final syllable.

| An alternative to non-syllabic <e> in Central Efenol.

| Orthographic equivalent to <ŷ>; preferred for long /y/ in Western and North-Western

Efenol; <ŷ> is preferred in Central Efenol.

| Represents a lenited <m> /m/

merge /ŋ/ and /n/ may also use <nn> /n/ to represent a former Spanish /ng/.

| Also <ó> (not to be confused with <ò>) if stressed and not in the final syllable.

| Represents a lenited <p> /p/ unless the word is preceded by a determiner or a

possessive, in that case the /b/ sound is spelled <b>.

| Represents a mutated <p> /p/.

Western and Central Efenol as <pw> behaves different than <p> under consonant

and the digraph <pw> isn't used.

instances of <rh> with <r> (if word-initial) or <rr> (otherwise).

| Represents a lenited <se> /ʃ/; see notes for <se>.

| Represents a mutated <S> /s/.

| Represents a mutated <se> /ʃ/; see notes for <se>.

In Western Efenol, <tc> is used sparingly and may be pronounced as /ʃ/ or /s/.

In Central Efenol the digraph is replaced with the letter <S> /s/.

| Represents a lenited <t> /d/ unless the word is preceded by a determiner or a

possessive, then the /d/ sound is spelled <d>.

| Also <ú> if stressed and not in the final syllable of a word.

| Replaced with <bh> in word-final position.

| Represents a lenited <w> /w/. Read /vw/ in most forms of Western Efenol and as /v/

| Also <ý> if stressed and not in the final syllable of a word (although speakers are

particularly likely not to write the acute accent if the affected vowel is an <y>).

| In Western and North-Western Efenol <ŷ> is often replaced with the digraph <ij>.

words with <z> in Standard Efenol with an <S>.

With the exception of Central Efenol's <ñ> (considered a letter on its own, collated between <n> and <o>), letters with diacritics and digraphs aren't taken into account for collation purposes.

One noticeable feature of western-like orthographies and of Efenol as a whole is the usage of the interpunct or middle-dot <·>. This punctuation mark is used to separate articles from consonant-initial nouns: ''a'' (the, singular feminine definite article) + ''man'' (hand): ''a·mhan'' (the hand). North-Western Efenol also uses an interpunct for plural definite articles before vowel-initial nouns: ''ah'' (the, plural feminine definite article) + ''evich'' (bees): ''ah·evich''. Otherwise, contractions where the second element beings with a vowel are indicated with apostrophes: ''l'' (singular definite article) + ''avech'' (bee): ''l'avech''.

Key features of northern-like orthographies include the usage single letters for some sounds represented as digraphs in western-like orthographies such as <h> for /x/ instead of Western <ch> or <z> for /θ/ instead of Western <th>.

Another salient feature of northern-like orthographies is that the letter <d> represents voiced stops word-initially but stands for voiced fricatives in other positions.  

| Also <á> if stressed and not in the final syllable. In Eastern and North-Eastern Efenol,

an stressed short <a> will be pronounced as a central [ä] while an unstressed short <a>

| In Northern, North-Eastern and Central dialects, <c> always  represents a /k/ sound

(other than in digraphs), unlike English or Spanish <c>.

In Eastern Efenol, however, the letter <c> represents the phoneme /tʃ/ before front

ambiguity by always using the letter <ç> for /tʃ/ and spelling all remaining /k/'s as <k>.

| Represents a mutated <c> /k/ (or potentially an Eastern Efenol <k> /k/).

| As /g/ (or [ɰ] in Eastern Efenol): represents a lenited <c> /k/ unless the word is preceded by

a determiner or possessive, in that case the /g/ sound is spelled as <g>.

In Eastern Efenol, a lenited <c> before a front vowel (pronounced /tʃ/) yields /dʒ/ which may

also be spelled as <j>. In this dialect, the digraph <cg> when pronounced /dʒ/ cannot be

reduced to <g>, even if the word was preceded by a determiner or a possessive.

In Eastern Efenol <ç> may be used either to supplement <c> when /tʃ/ does not

immediately precede a front vowel or as the only representation of /tʃ/, replacing <c>.

The digraph <tç> is preferred in word-final position.

| Makes it possible to write words with an initial /ð/. Typically found as a lenited initial <d>.

| Also <é> when stressed if not in the final syllable of a word. In Northern Efenol, the

phoneme is pronounced as a mid vowel [e̞], in Central Efenol  <e> is always an upper-mid

| Word-finally, <g> is realized as a [ç] in Northern and North-Eastern Efenol, [x] in Eastern

| Represents a lenited, lexeme-initial <g> /g/. Pronounced as a voiced velar fricative /ɣ/ in

| In Northern Efenol some speakers may pronounce <h> as /h/.

mutated <pw> or <p> /p/ descended from a Spanish /kw/.

phoneme /ʍ/ although <f> /f/ remains the most usual alternative in this dialect group.

and use <ph> /f/ instead in case of rhotic or nasal mutation.

| Also <í> if stressed and not in the final syllable. In Eastern and North-Eastern Efenol the

| Only used in Eastern Efenol as an alternative to <c> that always represents the /k/

| Alternative to <cg> (when pronounced [ɰ]) in Eastern Efenol; not used in any other

| Alternative to <ch> in Eastern Efenol; not used in any other dialect.

Eastern Efenol. The phoneme /ʎ/, distinct from /lj/, is represented as <ll> in Central Efenol.

| Represents a lenited <m> /m/

Efenol speakers who merge /ŋ/ and /n/ may also use <nn> /n/ to represent a former Spanish

| Also <ó> if stressed and not in the final syllable. Pronounced as a true mid-vowel [o̞] in

| Not used in Central Efenol. In Northern Efenol, <ö> is pronounced as a mid vowel [ø̞] while

| Represents a lenited <p> /p/ unless the word is preceded by a determiner or a

possessive, in that case the /b/ sound is spelled <b>.

| Represents a mutated <p> /p/.

| Represents a lenited <p> or <pw> /p/ that was originally a Spanish <kw>.

Using <v> is a permissible (though not as popular) alternative spelling

The digraph isn't used in Eastern Efenol where <b> or <pb> are used instead.

speakers may replace all instances of <rh> /ʀ/ with <r> (if word-initial) or <rr> (otherwise).

| Represents a lenited <S> /s/. Pronounced /h/ in Northern and Central Efenol and /x/ in

In Northern and Central Efenol, the digraph <sh> is used for all instances of /h/.

| Represents a lenited <t> /d/ unless the word is preceded by a determiner or a

possessive, then the /d/ sound is spelled <d>.

| Represents a mutated <t>, /t/.

| Also <ú> if stressed and not in the final syllable of a word. In Eastern and North-Eastern

| Represents a lenited <w> /w/.

| Also <ý> if stressed and not in the final syllable of a word. In Eastern and North-Eastern

Optionally, an apostrophe may also be used to break instances where the letters <r> or <l> occur next to an <h> without forming the digraphs <rh> and <lh>. This would distinguish Central Efenol ''marh'' /maʀ/ ('lean, without fat') from ''mar'h'' /maɾx/ ('frame'). The sequence <rh> is unambiguously /ɾx/ in Northern Efenol (as it lacks the <rh> digraph) so it never requires a 'breaking' apostrophe. Similarly, word-final <rh> is unambiguously /ɾx/ in all dialects other than Central Efenol since they don not allow word-final /ʀ/. Similarly, breaking the <lh> digraph is only necessary in Northern Efenol as Central, North-Eastern and Eastern dialects lack the phoneme represented as <lh> sound.

The following table illustrates the results of these three kinds of synchronic vowel mutation for the most common vowel combinations in Western Efenol. Notice that in this dialect <ë> and <ij> are read as /ɛ/ and /yː/ respectively.

Diachronic i-ablaut mostly coincides with modern strong i-ablaut, the main differences being that an i-ablaut /e/ and /u/  yielded short vowels /i/ and /y/ (respectively). It should also be noted that Spanish /we/ (which yields <ë> in Efenol) is i-ablauted to /y/. Meanwhile, diachronic u-ablaut differs on the result of u-ablauted /o/ and /u/ (as well as Spanish /we/) being a long /u/ <û> rather than leaving /o/ and /u/ unchanged as found in synchronic u-ablaut.

Diachronically, i-ablauted /o/ yields different results depending on the source of the mutation: it becomes <oi> if the ablaut comes from the depalatalization of a following consonant (<ch> or <ñ>) or <ë> if the ablaut comes from a moving /j/ (VCiV > ViCV):

Examples: moño > ''*moʲn'' > ''mën'', noche > ''*noʲts'' > ''nét'', historia > ''ithoir'', ocio > ''oith''.

* The appropriate orthographic conventions are to be used. For instance, long /y/ would be written <ŷ> rather than <ij> in dialects other than Western and North-Western Efenol.

* Northern, North-Eastern and Eastern dialects replace instances of <ë> with <ö>.

* Eastern Efenol, North-Eastern Efenol and all varieties without a phonemic contrasts between /o/ and /ɔ/ replace <ò> with <o>.

* Strong i-ablauted <ô> yields <öe> in Northern Efenol.

* U-ablauted <ê> yields <eu> in Northern, North-Eastern and Eatern Efenol rather than <ey>.

* Northern and North-Eastern Efenol do not allow diphthongs with <y> as a second element, replacing <ay> and with <ai>. This is also true for some speakers of Central and Eastern Efenol.

* In North-Western Efenol, the diphthongs <ai>, <au>, <ey> and <oi> become <ae>, <ao>, <eo> and <oe>. The dipthong <ay> is preserved as such in writing although it's also commonly realies as /ao/ and some speakers may prefer to write it <ao>.

As it was also the case for vowel mutation, consonant mutation occurs both diachronically (in the evolution of the language) and synchronically (as a morphophonemic feature of the modern language), usually with identical results. It should be noted, however, that these two processes are reflected differently in writing with the results of synchronic mutation having special spellings. For instance, a rhotic-mutated /p/ yields the phoneme /f/ both diachronically and synchronically but it will be spelled as a regular <f> /f/ in the first case (Spanish carpa > Efenol ''carf'') but with the dedicate spelling <ph> /f/ in the latter (Efenol ''pan'', 'bread', but ''e·phan'', 'the bread' rather than ''**e·fan''). In the case of lenition, mutated voiceless stops (which become voiced) are only written with the special digraphs <cg>, <pb> and <td> if there isn't a preceding article or possessive pronoun.

* The merger of voiced stops and voiced fricatives in Eastern Efenol which results in <d> /d/ staying unaffected under lenition and rhotic mutation.

* Eastern Efenol <ç> /tʃ/ shifting to /dʒ/ (spelled as either <cg> or <j>) under soft and nasal mutation and staying unchanged under rhotic mutation.

* Initial /p/ when descended from Spanish /kw/ (spelled <pw> in Standard Efenol) has a different behaviour in other Efenol varieties:

** It behaves (and is spelled) as a regular /p/ in North-Western Efenol (lenited to /b/ and mutated to <ph> /f/ otherwise).

** In Northern Efenol, /kw/-derived /p/ (written as a regular 'p') becomes <ph> /f/ under nasal and rhotic mutation but remains a <pv> /v/ under lenition.

* Preserving the distinction between phonemes /s/ (spelled <S> in Spanish) and /θ/ (spelled as either <c> or <z>). This feature is known as 'distinción' and is found in most of Spain, contrasting with the merger of both sounds into /s/ ('seseo', found in most of the Spanish speaking territories) or the merger of both sounds into /θ/ ('ceceo', found in some regions of Andalusia).

* Preserving the distinction between the phonemess /ʝ/ (spelled <y>) and /ʎ/ (spelled <ll>). This feature (sometimes referred to as 'lleísmo') is relatively uncommon but can be found in some regions of Spain and South America, contrasting with the far more common merger of both phonemes (a feature known as 'yeísmo'). On the other hand, the Southern Efenol language (not covered in this article) either descends from a variety with yeísmo or adopted a similar merger early on its evolution.

* Spanish 'a' [ä] remains as an <a> [ä]. This vowel is usually transcribed as /a/ in phonemic transcriptions despite it remaining a central low vowel (except for Hunzad, where it is indeed fronted to [a] or in Eastern Efenol where the vowel is fronted to [a] in unstressed position and remains central [ä] otherwise).

* Spanish 'e' [e̞] is raised to be a true upper-mid [e], spelled <e>. This is true except for Central and Northern Efenol (where it remains as a true mid [e̞]) or in Eastern/North-Eastern Efenol where vowel height varies depending on stress placement.

Examples: manzana > ''manthan'', queso > ''ces'', mito > ''mit'', rosa > ''ros'', mundo > munn''.

* Spanish <ai> becomes <ei>: aire > ''eir''.

* Spanish <ae> becomes a long e, <ê>: aeropuerto > ''êrobërth''.

* Spanish <au> becomes an open o, <ò> /ɔ/ except in Northern Efenol, where it becomes <ou> /ow/ in stressed position or is merged with <o> /o/ otherwise and in North-Western Efenol where it is always merged with <o> /o/: pausa > ''pòs'' (N: ''pous'', NW: ''pos''), auténtico > ''òténthig'' (N: ''oténzih'', NW: ''oténthetc'').

* Spanish <ea> becomes a long a, <â>: maestro > ''mêthor''.

* Spanish <ei> becomes a long i, <î>: reina > ''rîn''.

* Spanish <eo> and <eu> becomes <ë> /ɛ/ in Western Efenol: correo > ''corhë'', euro > ''ër''.

* Spanish <ia> and Spanish <io> behave differently depending on whether they are in the first syllable of a word or not

** If they are, they remain as /ja/ and /jo/ which, due to an earlier historical development (when they were pronounced [ɪa] and [ɪo]) are represented as <ea> and <eo> in Western Efenol orthography. The /j/ may be lost under some scenarios, such as when following an s as the combination /sj/ becomes /ʃ/. It's also worth noting that an initial s (palatalized to /ʃ/) is added to word initial /ja/ and /jo/ in Western and North-Western Efenol (but not in any other varieties). Examples: piano > ''pean'', violín > ''beolin'', hiato > ''seat'' (but Northern ''iat''), ionizar > ''seonithar'' (but Northern ''ionizar'').

** If there is a preceding syllable, then 'the yod moves backwards' resulting in an i-ablaut of the preceding vowel while the /a/ or /o/ of the original diphthong evolves as usual. Examples: vegetariano > ''bechedeiran'' (the ''ei'' arising from an i-ablauted a), nación > ''neithôn'' (this generalizes to all Spanish words with the -ción suffix, now expressed through i-ablaut and -thôn). There is a small number of exceptions to this rule, such as colombiano > ''colobean'' and fermión > ''fermeôn''. Additionally, the Spanish suffix -ción does not trigger i-ablaut in Northern Efenol (nación > ''nazôn'') while both forms are found in North-Eastern Efenol (thus both ''nazôn'' and ''neizôn'' may be found in the northeast).

* Spanish <ie> becomes a long i, <î>. In Western and North-Western Efenol, word-initial /je/ gets a prosthetic /s/. Examples: miedo > ''mît'', hierro > ''sîr'' (but Northern ''irr'' or ''îrr'').

* Spanish <iu> becomes an <y> /y/. This vowel is often lengthened if the resulting Efenol word is monosyllabic (the resulting long /y/ is written as <ij> in the Western Efenol orthography). In theory, a word with an initial /ju/ in Spanish would also get a prosthetic /s/ in Western and North-Western Efenol though no such words have been attested. Examples: ciudad > ''thydhadh'', viudo > ''bijdh''.

* Spanish <oe> becomes a long e in Western and Central Efenol, <öe> /øː/~/øi/ in Northern Efenol, <oe> /oe/ in North-Western Efenol and varies between <ê> /eː/ and <oi> in Eastern Efenol (in free variation, with the latter being more common in North-Eastern Efenol). Example: coherencia > ''cêrînth'' (but Northern ''cöerînz'').

* Spanish <oi> remains as <oi> except in Northern Efenol where Spanish /oj/ (but not the hiatus /o.i/) becomes <öe>, pronounced as either /øː/ or /øi/. Examples: boina > ''boin'' (Northern ''böen''), oír > ''oir'' (also ''oir'' in Northern Efenol, since the word has hiatus in Spanish).

* Much like <ia> and <io>, Spanish <ua> and <uo> behave differently depending on whether they occur in the first syllable of a word or not. This does not include the sequences <gua> and <guo> which are interpreted as corresponding to a consonantal /w/ followed by an /a/ or an /o/.

** In the first syllable of a word Spanish <ua> and <uo> evolve to become <a> and <ô>. The missing /w/, however, can trigger a change in the preceding consonant. In all North-Central dialects (ie all Efenol varieties other than Southern Efenol) the sequenced <cua> and <cuo> become <pa> and <po>. Additionally, in Western and Central Efenol (and for some North-Western speakers as well) some voiceless onsets such as /s/ become voiced. Examples: Juan > ''Chan'', duodecimal > ''dôdethimal'', cuatro > ''páthor'', cuórum > ''pôrum'', suave > ''zabh''.

** If there is a preceding syllable, the /w/ is removed and the preceding vowel is u-ablauted (or lengthened if ordinary u-ablaut wouldn't result in a change). The sequence /kw/ in Spanish still evolves to /p/ (or /v/ if lenited). In Western and (most forms of) Central Efenol a preceding /s/ is still voiced to /z/ under this scenario. Examples: aduana > ''òdan'', virtuoso > ''byrthô'', acuarela > ''avarel'', adecuar > ''adhepar'', casual > ''còzal'' (alternates with ''còsal'', derived by analogy from ''còs'', cause).

* Spanish <ue> becomes <ë> /ɛ/ in Western Efenol. The sequence <cue>, however, becomes /pe/ in the Northern and Western dialects. Examples: puesto > ''pëth'', cueva > ''pebh'' (but Eastern ''këb'').

* Spanish <ui> becomes an <y> /y/: buitre > ''výther''.

The first element of a hiatus in word-final position may be preserved with little change other than compensatory lengthening or, in the case of <eo>, a shift to <ë>. Examples: rocío > ''rothî'', paseo > ''pahë'' (also found as ''pathë'' due to an early confusion with ''*paceo'').

Word-final unstressed vowels are usually elided in Efenol. Examples: mesa > ''mes'', escape > ''echab'', mono > ''mon''.

Stressed word-final vowels become long vowels: Panamá > ''Panamâ'', café > ''cafê'', buró > ''burô''. This is not true of monosyllables (mostly particles), where vowels remain short: de > ''de''.

If the elision of an unstressed word-final vowel would result in an illegal consonant cluster in codal final position, the vowel is moved to break the cluster: CCV > CVC. This is the case for Spanish clusters with an L or an R as a second element (padre > ''pádher'', cifra > ''thífar'') except for <gl> and <gr> which evolve into Efenol <lw> /ɫ/ and <rh> /ʀ/ respectively, both of which also result in a u-ablaut of the previous vowel: siglo > ''sylw'', tigre > ''*tyrh'' > ''tijr''.

Other disallowed final clusters include L followed by a voiced sound (esmeralda > ''emeráladh'', alma > ''álam'') and, in dialects other than the standard Western Efenol, R followed by a voiced sound: barba > Western: ''barbh'', Northern: ''bárav''; arma > Western ''arm'', Northern: ''áram''.

North-Western Efenol, most Central Efenol varieties and a few Western Efenol varieties always break these clusters with the same vowel regardless of the value of the original vowel. North-Western Efenol uses the vowel <ë> /ə/ while Central and non-standard Western Efenol varieties use <a> /a/. Non-standard Western varieties also extend this behavior to the clusters that are preserved in standard Efenol. Examples: arma > Standard/Western: ''arm'', Central and non-standard Western: ''áram'', North-Western: ''árëm''; padre > Standard/Western: ''pádher'', Central and non-standard Western: ''pádhar'', North-Western: ''pádhër''; libro > Standard/Western: ''lívor'', Central and non-standard Western: ''*lívar'' (alternating with ''lívor'' by influence of Standard Efenol), North-Western: ''lívër''.

The clusters <mbr>, <ndr> and <ngr> are treated differently. In Western Efenol (and in some forms of Central Efenol) they evolve into <nv_r>, <ndh_r> and <nrh_r>, with the elided vowel moving before the R: hombre > ''ónver'', tundra > ''túndhar'', sangre > ''sánrher''. Eastern, North-Western and most Central Efenol dialects preserve the /b/, /d/ and /g/ in those clusters unchanged as exemplified by Eastern ''ómber'', ''túndar'' and ''sánger''. Northern and North-Eastern Efenol also follow the 'Eastern' model (except for <mbr>, which yields <nv_r> in Northern Efenol) but they also lengthen the preceding vowel in these cases, resulting in Northern ''ônver'', ''tûndar'' and ''sânger'' (often shortened to ''sâng'').

One notorious exception is that word-final <-ico> and <-ica> are always inherited as <-ig> rather than <-ic> as expected from this rule.

As it is the case in all modern Spanish varieties (aside from rare instances of spelling-pronunciation), Efenol treats Spanish <B> and <V> identically.

In word-initial position, a simple <B> (or <V>) onset is inherited as <B> /b/. Notice that Efenol <b> stands for an actual voiced plosive [b] rather than an approximant [β̞] as it's typically the case in Spanish. Under Efenol grammar, this /b/ may undergo lenition or rhotic mutation to become <bh> /v/ or nasal mutation to become <mb> /mb/.

Examples: burro > ''bûr'', vida > ''bidh'', la vida > ''a·bhidh'', en vida > ''mbidh''.

In word-initial position the clusters 'br' and 'bl' are also preserved in Western Efenol. The latter, <bl>, is reduced to <v> /v/ in Northern and North-Eastern Efenol, adding a coda <l> to the first syllable unless it already had a coda other than /s/ or /θ/ (this may result in a rhotic mutation of a neighboring plosive).

Examples: brusco > ''bruch'', bloquear > ''blogâr'' (Northern: ''vol'hâr''), blusa > ''blus'' (Nothern ''vuls''), blanco > ''blanch'' (Northern: ''vanh'').

In intervocalic position, <b> and <v> are lenited to <v> /v/ (notice that Efenol V stands for a true labiodental fricative, unlike Spanish V which is also a bilabial consonant and usually and approximant). In Western and North-Western Efenol alone, any word-final <v> (after vowel elision) changes to <bh>, often realized allophonically as [β] although coexisting with [v].

Examples: vivir > ''bivir'', ábaco > ''ávag'', lobo > ''lobh'' (Northern: ''lov'').

The clusters <rb> and <rv> evolve to become Efenol <rv>. The aforementioned rule about final <v> shifting to <bh> in Western and North-Western dialects remains in effect in writing, although in the spoken language the [v] pronunciation far prevails over [β]. Notice that any final <rv> cluster will be broken in dialects other than Standard Western Efenol.

Examples: árbol > ''árvol'', barba > ''barbh'' (Northern: ''bárav''), arveja > ''arvech'', ciervo > ''thîrbh'' (Northern: ''zîrov'').

The clusters <lb> and <lv> are inherited as <lv> except in word-final position (after eliding a final Spanish vowel) where Efenol phonology mandates that the cluster must be broken as mentioned in the evolution of vowels section.

Examples: albañil > ''alveinil'', alba > ''álabh'', malvado > ''malvadh'', calvo > ''cálobh''.

Non-initial Spanish 'br' and 'bl' clusters are broken by moving the second element to the coda of the same syllable. If the syllable already had a non-fricative coda, an echo vowel is added. This also results in the lenition of the original <b> to <v> /v/. Notice that the sequences <mbr> and <mbl> are treated irregularly in some dialects.

Examples: abrazo > ''avarth'', abril > ''*avirl'' > ''aviril'', cobre > ''cóver'', hablar > ''avalar'', tabla > ''tával'', hombre > ''ónver'', emblema > ''envelem''.

In Western Efenol, the Spanish clusters <mb> and <nv> become <b> /b/ in word-medial position and <mm> /m/ in word-final position (after eliding final vowels). The latter alternates with <hb> /b/ in  Efenol grammar, particularly in the formation of plurals.

Examples: tambor > ''tabor'', invierno > ''ibîron'', bomba > ''bomm'', bombas > ''bëhb''.

The Spanish letter C can represent three different sounds: a fricative /θ/ (which is merged with /s/ in most Spanish varieties but not in the ancestor of Efenol), a stop /k/ and an affricate /tʃ/ when in the digraph <ch> (which will be covered in the following section).

Before a Spanish E or I, where C is pronounced as a fricative, the phoneme is inherited as a /θ/ sound, spelled <th> in western-like orthographies (including Standard Efenol) and <z> in northern-like orthographies.

Examples: cielo > ''thîl'' (Northern: ''zîl''), maceta > ''mathed'' (Northern: ''mazedd'').

The cluster <sc>, when pronounced /sθ/, is simplified to /θ/: escena > ''ethen''.

Word-initially, when not followed by a consonant, Spanish /k/ is retained as /k/, spelled <c> in Efenol varieties other than Eastern Efenol (which may optionally use <k> instead):

Examples: calma > ''cálam'' (Eastern: ''kálam''), cómo > ''com'' (Eastern: ''kom''), curva > ''curbh'' (Eastern: ''kúrav'').

Word-intial <cr> is also retained (optionally spelled as <kr> in Eastern Efenol). Example: cruz > ''cruth'' (Eastern ''kruz'').

Intervocalic C is normally inherited as either voiceless <c> /k/ or voiced <g> /g/ according to the lenition rule. As mentioned before, Spanish words ending in <-ico> or <-ica> are an exception to this rule as they yield the ending <-ig> rather than the expected <-ig>, although the former can still be found in some excaptions such as rico > ''ric'' and México > ''Méchic'' (although the latter coexists with ''Méchig''). Derivations of words with '-ico' typically preserve the /g/ or /k/ of the base word: música > ''músig'' => musical > ''musigal'', but México > ''Méchic'' => mexicano > ''mechican''.

Examples: opaco > ''obag'' (lenition rule indicates that the stop is voiced between a and o), ecología > ecolochî (lenition rule indicates that the stop isn't voiced between e and o), mítico > ''mítig'' (contrary to the lenition rule).

The above isn't true if the <c> is brought in contact with an <r> or <l> due to break of a preceding Cr or Cl cluster. In such cases, <c> undergoes rhotic mutation and becomes <ch> /x/.  

Examples: república > *repúbhilca > ''repúvilch''.

The same behaviour applies to instances of <c> preceded by <l>, <n> or <r> and followed by a vowel:

Examples: alcohol > ''alchôl'', calco > ''calch'', manco > ''manch'', arco > ''arch''.

Non word-initial <crV> (where V represents an arbitrary vowel) and all instances of <clV> are broken becoming <chVr> or <chVl> respectively. Notice that when this happens in the last syllable of a word some Efenol dialects may replace the original vowel (with /a/ in Central Efenol and with /ə/ in Eastern and North-Western Efenol). If the syllable already had a coda other than a fricative, the final <l> or <r> may be deleted.

Examples: ocre > ''ócher'' (Central: ''óchar''), clave > ''chalbh'', clima > ''chílam''.

The cluster <sc>, when pronounced /sk/, becomes <ch> /x/:

Examples: mosca > ''moch'', escape > ''echab''.

In Eastern Efenol, any resulting /k/ followed by a front vowel (e, i, ö or y) are palatalized to <ç> /tʃ/. This does not affect instances of /k/ which were followed by a /w/ in Spanish (see next subsection).

Examples: coche > ''*cötc'' > ''çötç'' /tʃøtʃ/ (cf. Western Efenol ''cët'', /kɛt/); cuerno > ''*cwörn'' > ''kör'n''.

Examples: cama > ''kam'', plural ''keim'' (not ''*çeim''); cuna > ''kun'', plural ''kŷn'' (for most Eastern Efenol speakers), ''çŷn'' (for a minority of Eastern Efenol speakers).

Spanish C as a non-word-final coda (particularly in the cluster <ct>) is elided and lengthens the preceding vowel. Any following consonant is unaffected by lenition. Word-final /k/ (found only in loanwords) is retained as a <c> /k/ except when preceded by an <l>, <n> or <r> which mutates the /k/ to /x/ as usual.

Examples: acto > ''ât'', acceso > ''âthes'', bistec > ''bithec'', bloc > ''volch''.

As in the evolution of many other languages, Spanish /kw/ (represented in Spanish orthography by <cu> followed by another vowel) evolves into a labial stop /p/ in Efenol. In most Efenol varieties the resulting /p/ (spelled <pw> in Standard Efenol) behaves different than a regular /p/ under consonant mutation.

Examples: cuatro /ˈkwa.tɾo/ > ''pwáthor'' /ˈpa.θoɾ/.

One key west/east isogloss across Efenol dialects concerns the evolution of the sequences /kwe/ and /kwi/. Northern, North-Western and Western Efenol (the standard language) apply the /kw/ -> /p/ rule first and have these sequences yield /pe/ and /pi/. However, in Central, Eastern and North-Eastern Efenol the diphthongs /we/ and /wi/ are simplified to /ø/ and /y/ before the rule applies, removing the necessary /w/ to trigger the change.

Examples: acuarela > *apwarela > ''avarel'' (lenition rule indicates that the stop is voiced between a and uV), adecuar > *adepwar > ''adhepar'' (lenition rule indicates that the stop is not voiced between e and uV).

Any instances of these /p/ preceded by an <l>, <n> or <r> (including diplaced l's and r's from broken clusters) evolved to <chw> /xw/ which was then simplified to <ch> /x/ but affecting the preceding vowel with u-ablaut. The same change can also be found in words wher the original /kw/ is preceded by an /s/.

Examples: circuito > *cirpwito > ''thyrchit'', encuentro > *enpwéntor > ''ënchénthor'', frecuencia > *ferpwencia > ''fërchînth'', escuadra > ''ëchádhar''.

As in English 'church', the Spanish digraph <ch> represents a an affricate /tʃ/. This phoneme is mostly lost in Efenol, although it later reemerged in many Efenol varieties (most notably in Eastern Efenol as a palalized Spanish /k/).

In Western and North-Western Efenol, a word-initial Spanish <ch> is inherited as <tc>, a combination that may be pronounced as /tʃ/ or /ʃ/. The same word-initial onset is inherited as /tj/ in Northern Efenol and as /sj/ in other varieties.

Examples: choza > ''tcoth'' (Northern ''tioz'', Eastern ''sioz''), China > Tcîn (Northern ''Tîn'', Eastern ''Sîn'').

Elsewhere (even when preceded by an <l> or <r>), Spanish <ch> triggers i-ablaut on the preceding vowel and becomes one of the following sounds:

* In Western, North-Western and Central Efenol: <t> /t/.

* In Eastern Efenol: /tʃ/ (spelled <tç> word finally or <c>~<ç> otherwise)

* In Northern and North-Eastern Efenol: <ts> /ts/.

Examples: noche > ''nët'' (Northern: ''nöts'', Eastern: ''nötç''), ochenta > ''ëtenth'' (Northern: ''ötsenz'', Eastern: ''öçenz''), marcha > ''meirt'' (Northern: ''meirts'', Eastern: ''meirç''), colcha > ''cëlt'' (Northern: ''cölts'', Eastern: ''çöltç'').

Some Western and Central Efenol speakers may replace the resulting 'lt' and 'rt' with <lth> and <rth>.

In word-initial position, a simple <D> onset is inherited as <D> /d/. Notice that Efenol <d> stands for an actual voiced plosive [d] rather than an approximant [ð̞] as it's typically the case in Spanish. Under Efenol grammar, this /d/ may undergo lenition or rhotic mutation to become <dh> /ð/ or nasal mutation to become <nd> /nd/.

Examples: dama > ''dam'', la dama > ''a·dham'', dólares > ''dëler'', en dólares > ''ndëler''.

In word-initial position the cluster <dr> is also preserved in Western Efenol.

Examples: dragón > ''draun'', drama > ''dram''.

In intervocalic position, <d> is lenited to <dh> /ð/.

Examples: dado > ''dadh'', duda > ''dudh''.

The clusters <rd> evolves to become Efenol <rdh>. Notice that any final <rdh> cluster will be broken in dialects other than Standard Western Efenol.

Examples: ardilla > ''ardhîl'' or ''erdhîl'', gordo > ''gordh'' (Northern ''górod'').

The cluster <ld> is inherited as <ldh> except in word-final position (after eliding a final Spanish vowel) where Efenol phonology mandates that the cluster must be broken as mentioned in the evolution of vowels section.

Examples: maldad > ''maldhadh'', saldo > ''sálodh''.

Any occurrence of <dl> is replaced by <rl> /ɾl/.

Non-initial Spanish <dr> clusters are broken by moving the second element to the coda of the same syllable. If the syllable already had a non-fricative coda, an echo vowel is added. This also results in the lenition of the original <d> to <dh> /ð/. Notice that the sequence <ndr> and <mbl> are treated irregularly in some dialects.

Examples: edredón > ''edherdhon'', madre > ''mádher'', ladrón > ''ladhoron'', almendral > ''alvendharal''.

In Western Efenol, the Spanish cluster <nd> becomes <d> /d/ in word-medial position and <nn> /n/ in word-final position (after eliding final vowels). The latter alternates with <hd> /d/ in  Efenol grammar, particularly in the formation of plurals.

Examples: comandante > ''comadanth'',  mundo > ''munn'', mundos > ''mijhd''.

Examples: cantado > ''canthadh'', corrido > ''corhidh'', partido > ''parthidh''.

Examples: cantado > ''canthau'', corrido > ''corrŷ'' (non-standard Western ''corhij''), partido > ''parthŷ'' (non-standard Western ''parthij'').

Examples: cantado > ''canthao'', corrido > ''curhao'', partido > ''parthao''.

There is some variation in these dialects regarding whether nouns ending in -ado/-ada and -ido/-ida should be affected by this development or not. In general, Central Efenol tends to apply the change to nouns ending in -ado (''-au'', cuidado > ''cydhau'') and -ada (''-â'', parada > ''parâ'', but nada > ''nadh'') while the written North-Western norm tends to only use the -ao ending for participles themselves.

When not followed by another consonant, Spanish <f> /f/ remains unchanged.

Examples: febrero > ''feverer'', afeitar > ''afîdar'', ánfora > ''ánfor''.

Word-initial <fr> is avoided whenever possible: the cluster is broken (moving the <r> to the coda) as long as this does not result in an illegal coda.

Examples: fruta > ''furth'', frescura > ''ferchur'', francés > ''franthê'' (breaking the cluster would have resulted in ''*farnthe'', with an illegal <rnth> cluster).

The cluster <fl> and non word-initial <fr> are always broken. If moving the <l> or <r> after the vowel would result in an illegal coda this consonants are deleted, often trigger a compensatory lengthening on the vowel.

Examples: África > ''Áfirch'', zafral > ''*thafarl'' > ''thafâl'', flotar > ''folthar'', flor > ''*for'r'' > ''fôr'', afluente > ''*afëlnth'' > ''afënth''.

Readers who aren't used to Spanish orthography should bear in mind that the sequences <gue> and <gui> represent /ge/ and /gi/; a diaeresis must be placed over the 'u' to prevent it from being silent: <güe> /gwe/~/we/ and <güi> /gwi/~/wi/.

Before a Spanish E or I, where G is pronounced as a fricative, the phoneme is inherited as a /x/ sound, spelled <ch> in western-like orthographies (including Standard Efenol) and <h> in northern-like orthographies.  

Examples: generoso > ''chenerô'' (Northern ''heneros''), ágil > ''áchil'' (Northern ''áhil'').

The sequences <gua>, <güe>, <güi> and <guo> are typically inerited as /wa/, /we/, /wi/ and /wo/.

Examples: guante > ''wanth'', cigüeña > ''thiwîn'', güisqui (also 'whiskey' or 'whiski') > ''wîch'' or ''wisci'',

Examples: antiguo > ''*anthiw'' > ''anthij'', desagüe > ''*dehaw'' > ''dehòu'', yegua > ''*sîw'' > ''sij''.

When following as Spanish <n>, the resulting <ngu> /ngw/ is inherited as <ng> and inherits u-ablaut on the preceding vowel. The Spanish word 'pingüino' (penguin) is an exception, as the expected result ''pyngin'' is mostly replaced by irregularly-derived ''pingijn''. When the resulting <ng> is word-final (after vowel elision) in a Western Efenol noun, its plural form ends with <hg> /g/ instead.

Examples: lingüística > ''lyngíthig'', lengua > ''lëng'', lenguas > ''lëihg''.

In word-initial position, a simple <g> onset is inherited as <g> /g/. Notice that Efenol <g> stands for an actual voiced plosive [g] rather than an approximant [ɰ] as it's typically the case in Spanish. Under Efenol grammar, this /g/ may undergo lenition or rhotic mutation, the result of which is subject to much variation across Efenol dialects, yielding either a glottal stop or a null phoneme in Western Efenol (written <gh> in either case). Under nasal mutation, <g> becomes <ng>.

Examples: gato > ''gad'', el gato > ''e·ghad'', guerra > ''gêr'', en guerra > ''ngêr'' (or ''en gêr'').

Examples: mago > ''mau'', a gusto > ''auth'', aguerrido > ''airhidh'', agarrar > ''*aarhar'' > ''ârhar''.

The sequences <gr> and <rg> are turned into velar trills /ʀ/. In Northern Efenol (as well as some Central Efenol varieties) this phoneme is later merged with the alveolar trill /r/.

Examples: grueso > ''rhës'' (Northern: ''rös''), gracias > ''rheith'' (Northern: ''reiz''), mugroso > ''murhô'' (Northern: ''murros''), órgano > órhan (Northern: ''órran'').

Word-final /ʀ/ (after vowel elision) is only allowed in Central Efenol (except in varieties which merge the phoneme with /r/, as it's also the case in Northern Efenol). In other dialects (including the western standard) the trill is reduced to an alveolar flap <r> /ɾ/ and the preceding vowel is mutated: lengthened if a back vowel or u-ablauted otherwise.

Examples: magro > ''*marh'' > ''mòr'' (Central ''marh'', Northern ''marr''), logro > ''*lorh'' > ''lôr'' (Central ''lorh'', Northern ''lorr''), jerga > ''chër'' (Central ''cherh'', Northern ''herr'').

Similarly, the sequences <gl> and <lg> become <lw> /ɫ/ (as noted in the phonology section, the realization of this phoneme may vary). Most Central Efenol speakers and virtually all Eatern and North-Eastern Efenol speakers merge this phoneme with <l> /l/.

Examples: gloria > ''lwoir'' (Eastern: ''loir''), alga > ''alw'' (Eastern ''al'').

In Western Efenol, the Spanish cluster <ng> becomes <g> /g/ in word-medial position and <ng> /ŋ/ in word-final position (after eliding final vowels). The latter alternates with <hg> /g/ in  Efenol grammar, particularly in the formation of plurals.

Examples: ángulo > ''águl'',  manga > ''mang'', mangas > ''meihg''.

The sequences <ngr> and <ngl> develop irregularly:

Examples: sangre > ''sánrher'', inglés > ''inlê''.

The letter <h> is often found before word-initial dipthongs with /j/ as a first element which in Western and North-Western Efenol are treated the same as having a word-initial <y>, getting a prosthetic /ʃ/ or /s/ as a result.

Certain foreign words often spelled with <h> in Spanish may be inherited in Efenol with an /x/: hockey > ''chóci''.

Even though the word 'hora' (hour) in inherited in all dialects as ''or'', the letter <h> remains a common abbreviation or symbol for 'hour'.  

The Spanish letter <j>, representing the /x/ sound, are inherited as /x/, spelled <ch> in western-like orthographies and <h> in northern-like orthographies.

Examples: juego > ''chëu'', ajo > ''ach'', mejor > ''mechor'', aljibe > ''alchibh'', forja > ''forch''.

Any instances of a foreign <j> originally representing a /dʒ/ or /ʒ/ sound are treated as beginning with <y>. See the corresponding section for more information.

Examples: jacuzzi > ''seacijs'', jeans > ''sîz''.

Instances of Spanish K are treated the same as the corresponding regular spellings for /k/: <qu> (before 'e' or 'i') and <c> (elsewhere). See the corresponding sections.

Examples: kilómetro > ''cilómethor'', Kaliningrado > ''Calininrhadh'' (or ''Calininrhardh'').

Other than in the digraph <ll> (covered in the next section) and when next to <g>, Spanish L is inherited as an /l/ in Efenol.

Examples: león > ''leôn'', lobo > ''lobh'', balada > ''baladh''.

When next to the letter <g>, be it in the clusters <gl> or <lg>, Spanish L becomes <lw> /ɫ/ as mentioned in the section about Spanish G.

When next to another consonant, L typically triggers rhotic-mutation (hence why it might also be referred to as liquid mutation). Clusters involving <l> as a second element are often broken by moving the <l> to the coda of the syllable; this is further explained in the relevant sections for other consonants (for instance, the section for P for the cluster <pl>).

The cluster <sl> is simplfied to <l> unless word-final (after vowel elision), in which case the cluster is broken:

Examples: eslavo > ''elabh'', isla > ''ísal'', muslo > ''músol''.

In Western Efenol alone, instances of a word-final <l> /l/ preceded by an /i/ are pronounced as palatal lateral /ʎ/. This is not reflected in writing (where /ʎ/ is elsewhere found as <lh>). Thus ''mil'' (one thousand, from Spanish mil) is phonetically /miʎ/.  

The Spanish letter <L> developed irregularly in a limited number of grammatical words.

Most prominently, the Spanish definite articles 'el', 'la', 'los' and 'las' lose the L in all dialects other than Northern Efenol becoming ''e'' (which triggers rhotic mutation, as a side effect of the lost /l/), ''a'' (which triggers lenition) and plural 'o' and 'a' (which do not trigger any kind of consonant mutation). On the other hand, only the original /l/ is preserved in singular definte articles preceding a vowel initial noun: <l'>.

Examples: el caso > ''e·chas'', la casa > ''a·gas'', los casos > ''o·ceis'', las casas > ''a·ceis''.

This does not affect the third-person singular pronoun <él>, which is inherited as ''el'' in all Efenol varieties.

Meanwhile, the accusative third-person plural pronoun 'los' becomes ''lho'' by influence of the <ll> in the nominative form 'ellos'.

The Spanish digraph <ll>, pronounced /ʎ/ (and regarded as different from Spanish <y>, see the note about the base Spanish variety above) is mostly retained as /ʎ/ although written <lh> instead. In Northern, Eastern and North-Eastern Efenol /ʎ/ (written 'li') is in free variation with /lj/.

Examples: llorar > ''lhorar'', hallazgo > ''alháthog''.

Examples: malla > ''meil'' (Central ''malh'' or ''meilh''), cepillo > ''thebîl'' (Central ''thebilh'' or ''thebîlh'').

It should be noted that, due to a later shift, word-final <l> /l/ preceded by an /i/ are pronounced as palatal lateral /ʎ/ in Western Efenol (regardless of whether they originated as such or not). This change, not reflected in writing, makes it so that ''meil'' and ''thebîl'' indeed retain a /ʎ/ sound. This is not true for other dialects, such as Northern ''meil'' and ''zebîl'' realized with alveolar /l/.

Examples: mamá > ''mamâ'', marco > ''march'', América > ''Amérig'', arma > ''arm'' (but ''áram'' in other Efenol varieties).

* When next to a <p>, as /p/ is nasal-mutated to /f/ when next to /m/ and the resulting [ɱf] is spelled as <nf>: tiempo > ''tînf''.

* In the sequence <mb> which, as explained under the section about Spanish B, may yield /b/: tambor > ''tabor''.

* In the cluster <mn>, where the /m/ is lost: ''himno'' > ''in''.

* Next to an <l> (which might have moved from a cluster at the beginning of the previous syllable); only in this case /m/ is mutated to <v> /v/: finalmente > ''finalventh'', clemencia > *chelmencia > ''chelvînth''. This mutation doesn't take place if there is an epenthetic vowel between the L and the M: clima > *chilma > > ''chílam''.

It should be noted that ''-menth'', from the Spanish adverbial suffix '-mente' (similar to English -ly when used to form adverbs), is often added to the Efenol form of the adjective rather than inheriting the adverb directly from Spanish. Thus 'slowly' is not ''*lenthamenth'' as expected from Spanish 'lentamente' but rather ''lenthmenth'', combining ''lenth'' (the expected outcome from Spanish 'lento'~'lenta') and ''-menth''. For adjectives ending in <l> as ''final'', the form ''-venth'' is used instead. This is even the case for adverbs that didn't have a final L in Spanish: 'bellamente' (beautifuly) becomes ''bîlventh'', from 'bella' > ''bîl'' and the suffix ''-venth''.

The sequences <mn> and <nm> yield their second component: /n/ and /m/ respectively: amnesia > ''anîs'', himno > ''in'', inmenso > ''imez'', inminente > ''iminenth''.

Examples: nieto > ''nît'', Ana > ''An'', caimán > ''caiman''.

Many consonants change due to nasal mutation when next to /n/. In some cases (such as <nd> and <ng>) the nasal might be elided. The place of articulation may also assimilate (for instance, /n/ becomes [ŋ] when next to other velars). See the respective sections (such as ''Spanish D'' for <nd>) for more information.

Examples: andén > ''aden'', enjambre > ''enchánver'', antología > ''antholochî''.

The sequence <nn> is simplified to a single <n> /n/: innato > ''inad''.

Spanish Ñ, representing the palatal nasal /ɲ/, is only preserved as such in Central Efenol. In all other varieties it becomes /nj/ word-initially (usually spelled <ne> in Western Efenol) and /n/ with an i-ablaut on the preceding vowel instead. Some Central Efenol speakers may conflate word-final Ñ (after vowel elision) with N and apply i-ablaut on the preceding vowel as other Efenol varieties do. A transitional form which uses i-ablaut but retains word final <ñ> /ɲ/ also exists.

Examples: ñandú > ''neadû'' (Central: ''ñadû''), gnomo ~ ñomo > ''neom'' (Central: ñom), mañana > ''meinan'' (Central: ''mañan''), año > ''ein'' (Central: ''añ', ''eiñ'' or ''ein''), niño > ''nîn'' (Central: ''niñ'', ''nîñ'' or ''nîn'').

Examples: pez > ''peth'', pelota > ''pelod''.

Word-intial <pr> is also retained. Example: primo > ''prim''.

Examples: opaco > ''obag'' (lenition rule indicates that the stop is voiced between o and a), equipo > egip (lenition rule indicates that the stop isn't voiced between i and o).

The above isn't true if the 'p' is brought in contact with an <r> or <l> due to break of a preceding Cr or Cl cluster. In such cases, 'p' undergoes rhotic mutation and becomes /f/.  

Examples: increpar > *incherpar > ''incherfar''

The same behaviour applies to instances of 'p' preceded by <l>, <m> or <r> and followed by a vowel:

Examples: pulpo > ''pulf'', alpino > ''alfin'', lámpara > ''lánfar'', carpa > ''carf''.

Non word-initial <prV> (where V represents an arbitrary vowel) and all instances of <plV> are broken becoming <fVr> or <fVl> respectively. Notice that when this happens in the last syllable of a word some Efenol dialects may replace the original vowel (with /a/ in Central Efenol and with /ə/ in Eastern and North-Western Efenol). If the syllable already had a coda other than a fricative, the final <l> or <r> may be deleted.

Examples: apreciar > ''afirthar'', plomo > ''fólom'', plata > ''falth'', plan > ''*faln'' > ''fân''.

The cluster <sp> also becomes /f/:

Examples: avispa > ''avif'', especial > ''efithal''.

Spanish P as a non-word-final coda (particularly in the cluster <pt>, when not already simplified to <t> in Spanish as in 'septiembre'~'setiembre') is elided and lengthens the preceding vowel. Any following consonant is unaffected by lenition. This results in a complete merger with the cluster <ct>; exceptionally the word 'apto' becomes ''òt'' rather than the expected ''*ât'' to avoid confusion with ''ât'', derived from Spanish 'acto'. Word-final /p/ (found only in loanwords) is retained as a /p/ except when preceded by an <l>, <m>~<n> or <r> which mutates the /p/ to /f/ as usual. The cluster <ps> simplifies to /s/ word-initially.

Examples: rapto > ''rât'', sinapsis > ''sinâsis'', psicología > ''sicolochî'', séptimo > ''sêtim'', septiembre > setiembre > ''sedînver'' (rather than septiembre > ''sêtînver''), rap > ''rap''.

Aside from loanwords, Spanish Q only appears in the trigraphs <que> and <qui>, pronounced /ke/ and /ki/ respectively (the 'u' being silent). In words from foreign origin, Q may appear in other positions but is also pronounced as /k/. This /k/ phonemes evolve as detailed in the section about Spanish <c> (which represents /k/ before other vowels). The result is typically either /k/, /g/ or /x/.