Lesson #1: How to Read Nióruais
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A rundown on how to make sense of Nióruais orthography.
This public article was written by [Deactivated User], and last updated on 1 Dec 2015, 19:47.
[comments] niocelticorthographyslenderbroadlenitionfada
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This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
Due to being related to Irish, Nióruais orthography encodes its phonemes in a manner distinct from many European languages as its orthography is not particularly phonological; the specific features are tied to the slender/broad and lenition system of the language. However, if one learns the rules and memorizes the transformations, Nióruais orthography tends to appear surprisingly internally consistent.
Unlike its distant sister Fionlainnis, Nióruais's slender/broad system is an actual remnant of the language's past rather than a mere orthographic construction. Like its mother and sisters, Nióruais determines slender consonants to be neighbored by either <i/í> or <e/é> while being surrounded by <a/á>, <o/ó>, or <u/ú> keeps the consonant broad. But unlike Irish's systematic palatalization/velarization, how sounds transform when slenderized is not consistent throughout the language:
(Velarization does not occur at all in the language, even when consonants are broad. Also, the following rules do not necessarily apply when the stated consonant is lenitized. Some sounds do not occur except when a consonant is lenitized.)
- Unvoiced labials (/p/ and /f/) as well as the labial nasal (/m/) and liquids (except the alveolar trill /r/ and velar lateral approximant /ʟ/) still undergo palatalization when slenderized.
- The voiced labial stop /b/ transforms into the fricative /v/.
- Alveolar stops and fricatives in particular stop making sense. /d/ becomes the voiced dental /ð/, /t/ becomes the affricate /t͡ʃ/, and /s/ becomes the post-alveolar /ʃ/. The only palatalization that occurs is with /n/, which becomes /ɲ/ (perhaps the most common "full-sound" palatal in the language).
- Velars are also quite strange; /g/ becomes the fricative /ɣ/, while /k/ becomes the affricate /t͡s/; it is believed that /k/ in particular transforms this way because it was originally /c/, and slenderized by becoming the aforementioned affricate; the affricate remains as an artifact while /c/ became the velar /k/.
- Some sounds, namely /ŋ/, /r/, and a handful of lenitized consonants do not change at all despite being neighbored by a slender vowel.
Slender/Broad Chart
| Broad | Slender |
|---|---|
| /m/ | /mʲ/ |
| /p/ | /pʲ/ |
| /f/ | /fʲ/ |
| /b/ | /v/ |
| /n/ | /ɲ/ |
| /d/ | /ð/ |
| /t/ | /t͡ʃ/ |
| /s/ | /ʃ/ |
| /ɹ/ | /ɹʲ/ |
| /l/ | /lʲ/ |
| /g/ | /ɣ/ |
| /k/ | /t͡s/ |
Like Irish, Nióruais possesses a system of lenition, indicated when a consonant is followed by <h>. Unlike the slender/broad system, Nióruais's approach to lenition is more practical than historical. Lenition is used to represent numerous sounds that do not have their own special letter; and in some cases, lenition (when broadened) allows the placement of slender consonant sounds when there is no slender vowel neighboring them.
Lenition Chart
| Grapheme | Broad | Slender |
|---|---|---|
| <bh> | /v/ | /w/ |
| <ch> | /k͡x/ | - |
| <dh> | /ð/ | /z/ |
| <fh> | /ɸ/ | /ʔ/ |
| <gh> | /ɣ/ | /j/ |
| <lh> | /ʟ/ | /w/ |
| <mh> | /mʷ/ | /j/ |
| <nh> | /ɲ/ | /nʷ/ |
| <rh> | /r/ | - |
| <sh> | /ʃ/ | /sʟ/ |
| <th> | /h/ | - |
Normal vs Fada Vowels
Like its mother and sisters, Nióruais makes use of "fada" vowels, which are accented with either an acute (á) or grave (à). Unlike its relatives, Nióruais does not use them as an indicator for vowel length (which tends to be flexible), instead using them to represent additional vowels as well as to act as an override that allows for more flexible spelling. To elaborate, vowels with an accent will always override any neighboring vowel's pronunciation, negating diphthongs and triphthongs, although they do not override slenderization/broadening. So, for example:
<mais> → /mæʃ/ (<ai> translates to /æ/, and the <i> slenderizes /s/ into /ʃ/)
<máis> → /mɑʃ/ (the fada <á> /ɑ/ overrides the pronunciation of neighboring <i>, but not slenderization, which still transforms /s/ into /ʃ/)
<maís> → /miʃ/ (the fada <í> /i/ overrides the pronunciation of neighboring <a> and slenderizes neighboring /s/ into /ʃ/, but does not slenderize /m/ into /mʲ/ because the overridden silent <a> separates the two morphemes)
Fada vowels with an acute (á) represent additional vowel sounds separate from the "default" ones, while fada vowels with a grave (à) represent the "default" vowel sounds whilst still overriding neighboring vowels' pronunciation. For more information, consult Nióruais's alphabet.
Polyphthongs or "How Nióruais Handles Slender Vowels Neighboring Broad Consonants"
Nióruais possesses a handful of polyphthongs that allow it to represent some vowel sounds that either do not occur otherwise or would usually indicate a slender consonant where there is none. Diphthongs and triphthongs are never comprised of fada vowels.
Polyphthong Chart
| Grapheme | Phoneme |
|---|---|
| <ae> | /ae/ |
| <ai> | /æ/ |
| <ao> | /i/ |
| <au> | /ɪ/ |
| <ea> | /aɪ/ |
| <ei> | /ɛ/ |
| <eo> | /au/ |
| <ia> | /jə/ |
| <ie> | /jɛ/ |
| <io> | /ɪ/ |
| <iu> | /ju/ |
| <oa> | /e/ |
| <oe> | /a/ |
| <oi> | /ɔ/ |
| <ou> | /ʊ/ |
| <ua> | /wə/ |
| <ue> | /we/ |
| <ui> | /wɪ/ |
| <uo> | /wa/ |
| <uai> | /wɪ/* |
| <aoi> | /ai/ |
| <uao> | /wi/ |
| *Mostly deprecated, usually replaced with <ui> |
The idea is that one can use these tidbits of information to write Nióruais words in ways that match their pronunciation while still dealing with the slender/broad system.
Although many Nióruais words can be spelled in several ways, there is a spelling standard and although it sometimes throws a few curveballs, there is a method to the madness.
The "Preaching to the Choir" Rule
Fada vowels of one class (slender or broad) do not need to neighbor non-fada vowels of the same class. Silent broad vowels (a/o/u) that are overridden by a neighboring slender fada vowel serve the purpose of "linking" the slender vowel sound with the preceding or following broad consonant sound without slenderizing it. Essentially it is a way to spell syllables that according to the slender/broad system should not occur (remember, that system is inconsistent). There is a not-always-consistent way to write these syllables: if the fada vowel is <í>, usually the silent broad vowel separating it is <a> if the silent vowel precedes, or <o> if the silent vowel follows; but again, there are numerous exceptions and really the best way to learn is to memorize.
So for example, "saót" is a pointless spelling since <ó> is already broad and won't transform /s/ into /ʃ/; the same goes for "sáot", as the <á> won't transform the /t/ into /t͡ʃ/. The same goes for "siéb" or "síeb"; since both the fada and non-fada are slender, both consonants will be slenderized and so the non-fada does not need to be there. But "síos" and "siós" both work because the silent vowel in either serves to separate the fada vowel of opposing class from the sound it does not transform in speech.
The name of the rule references the expression "you're preaching to the choir" as in "I already agree with what you're saying", owing to the idea that fada vowels are "loud" (as opposed to the silent neighboring vowels) and that neighboring silent vowels of the same class already broaden/slender the connecting consonant for them.
The "Look-Ahead" Rule
This one is more phonological that orthographic, but it warrants mention nonetheless. The "look-ahead" rule states that in consonant clusters, if the vowel immediately following the cluster is slender, then both consonants are slenderized (the idea being that the first consonant "looks ahead" and adjusts accordingly); however, the inverse of this is not true. There are a handful of exceptions, usually where the cluster would be unnecessarily difficult to pronounce if both were slenderized, but in general this rule holds true.
The "Dead End" Rule
Another phonological rule states that certain consonants do not slenderize if a vowel does not follow them (regardless of the onset of the following word), even when neighbored by a slender vowel or prompted to "look ahead". The consonants that palatalize when slender, as well as /n/, are applicable to this rule.
Use the knowledge you gleaned from the above lesson to write the orthography of the following words presented in IPA. To demonstrate the flexibility of Nióruais spelling, many of these will have multiple correct answers.
| Problem | Possible Solutions | Actual Spelling |
|---|---|---|
| /bəlʲim/: ↺ | buèlaom, boèlaom, baèlaom, buèlím, boèlím, baèlím | buèlaom |
| /ʃɪmɹi/: ↺ | simraí, simroí, simruí, siomraí, siomroí, siomruí, simrao, siomrao | siomraí |
| /svomʲə/: ↺ | sbhóimaè, sbhóimoè, sbhóimuè, sbhóemaè, sbhóemoè, sbhóemuè, sbhóme | sbhóme1 |
| /ɸet͡sirə/: ↺ | fhécírhe, fhécaorhe, fhuécírhe, fhaécírhe, fhoécírhe, fhuécaorhe, fhoécaorhe, fhaécaorhe | fhécírhe2 |
| /ʃukɹʲə/: ↺ | shúcroè, shúcraè, shúcruè, siúcraè, siúcroè, siúcruè, shúcre, siúcre, siúchre | siúchre3 |
|
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