Re: Unilang: the Phonology

Nik Taylor sikayal:

> > you'd have to leave all liquids out completely.
>
> I disagree.  Ninety-six percent of all languages have at least one
> liquid, 72% have more than one.  I say, have one liquid.  It could be
> written "l" or "r", it doesn't matter, but both pronunciations would be
> legal.  That single liquid could be, for instance, a lateral alveolar
> approximate, an alveolar approximate, a retroflex approximate, an
> alveolar tap, whatever.
I agree with Nik here.  Having no liquids would destroy the renderability
for the 96% just to keep the pronounceability for the remaining 4%, which
is very contrary to Oskar's goals.

Somebody else mentioned the instability of such sounds, but I don't see
why this is relevant.  Auxlangs will probably never be a first language
and as such will be mostly immune to processes of language change, so the
liquids will be as stable as anything else, especially if the community
using them is large.  (As in all auxlangers' dreams . . .)

Jesse S. Bangs jaspax@u.washington.edu

"If you look at a thing nine hundred and ninety-nine times, you are
perfectly safe; if you look at it the thousandth time, you are in
frightful danger of seeing it for the first time."
--G.K. Chesterton