Phonology
Najan has thirty-two phonemes: eight vowels and twenty-four consonants.
| Front | Near-front | Central | Near-back | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |||
| Near-close | ɪ | ʊ | |||
| Mid | ə | o̞ | |||
| Open-mid | ɛ | ||||
| Open | ä |
| Labial | Dental | Alveolar | Postalveolar / Palatal | Velar | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | ||
| Plosive | p b | t d | k ɡ | ||
| Fricative | f v | θ ð | s z | ʃ ʒ | x ɣ |
| Approximant | w | l | j | ||
| Tap | ɾ̥ ɾ |
The unvoiced plosives /p/, /t/, and /k/ are generally aspirated.
Allophones
Najan has the following allophonic rules:
- Assimilation of plosives to a following fricative or liquid with a nearby
place of articulation, including:
- Labial to labio-dental
- Alveolar to dental or postalveolar
- Affrication of homorganic plosive-fricative and plosive-liquid clusters
- Gemination of the first consonant in a cluster of two consonants with nearby places of articulation and the same manner of articulation, with the exception of taps
Taken together, rules 1 and 2 lead to the following allophonic affricates, which can occur either within or across word boundaries:
| Cluster | Realization |
|---|---|
| /pf/ | [p̪͡f] |
| /bv/ | [b̪v] |
| /tθ/ | [t̪͡θ] |
| /dð/ | [d̪͡ð] |
| /ts/ | [t͡s] |
| /dz/ | [d͡z] |
| /tʃ/ | [t̠͡ʃ] |
| /dʒ/ | [d̠͡ʒ] |
| /tl/ | [t͡ɬ] |
| /dl/ | [d͡ɮ] |
| /kx/ | [k͡x] |
| /ɡɣ/ | [ɡ͡ɣ] |
Rule 3 allows for many additional possible allophones (but only across word boundaries, due to phonotactic constraints). For example:
| Cluster | Realization |
|---|---|
| /kɡ/ | [kːɡ] |
| /ttʃ/ | [tːt̠͡ʃ] |
| /ss/ | [sː] |
| /ʒʃ/ | [ʒːʃ] |
As a non-example, /kd/ is realized as [kʰd], with no gemination and with the usual aspiration on /k/, since /k/ is velar while /d/ is alveolar.
Phonotactics
Najan is monosyllabic, with C(C)V(C) structure. The onset must have consistent voicing: any plosives, fricatives, and taps must either all be voiced or all be voiceless. For example, /ts/ and /tl/ are valid onsets, but /tz/ is not.
| First consonant | Optional second consonant |
|---|---|
| plosive | fricative1, liquid, tap, or glide |
| fricative | liquid, tap, or glide |
| nasal | |
| liquid | |
| tap | |
| glide |
If the nucleus is a peripheral vowel (/ä/, /ɛ/, /i/, /u/, or /o̞/), the coda is required. If the nucleus is a mid-central vowel (/ə/, /ɪ/, or /ʊ/), the coda is optional; if present, it must be a nasal, liquid, tap, or glide.
Stress
Najan uses a stress accent system, with stressed words receiving greater volume, a longer vowel, and higher tone. Najan is also stress-timed, with stressed words occurring at relatively constant intervals. Typically, only verbs and pronouns are stressed, except for emphasis.
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A non-velar plosive is never followed by a velar fricative. ↩