The velar fricative [x] is mainly used in the eastern dialect (Harar) as a phoneme. It is represented as ⟨kh⟩ in the Oromo script (Qubee) though it is pronounced as a ⟨k⟩ in most other dialects.[1]
Vowelsedit
Oromo has five vowels which all contrast long and short vowels. Sometimes there is a change in vowel quality when the vowel is short. Short vowels tend to be more centralized than their counterparts.
Though sometimes diphthongs may occur, there are none that occur in a word's unaltered form.
Tones on long vowels are marked on the first vowel symbol.
In Oromo, the tone-bearing unit is the mora rather than the vowel of the syllable. A long vowel or a diphthong consists of two morae and can bear two tones. Each mora is defined as being of high or low tone. Only one high tone occurs per word and this must be on the final or penultimate mora. Particles do not have a high tone. (These include prepositions, clitic pronouns for subject and object, impersonal subject pronouns and focus markers.) There are therefore three possible "accentual patterns" in word roots.
Phonetically there are three tones: high, low and falling. Rules:
On a long vowel, a sequence of high-low is realized as a falling tone.
On a long vowel, a sequence of low-high is realized as high-high. (Occasionally it is a rising tone.)
This use of tone may be characterized as pitch accent. It is similar to that in Somali.
Stress is connected with tone. The high tone has strong stress; the falling tone has less stress and the low tone has no stress.
Lloret, Maria-Rosa (1997), Phonologies of Asia and Africa, Alan S. Kaye, ISBN978-1575060194
Owens, Jonathan (1985), A Grammar of Harar Oromo, Hamburg: Buske, ISBN3-87118-717-8
January 01, 1970
oromo, phonology, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, august, 2. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Oromo phonology news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2015 Learn how and when to remove this message This article contains phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet IPA For an introductory guide on IPA symbols see Help IPA For the distinction between and see IPA Brackets and transcription delimiters This article describes the phonology of the Oromo language Contents 1 Consonants 2 Vowels 3 Tone 4 Phonological processes 4 1 Allophones 4 2 Epenthesis 4 3 Elision 4 4 Sandhi 5 References 6 Works citedConsonants editThe Oromo language has 24 to 28 consonant phonemes depending on the dialect Consonants Labial Alveolar Retroflex Palato alveolar Velar Glottal Nasal m n ɲ ny PlosiveAffricate voiceless p t tʃ ch k ʔ voiced b d dʒ j ɡ ejective pʼ ph tʼ x tʃʼ c kʼ q implosive ᶑ dh Fricative voiceless f s ʃ sh x kh h voiced v z Approximant w l j y Rhotic r ᶑ is a voiced retroflex plosive It may have an implosive quality for some speakers The voiceless stops t and k are always aspirated d and t are dentalThe velar fricative x is mainly used in the eastern dialect Harar as a phoneme It is represented as kh in the Oromo script Qubee though it is pronounced as a k in most other dialects 1 Vowels editOromo has five vowels which all contrast long and short vowels Sometimes there is a change in vowel quality when the vowel is short Short vowels tend to be more centralized than their counterparts Though sometimes diphthongs may occur there are none that occur in a word s unaltered form Oromo Vowels Front Central Back Close i ɪ ii iː u ʊ uu uː Mid e ɛ ee eː o ɔ oo oː Open a ɐ aa ɑː Tone editWhen needed the conventions for marking tone in written Oromo are as follows acute accent high tone grave accent low tone circumflex falling tone Tones on long vowels are marked on the first vowel symbol In Oromo the tone bearing unit is the mora rather than the vowel of the syllable A long vowel or a diphthong consists of two morae and can bear two tones Each mora is defined as being of high or low tone Only one high tone occurs per word and this must be on the final or penultimate mora Particles do not have a high tone These include prepositions clitic pronouns for subject and object impersonal subject pronouns and focus markers There are therefore three possible accentual patterns in word roots Phonetically there are three tones high low and falling Rules On a long vowel a sequence of high low is realized as a falling tone On a long vowel a sequence of low high is realized as high high Occasionally it is a rising tone This use of tone may be characterized as pitch accent It is similar to that in Somali Stress is connected with tone The high tone has strong stress the falling tone has less stress and the low tone has no stress Phonological processes editAllophones edit b becomes b between two vowels 2 d becomes d between two vowels k is pronounced as a voiceless velar fricative before n and t 3 The k and x i e the Arabic Kha are used interchangeably in the Borana dialect In the Goma dialect vowels are nasalized before ng and ns 4 Epenthesis edit When a vowel occurs in word initial position a glottal stop ʔ is inserted before it Elision edit n is dropped before w 5 d t ɗ are dropped before n 6 Sandhi edit Phonological changes occur at morpheme boundaries sandhi for specific grammatical morphemes There may be assimilation The cluster ln becomes a geminated lː 2 bn becomes mn t assimilates into the proceeding d ɗ and tʼ 7 ɗ becomes ɾ between vowelsReferences edit Lloret 1997 p 495 a b Owens 1985 p 7 Owens 1985 p 5 Owens 1985 p 2 Owens 1985 p 8 Owens 1985 p 6 Owens 1985 p 5 6 Works cited editLloret Maria Rosa 1997 Phonologies of Asia and Africa Alan S Kaye ISBN 978 1575060194 Owens Jonathan 1985 A Grammar of Harar Oromo Hamburg Buske ISBN 3 87118 717 8 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Oromo phonology amp oldid 1200508579, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
