Re: The Combos [hj] [hw] and [gw] in Conlangs

Leo Moser wrote:
>Maori is one of the few other languages to
>write a {WH}, but the history is different
>there and actual pronunciation seems to
>vary.>
You probably know that Maori {wh} does correspond to /f/ in other Polynesian
languages (except Hawaiian = /h/), and to both /p/ and /b/ in e.g. Malay and
other western Austronesian languages.   I've never seen a proper linguistic
description of Maori, but my little "Beginner's Maori" by K. T. Harawira (a
native) says:  "_Wh_ is _not_ sounded as f in English..... Say the English
word "what"...without the t... and you will have as near as possible the
correct sound of _wh_."   Perhaps his "near as possible" means _not quite
but close_?  My suspicion, based on the history,  is that it's very likely a
voiceless bilabial fricative (IPA l.c. phi).


>Chinese has many words in {HUA} {HUO}
>etc. those these differ a bit in that the {H}
>may be [x], not [h]. Korean seems to have
>some form of [hw-]. Artlangs that mimic
>East Asian languages will often have such
>sounds.
>
>What other natural or constructed languages
>make use of [hw-] or have (more or less)
>similar sounds?
>
>In-re GW:
>
>The [gw-] sound appears to be more common
>than either of the above. It seems to be in most of
>the Romance languages, for example. Chinese has
>it (in the unvoiced/unaspirated form). Korean
>seemingly has it too. Probably not in Japanese,
>despite "guai" (condition) etc.
>
>I presume that [gw-] is not in any of the Slavic
>languages, nor in German. It may be (rather
>marginally) in Indonesian and/or Swahili. I
>don't seem to find it in most of the languages
>of the Indian sub-continent.
>
>This would imply that [gw-] may not be very
>common beyond the western European area.
>
>Am I missing something? I would guess
>that some of the other major languages of
>the world have it.
>
>I find none of the above in Klingon.
>
>Any comment, info, appreciated.
>                                                 LEO
>
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>   Leo J. Moser
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