Appendix:!Xóõ Orthography

Explanation of the ǃXóõ writing system

Consonants

Click stops

All of these examples make use of the ǁ click, but the information is applicable to all ǃXóõ clicks.

ǁ = Basic (only the click sound and nothing more)
ǁg = Voiced (in which the vocal cords vibrate)
ǁx = Voiceless velar fricative (the "ch" in Scottish "loch")
gǁx = Voiced velar fricative (velar fricative in which the vocal cords vibrate; see Dutch "g")
ǁkxʻ = Voiceless velar ejective (the "ƙ" in Hausa)
gǁkxʻ = Voiced velar ejective (velar ejective in which the vocal cords vibrate)
ǁq = Voiceless uvular stop (uvular consonants are articulated with the back of the tongue)
ǁɢ = Voiced uvular stop
ǁqh = Voiceless aspirated stop (aspirated consonants are made with a strong burst of air)
gǁqh = Voiced aspirated stop
ɢǁqh = Voiced uvular stop aspirated
ǁqʻ = Uvular ejective
ǁh = Delayed aspiration
ǁn̥ = Voiceless nasal (nasal consonants are produced with a lowered velum in the mouth, allowing air to escape freely through the nose)
ǁn = Voiced nasal
ʻǁn = Pre-glottalized nasal (glottalization is the complete or partial closure of the glottis during the articulation of another sound)
ǁʻ = Glottal stop (the hyphen in "uh-oh!)

Non-click stops

These examples use ts, k and q for illustration.

Basic = ts, k, q
Voiced = dz, g, ɢ
Voiceless aspirated = tsh, kh, gh
Voiced aspirated = dtsh, gkh, ɢqh
Voiceless velar fricative = tshx, -, -
Voiced velar fricative = dtshx, -, -
Ejected = tsʻ, kʻ, qʻ
Voiceless ejected velar affricate = tsʻkxʻ, kxʻ, -
Voiced ejected velar affricate = dtsʻkxʻ, gkxʻ, -

Clicks

ǃXóõ contains 5 click consonants. This information is taken straight from Wikipedia.

The easiest clicks for English speakers are the dental clicks written with a single pipe, ǀ. They are all sharp (high-pitched) squeaky sounds made by sucking on the front teeth. A simple dental click is used in English to express pity or to shame someone, and sometimes to call an animal, and is written tsk-tsk! in American English, or tut-tut! in British English.

Next most familiar to English speakers are the lateral clicks written with a double pipe, ǁ. They are also squeaky sounds, though less sharp than ǀ, made by sucking on the molars on either side (or both sides) of the mouth. A simple lateral click is made in English to get a horse moving, and is conventionally written tchick!

Then there are the bilabial clicks, written with a bull's eye, ʘ. These are lip-smacking sounds, but without the pursing of the lips found in a kiss.

The above clicks sound like affricates, in that they involve a lot of friction. The other two families are more abrupt sounds that do not have this friction.

With the alveolar clicks, written with an exclamation mark, ǃ, the tip of the tongue is pulled down abruptly and forcefully from the roof of the mouth, sometimes using a lot of jaw motion, and making a hollow pop! like a cork being pulled from an empty bottle. These sounds can be quite loud. Think of making the "click-clock" or "tick-tock" sound without that initial "tick".

Finally, the palatal clicks, ǂ, are made with a flat tongue, and are softer popping sounds than the ǃ clicks.

Vowels and their Tones

Using a as an example. Tone marks and nasalization are normally not marked on one vowel. Thus, it would appear at first glance that in a word like ǃá̰ã (with an accute accent above the a̰) that only the second vowel is nasalized and that only the first vowel carries a tone and is pharyngealized. The truth is that there is a single high-toned, long, nasalized and pharyngealized vowel.

Vowels

a = plain
ã = nasalized (produced with a lowering of the velum so that air escapes both through nose as well as the mouth)
a̰ = pharyngealized (the pharynx or epiglottis is constricted during the articulation of the sound; see Arabic)
ah = breathy (vocal cords held further apart so that a larger volume of air escapes between them)
aʻ = glottalized (complete or partial closure of the glottis during the articulation of another sound)
a̰h = sphinteric

Tones

ǃXóõ has 4 tones.

á = high tone
ā = mid-level tone
â = mid-falling tone
à = low tone

References

A ǃXóõ Dictionary, 2nd edition, pp 11-12, →ISBN

Appendix:!Xóõ Orthography

Consonants

Click stops

Non-click stops

See also

Clicks

See also

Vowels and their Tones

Vowels

See also

Tones

See also

References