Re: CONLANG Digest - 7 Oct 2001 to 8 Oct 2001 (#2001-282)

Constructed Languages List <CONLANG@...> wrote:

> From what you wrote above (and what I read in my book) its not clear if such
> a hypotetic word: 'neas' (I hope it's nothing vulgar ^_^) should be read
> /neS/ or /naS/ and how should be another hypotetic word (is it vulgar now?
> ^_^) /noS/ written 'neos', 'nios' or maybe even 'nias'.
Ah! That's *completely* different! That's nothing to do with anything being broad
or slender per-se. I can't really tell you what the rules are myself -- they're
burned into my head like a poem into an illiterate shepard's brain, but that
doesn't mean I can write them down. Just for reference here are how the words
you gave would be pronounced:

 'neas' = /nyas/
 'neos' = /nyos/
 'nios' = /nis/
 'nias' = /ni-as/

One little thing is that the letter `n' can't really be palatised.

Ok. I've spent a while pronouncing different words myself and I think I've
collected a list of all the different ways vowels and diphthongs are
represented in my dialect and accent anyway. Here goes.

Note: a' = a with a fada accent, etc...

 a'         = /O/ like `aw' in `saw'
 a          = /a/ like `a' in `pat'
 e', ae, ei = /e/ like `ae' in `gaelic', but not as long
 e          = /E/ like `e' in `pet'
 i', io, ui = /i/ like `ee' in `feel'
 i, oi      = /I/ like `i' in `tin'
 o'         = /o/ like `o' in `nose'
 o          = /U/ like `u' in `put'
 u'         = /u/ like `oo' in `tool'
 u          = /V/ somewhat like `u' in `cut'
 ai, ea     = /a/ at the beginning, /e/ in the middle.
 ao         = /wi/
 eo         = /yo/
 ia, iai    = /i-a/
 ua         = /wa/
 iu         = /iw/ like `ew' in `few'
 o'i        = /o-I/ with a short /I/
 a'i        = /A/ at the beginning, /wO/ in the middle
 e'i        = /e-i/
 u'i        = /u-i/
 ea'        = /e-a/
 i'o        = /i-o/
 ai'        = /ey/
 aoi        = /i/ at the beginning, /wi/ in the middle
 eoi        = /i-yo/
 ea'i       = /O-i/
 uai        = /u-a/
 iui        = /u-I/

I'm sure there's omissions and errors in that. The way I pronounce Irish makes it
sound like the bastard child of Connacht and Ulster Irish who emmigrated to
Munster.

K.

--
Keith Gaughan                         In the land of the blind, the
kmgaughan@eircom.net                    one-eyed man is a heretic
http://www.geocities.com/keithgaughan/ [Temporarily]