Kâlirian

Phonemes

Kâlirian has a wide selection of possible phonemes. In total there are approximately 34 phonemes. The phonemes consist of 9 vowels and 26 consonants.

The alphabet system is slightly different in Kalirian compared to the system that is used in English. For instance in Kalirian capital letters indicate allophones among consonants. This is useful because unlike in English where phonemes can change based on where they appear in a word this happens rarely in Kalirian as words are written almost exactly as they’re pronounced. Kalirian also uses diacritics such as the circumference ^ which indicates short vowels â, ê, and û, from their equivalent long vowels a, e, and u, which are left un-marked.

Pronunciation:

â- pronounced the same as in the English a sound in the word bad.

a- pronounced the same as in the English a sound in the word bra.

b- labial-stop; pronounced almost like the English b except that it should be pronounced slower and with the lips slightly more protruded.

c- dental-fricative; the tip of the tongue should be pressed up against the back teeth. The teeth should be jarred shut and it is important that the tongue remains flat and maintains in that position as the sound is made.

d- retroflex-stop; the tip and the near top end part of the tongue is pressed up against the ceiling of the mouth in the section just behind the hard palate. The tongue should remain in direct contact with the ceiling of the mouth throughout the entire pronunciation of the sound.

ê- pronounced the same as e sound in the word bed.

e- pronounced the same as in the ea sound in the word bead.

f- labial-stop; pronounced the same as in the English f in the word fan.

g- dental-fricative; the tip of the tongue should momentarily touch the gun just behind the top row of teeth. There should be a small gap between the two rows of teeth. It is important not to jar the teeth because then /g/ would sound identical to the letter /c/.

G- retroflex-fricative; the tip of the tongue is curled backwards so that the underside touches the border of the hard palate. As in the letter /d/ the tongue should remain in direct with the ceiling of the mouth throughout the entire pronunciation of the sound.

h- velar-fricative; this sound should be produced as far back in the mouth as possible. It should sound almost like you are gargling- and should sound nothing like the English /h/.

H- retroflex- the tip of the tongue is curled over so that the underside is touches the border of the hard palate. The tongue should remain in this position. This should give the letter more of a soft sound as compared to some other retroflexes.

i- pronounced the same as in the I sound in the word bid.

j- retroflex-stop; the tip and the near-end part of the tongue is pressed up against the back of the hard palate. The tongue should remain in that position.

k- alveolar-fricative; the tip of the tongue is curled in almost like a retroflex position but is instead brought to the hard palate just behind the section near the gum. This should give it a harsh sound.

l- alveolar-fricative (dark l); pronounced almost the same as in the English l in the word milk except that it should have more of a harsh sound to it.

m- labial-fricative; pronounced the same as in the English m, except that the lips should be protruded in the same way as in the letter /b/.

n- pronounced the same as in the English n in the word nun.

N- dental-nasal; pronounced the same as in the English n in the words nose or any.

o- pronounced the same as in the word box.

p- labial-approximant; pronounced the same as in the English p in the word spin.

q- uvular-fricative, this sound should be made as far back in your mouth as possible with the back of your tongue actually touching your uvular (the fleshy blob that hangs down over your throat.)

Q- velar-stop; this sound should sound exactly like the English k in the word skip.

r- alveolar-approximant; pronounced exactly like the English r in the word write.

R- uvular- approximant; pronounced the same as in the French r in the word Paris.

s- alveolar-fricative; pronounced the same as in the English s in the sun instead it should be pronounced slower. This should make it sound almost like a hiss.

t- alveolar-fricative; the tip and the near-end part of the tongue should be curled over in almost like a retroflex position as in the letter /k/ but instead it should be pressed up against the hard palate a bit further back from the English t.

û- pronounced the same as the u sound in the word bud.

u- pronounced the same as in the u sound in the word rune.

v- labial-dental-fricative; pronounced the same as in the English v in the word van.

w- labial-approximant; pronounced the same as in the English w in the word water.

x- dental-fricative; the tip of the tongue should be pressed against the gum and the back row of the teeth. The teeth should be jarred shut and the tongue should remain in that position.

y- pronounced the same as in the y sound in the word why.

z- alveolar-palatal-affricate; pronounced the same as in the English z in the word zeal.