forumadmin, Administrators
2,073
edits
(→Vowel) |
|||
Line 95: | Line 95: | ||
===Vowel=== | ===Vowel=== | ||
Vowels (''anrūēli'' or ''ansāorīki anūrāni'') come in two varieties, the long (''anōma'') and the short (''anīña''). These are distinct and make minimal pairs, and so are counted as separate vowels | Vowels ('''anrūēli''' or '''ansāorīki anūrāni''') come in two varieties, the long ('''anōma''') and the short ('''anīña'''). These are distinct and make minimal pairs, and so are counted as separate vowels. In addition, there is one short vowel /y/, halfway between /i/ and /u/. | ||
There are also some diphthongs, again in long and short forms. These are /āe/, /ae/, /āo/, /ao/, /iē/, /ie/. /āe/ and /ae/ are pronounced like Spanish /ay/. /āo/ and /ao/ are pronounced like German /au/. /iē/ and /ie/ are pronounced like American English /ye/ in /yet/. Any other vowel pairs are pronounced as separate vowels. | {| class="bluetable" style="text-align: center;" | ||
|- | |||
|+ '''Vowel phonemes''' | |||
! !! Front !! Central !! Back | |||
|- | |||
! Close | |||
| i ī || (ɪ)<sup>1</sup> || u ū | |||
|- | |||
! Mid | |||
| e ē || (ə)<sup>1</sup> || o ō | |||
|- | |||
! Open | |||
| || a ā || | |||
|} | |||
'''Notes''': | |||
# The short vowel /y/ which only occurs in some dialects, pronounced as a high mid vowel. It is fairly close in pronunciation to the American English short /i/ or to the last vowel sound in the American English word /decided/. | |||
==== Diphthongs ==== | |||
There are also some diphthongs, again in long and short forms. These are /āe/, /ae/, /āo/, /ao/, /iē/, /ie/. The diphthongs /āe/ and /ae/ are pronounced like Spanish /ay/. /āo/ and /ao/ are pronounced like German /au/. /iē/ and /ie/ are pronounced like American English /ye/ in /yet/. Any other vowel pairs are pronounced as separate vowels. | |||
==Grammar== | ==Grammar== |