Bemé: Difference between revisions

There are only three possible diphthongs in Bemé: /ei̯ oi̯ ou̯/, written ⟨ey, oi, ow⟩ respectively. However, although these diphthongs may roughly match with similar English diphthongs /eɪ̯ oɪ̯ oʊ̯/, these diphthongs rarely match; diphthongs in general are rare in Bemé, but even with words derived from English words with diphthongs, the diphthongs are often replaced with monophthongs, e.g. ''sh'''e'''k'' [[IPA for Bemé|[ʃek]]], compared to English sh'''a'''ke /[[w:Help:IPA/English|ˈʃeɪ̯k]]/. In ''kriyal'' varieties diphthongs may be entirely replaced by monophthongs, so words like ''sk'''ey''''' [[IPA for Bemé|[skei̯]]] become [[IPA for Bemé|[skɛ]]].

/ɛ/ only appears in word-final open syllables; elsewhere, /ɛ/ is neutralised with /e/. However, there is a tendency of native speakers in Cassim Po to shift initial /e/ to /ɛ/, leading to alternative spellings such as '''''eh'''nga''(standard ''enga'' / ''nga'' "or") which break Bemé orthographic rules. In other dialects, /ɛ/ may be neutralised with /e/ in ''all'' positions, leading to pronunciations such as /beme/ or /bɛmɛ/ for ''bemeh'' "Bemé".