ISMS:Phonics

phonics
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The Idrani Standard Metalinguistic Specification is the only official description of the Idrani language as created by Trent M. Pehrson. All information in this document is the sole property of Trent M. Pehrson unless otherwise specified. For information on terms of use use and copyright policies, click on the link labeled 'terms of use' in the navigation bar at the top of this page.

Phonics

Phonics Overview
Inventory of Idrani Phones
Key Allophonic Variations
Inventory of Idrani Phonemes
Stem Initial Syllable Constraints
Stem Internal Syllable Constraints
Stem Final Syllable Constraints
Stem Syllable Phoneme Distribution Statistics

Phonics Overview

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What is Phonetics?

Phonetics is the study of human speech sounds¹ . In this specification, phonetics will include listing the major phones used in the Idrani language. When the symbol '(A)' is seen in the IPA Designations column of the table labeled 'Inventory of Idrani Phones', this means that the phone in question exists only as an allophone. This symbol may be clicked upon to link to the rule for the allophonic variation of the given phone.

What is Phonology?

Phonology is the study of how sounds are organized and used in natural languages² . In this specification, phonology will include listing and describing the inventory of Idrani phonemes, listing and describing the Roman notation used to represent Idrani phonemes, describing Idrani phonotactics, and listing key allophonic variations. The descriptions of native Idrani writing systems are given in the orthography section of this specification.

At this point, it is important to understand the difference between an inventory of phonemes and an inventory of phones. A phoneme is the smallest contrastive unit in the sound system of a language. So, it is a description of a sound as perceived by a speaker of a given language. A phone, on the other hand, is an unanalyzed lingual sound. It is the smallest identifiable unit found in a stream of speech. So, phones are the sounds a speaker actually uses when producing a stream of speech. Phonemes are the perceptions a speaker of a certain language has about what sounds he/she is using. Accordingly, one phoneme may correspond to several phones, or phone sets in any given language In Idrani, there are 54 phonemes, which break down into 41 consonantal phonemes and 13 vocalic phonemes.

This is a relatively large inventory. The size of the inventory is directly related to the fact that Idrani stem words are small—usually consisting of one or two syllables. Since stem words are small, there is a high potential for a one-to-many relationship between syllables (or syllable sets) and meaning. Many languages, such as Mandarin, have naturally developed tonal systems which relieve this pressure by allowing each syllable to have multiple tonal variations. Idrani, however, has developed a large phonemic inventory to expand the possible number of syllables.

What is Phonotactics?

Statements of permissible combinations of phonemes in a language are known as its phonotactics. In all languages, there are naturally occurring phonotactic rules that govern how phonemes can be arranged and combined to form syllables, and how syllables can combine to form words. Often times, a foreign language can be identified by its ‘sound’. In large measure, the signature of a language (i.e. its ‘sound’) is a function of its phonotactic constraints. A word beginning with the consonant cluster (zv), for example, violates the phonotactics of English, but not of Russian³ . Of course, the inventory of phones in a language also plays a part in its signature, yet languages with very similar inventories can have very different signatures because of differing distributions and combinations of their respective phone inventories—because of differing phonotactic.

Phonic Conventions In This Specification

This specification uses a standard set of notational conventions to represent phonemes, phones, graphemes and generic Khijadi text. When single quotes are used to encompass text, the text is a representation of a grapheme phoneme map. So the Idrani word 'inpu' which means dog surrounded in single quotes shows the reader how the word is represented in Khijadi. Fortunately, because Khijadi has a 1:1 grapheme to phoneme relationship, the single quote convention also indicates the phonemic construction of the text enclosed in it.

When representing a native graphemic construction with Roman characters, curly braces are used. So, the representation {inpu} is used to represent the graphemic construction of the word and is always used relative to a previously described writing system which has been mapped to Khijadi characters.

When representing a phonic or allophonic variation, the square braces are used. So the word 'inpu' is allophonically represented as [impu]. Notice that the Khijadi character set is still used. There are Khijadi characters which are only used in such an allophonic representation because they do not exist as phonemes. They are [rr] and any vowel bearing a hat [ ˆ ]. In the phone table below, such characters are marked with an asterisk.

Brief History of Idrani Phonics

Idrani phonics evolved through aesthetic adoption on the syllabo-lexical level rather than being systematically contrived. In other words, each time the creator of the language heard a natural or constructed language with a phonic signature that he considered unique or interesting, he made lexical or phonic entries that reflected that aesthetic. Influential languages included Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Mayan, Gaelic, Navajo, Russian, Finnish, Mandarin, and English.

Because this adoption was based on a subtle but very present aesthetic within the creator of Idrani, a unifying phonic theme naturally emerged over time—placing pressure on phonic, lexical and morphological units that did not conform to it. As a result, words which phonotactically resembled other languages more than the emerging Idrani aesthetic were gradually evolved to conform to the Idrani aesthetic. In other words, lexical and morphological units that didn’t ‘sound right’ were changed until they did ‘sound right’.

After being introduced to formal linguistics, the creator of Idrani began a formal analysis of Idrani phonics. It revealed that there were, indeed, very clear phonotactic patterns that had evolved due to the aesthetic the creator of Idrani had used over the years. Understanding and formalizing Idrani phonotactics greatly increased the ease and satisfaction with which new lexical units could be created and added to the language.

Accordingly, part of the identity of Idrani is captured in its phonotactic constraints. Hence, any new or borrowed words or morphemes should be made to conform to the formal phonics described in this section of the specification.

Inventory of Idrani Phones
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Overview of Idrani Phones This table shows the inventory of all major Idrani phones. The table is divided into three columns. The first column shows the representation of the phone using the native Idrani romanized form known as Khijadi. The second column shows the phone in CXS equivalents of the IPA. The third column gives IPA designations in label form for further clarification for those who are not familiar with CXS equivalents. It is good to familiarize one's self with the Khijadi characters since they will be used as the standard throughout this specification.
Consonants
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
p	p	voiceless bilabial plossive
b	b	voiced bilabial plossive
t	t	voiceless dental plossive
d	d	voiced dental plossive
k	k	voiceless velar plossive
g	g	voiced velar plossive
q	q	voiceless uvular plossive
'	?	voiceless glottal plossive (or stop)
m	m	voiced bilabial nasal
n	n	voiced dental nasal
ng	N	voiced velar nasal
rr*	4	voiced alveolar tap (or flap) (A)
f	f	voiceless labiodental fricative
v	v	voiced labiodental fricative
th	T	voiceless dental fricative
dh	D	voiced dental fricative
s	s	voiceless alveolar fricative
z	z	voiced alveolar fricative
sh	S	voiceless postalveolar fricative
zh	Z	voiced postalveolar fricative
kh	x	voiceless velar fricative
gh	G	voiced velar fricative
h	h	voiceless glottal fricative
lh	K	voiceless alveolar lateral fricative
r	r\	voiced alveolar approximant
y	j	voiced palatal approximant
l	l	voiced dental lateral approximant
w	w	voiced labial-velar approximant
Affricates
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
ps	Ps)	affricate
ts	Ts)	affricate
ch	Ts)	affricate
tth	tT)	affricate
ks	Ks)	affricate
Nasal Release Consonants
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
tn	t_n	nasal released voiceless dental plossive
dn	d_n	nasal released voiced dental plossive
Lateral Release Consonants
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
tl	t_l	lateral released voiceless dental plossive
dl	d_l	lateral released voiced dental plossive
Vowels
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
a	A	back open
â*	V	back open-mid (A)
e	E	front open-mid
i	i	front close
î*	I	front-central close-mid (A)
o	o	back rounded close-mid
ô*	O	back rounded open-mid (A)
u	u	back rounded close
û*	M	back close (A)

Key Allophonic Variations
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Overview of Key allophonic Variations Below are the important allophonic variations which will guide the student of Idrani in the most obvious aspects of Idrani pronunciation. It should be noted that this listing is not full. Rather it is a listing of the most frequent and prominent variations in the language.
Vowel Changes: 1. /a/ —> [â] / #[j]_ 2. /i/ —> [î] / _[l], _[r] 3. /o/ —> [ô] / _[l], _[r] 4. /u/ —> [û] / _[l], _[r] Consonantal Changes: 1. /affricate/ —> [ejective affricate] / _/'/ 2. /n/ —> [ng] / _[velar], _[uvular] 3. /n/ —> [m] / _[bilabial] 4. /plossive/ —> [ejective plosive] / _/'/ 5. /r/ —> Ø / [q]_ 6. /r/ —> [RR] / V_V (intervocalic)

Inventory of Idrani Phonemes
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Overview of Idrani Phonemes This table shows the inventory of all Idrani phonemes. The table is divided into three columns. The first column shows the representation of the phoneme using the native Idrani romanized form known as Khijadi. The second column shows the phoneme in CXS equivalents of the IPA. The third column gives IPA designations in label form for further clarification for those who are not familiar with CXS equivalents. It is good to familiarize one's self with the Khijadi characters since they will be used as the standard throughout this specification. There are 54 total Idrani phonemes which break down into 41 consonants and 13 vowels. In most Idrani writing systems, there is a 1:1 correspondence between graphemes and phonemes.
Consonants
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
p	p	voiceless bilabial plossive
b	b	voiced bilabial plossive
t	t	voiceless dental plossive
d	d	voiced dental plossive
k	k	voiceless velar plossive
g	g	voiced velar plossive
q	q	voiceless uvular plossive
'	?	voiceless glottal plossive (or stop)
m	m	voiced bilabial nasal
n	n	voiced dental nasal
ng	N	voiced velar nasal
r	4	voiced alveolar tap (or flap)
f	f	voiceless labiodental fricative
v	v	voiced labiodental fricative
th	T	voiceless dental fricative
DH	D	voiced dental fricative
s	s	voiceless alveolar fricative
z	z	voiced alveolar fricative
sh	S	voiceless postalveolar fricative
zh	Z	voiced postalveolar fricative
kh	x	voiceless velar fricative
gh	G	voiced velar fricative
h	h	voiceless glottal fricative
hl	K	voiceless alveolar lateral fricative
y	j	voiced palatal approximant
l	l	voiced dental lateral approximant
w	w	voiced labial-velar approximant
fv	fv)	affricate
pf	pf)	affricate
Ps	Ps)	affricate
sz	sz)	affricate
Ts	Ts)	affricate
ch	Ts)	affricate
t-h	th)	affricate
tth	tT)	affricate
k-h	kh)	affricate
Ks	Ks)	affricate
TN	t_n	nasal released voiceless dental plossive
dn	d_n	nasal released voiced dental plossive
TL	t_l	lateral released voiceless dental plossive
dl	d_l	lateral released voiced dental plossive
Vowels
Khijadi	CXS	IPA Designation
a	A	back open
e	E	front open-mid
i	i	front close
o	o	back rounded close-mid
u	u	back rounded close
ai	AI	diphthong
au	Au	diphthong
ei	Ei	diphthong
eu	Eu	diphthong
iu	Iu	diphthong
oi	Oi	diphthong
ou	Ou	diphthong
ui	Mi	diphthong

Stem Initial Syllable Constraints
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Overview of Stem Initial Syllable Constraints This table shows the phonotactic constraints for constructing stem initial syllables in Idrani. An initial syllable is the first syllable in a construction. For example, 'win' is the initial syllable in the word 'window'. There are three types of initial syllables in Idrani stems. Type A are the most common and have an onset and a nucleus. In the initial syllable 'hi' from the English word 'highlight', 'h' is the onset and 'i' is the nucleus. Type B syllables have an onset, nucleus and coda and are more rare than type A. The initial syllable 'win' from the English 'window' has 'w' for an onset, 'i' for a nucleus and 'n' for a coda. Type C initial syllables are very rare. They are composed of syllabic ejective consonants.
TYPE A: (C)C(V)V			TYPE B: (C)C(V)VC				TYPE C: C'
onset		nucleus	onset		nucleus	coda	syllable
'		a ai au e ei eu i iu o oi ou u	'		a ai au e ei eu i iu o oi ou u	' h l n r s sh	ch' f' k' Ks P' q' s' t' th' Ts
b	r,w		b	r,w
ch			ch
d	y		d	y
DH			DH
dl			dl
dn			dn
f			f
fv			fv
g			g
h	r,w,y		h	r,w,y
hl			hl
j			j
k	r,w,y		k	r,w,y
kh			kh
k-h			k-h
kl			kl
Ks			Ks
l			l
m	w		m	w
n	y		n	y
ng			ng
p	h,l,r,w,y		p	h,l,r,w,y
pf			pf
Ps			Ps
q			q
r			r
s			s
sh			sh
sz			sz
t	r,w,y		t	r,w,y
th			th
t-h			t-h
TL			TL
TN			TN
Ts			Ts
v	l		v	l
w			w
y			y
z			z
zh			zh

Stem Final Syllable Constraints
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Overview of Stem Final Syllable Constraints This table shows the phonotactic constraints for constructing stem final syllables in Idrani. A final syllable is the last syllables in a construction. For example, 'ter' is the final syllable in the English word 'better'. There are two types of final syllables in Idrani stems. Type A are the most common and have an onset and a nucleus. In the final syllable 'lo' from the English word 'silo', 'l' is the onset and 'o' is the nucleus. Type B syllables have an onset, nucleus and coda and are more rare than type A. The final syllable 'ter' from the English 'water' has 't' for an onset, 'e' for a nucleus and 'r' for a coda. Internal syllables have constraints related to the types of coda they can follow too. As a result, the first column in the table below lists the coda which may precede each onset in an internal syllable
MAY FOLLOW AFTER V, ' OR:	TYPE A: C(C)V(V)			TYPE B: C(C)V(V)C
CODA	ONSET		NUCLEUS	ONSET		NUCLEUS	CODA
	'		a ai au e ei eu i iu o oi ou u	'		a ai au e ei eu i iu o oi ou u	' h l n r s sh
	b	r,w		b	r,w
l	ch			ch
h,n	d	y		d	y
	DH			DH
h	dl			dl
n	dn			dn
h	f			f
	fv			fv
l	g			g
l,n,r,s	h	r,w,y		h	r,w,y
	hl			hl
h	j			j
h,l,n,r,s,sh	k	r,w,y		k	r,w,y
h,l,n,r,s,sh	kh			kh
	k-h			k-h
	kl			kl
	Ks			Ks
h,n,r,s,sh	l			l
l	m	w		m	w
h,l,r,s	n	y		n	y
	ng			ng
h,l,r,s	p	h,l,r,w,y		p	h,l,r,w,y
	pf			pf
	Ps			Ps
	q			q
h,l,s,sh	r			r
l,n,r	s	w,y		s
l,n,r	sh	w,y		sh
	sz			sz
h,l,n,r,s,sh	t	r,w,y		t	r,w,y
h,l,n,s	th			th
h,l,n,r,s,sh	t-h			t-h
h,l,n	TL			TL
h,l,n,r,s	TN			TN
l,r,s	Ts			Ts
h,l,n,r	v	l		v	l
h,l,n,r,s,sh	w			w
h,l,n,r,s,sh	y			y
l,n,r	z			z
l,r	zh			zh

Stem Internal Syllable Constraints
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Overview of Stem Internal Syllable Constraints This table shows the phonotactic constraints for constructing stem internal syllables in Idrani. An internal syllable is any syllable that is between the first and last syllables in a construction. For example, 'ter' is the internal syllable in the English word 'internal'. There are two types of internal syllables in Idrani stems. Type A are the most common and have an onset and a nucleus. In the internal syllable 'po' from the English word 'opponent', 'p' is the onset and 'o' is the nucleus. Type B syllables have an onset, nucleus and coda and are more rare than type A. The internal syllable 'ter' from the English 'internal' has 't' for an onset, 'e' for a nucleus and 'r' for a coda. internal syllables have constraints related to the types of coda they can follow too. As a result, the first column in the table below lists the coda which may precede each onset in an internal syllable
MAY FOLLOW AFTER V, ' OR:	TYPE A: C(C)V(V)			TYPE B: C(C)V(V)C
CODA	ONSET		NUCLEUS	ONSET		NUCLEUS	CODA
	'		a ai au e ei eu i iu o oi ou u	'		a ai au e ei eu i iu o oi ou u	' h l n r s sh
	b	r,w		b	r,w
l	ch			ch
h,n	d	y		d	y
	DH			DH
h	dl			dl
n	dn			dn
h	f			f
	fv			fv
l	g			g
l,n,r,s	h	r,w,y		h	r,w,y
	hl			hl
h	j			j
h,l,n,r,s,sh	k	r,w,y		k	r,w,y
h,l,n,r,s,sh	kh			kh
	k-h			k-h
	kl			kl
	Ks			Ks
h,n,r,s,sh	l			l
l	m	w		m	w
h,l,r,s	n	y		n	y
	ng			ng
h,l,r,s	p	h,l,r,w,y		p	h,l,r,w,y
	pf			pf
	Ps			Ps
	q			q
h,l,s,sh	r			r
l,n,r	s	w,y		s
l,n,r	sh	w,y		sh
	sz			sz
h,l,n,r,s,sh	t	r,w,y		t	r,w,y
h,l,n,s	th			th
h,l,n,r,s,sh	t-h			t-h
h,l,n	TL			TL
h,l,n,r,s	TN			TN
l,r,s	Ts			Ts
h,l,n,r	v	l		v	l
h,l,n,r,s,sh	w			w
h,l,n,r,s,sh	y			y
l,n,r	z			z
l,r	zh			zh

Stem Syllable Phoneme Distribution Statistics
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Stem Syllable Phoneme Distribution Overview This table shows the probability in terms of ranking of any given vowel or consonant in an Idrani stem syllable. The ranking 1 means that the phoneme is the most probable in any given syllable. This distribution should be kept in mind when coining new Idrani stems.
Consonant Distribution		Vowel Distribution
Consonant	Frequency Ranking	Vowel	Frequency Ranking
h	1	e	1
l	2	i	2
k	3	a	3
n	4	ei	4
t	5	o	5
sh	6	AI	6
ch	7	u	7
m	8	oi	8
p	9	au	9
d	10	eu	10
j	11	ou	11
r	12
s	13
w	14
hl	15
y	16
f	17
kh	18
b	19
g	20
fv	21
'	22
Ks	23
TL	24
Ts	25
kl	26
v	27
zh	28
dl	29
q	30
pf	31
dn	32
z	33
th	34
DH	35
ng	36
TN	37
t-h	38
k-h	39
Ps	40
sz	41

3 The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition:
(http://www.bartleby.com/61/56/P0255650.html) or (http://dictionary.reference.com):
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved
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