Phonological Description of Eastern Tigrinya
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Date
2011-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Tigrinya is one of the modem Ethio-Semitic languages spoken in the Tigray region in
Ethiopia and in the highlands of Eritrea. The language has varieties on whose divisions
there is no complete consensus. This study considers Eastern Tigrinya, spoken in four
woredas (districts), as a distinct variety. The study attempts to describe the phonology of
the dialect and to identify its phonological distinctive features. The research also deals
with phonological aspects of Tigrinya that have not been treated by previous studies.
Apart from describing the phonology of Eastern Tigrinya, the following are the findings
of the study.
1. Phonological features peculiar to Eastern Tigrinya
a) Consonant vowel metathesis
b) The palatal approximant Iyl replacing the high front vowel Iii when it remains
with another vowel after a consonant between them is deleted.
c) Approximant elision without any trace
2. Phonological features observed in Eastern Tigrinya as well as in the south eastern and
southern varieties
a) The voiced bilabial stop fbi intervocalically changes to the labiodental
approximant [1)]
b) The mid central vowel I~I following stem-initial velar stop /k/ or velar ejective
stop Ik' I changes to the low vowel [ a].
3. Phonological features obtained in Eastern Tigrinya and in the northern varieties
a) Spirantization of velar stops and velar ejective stops after a vowel
After a vowel, the voiceless velar stop /k/ and the velar ejective stop !k'i change to the
voiceless uvular fricative [xl and the uvular ejective fricative [X'] respectively. Similarly,
the labialized voiceless velar stop !kwi and the labialized velar ejective stop !k,wI change
to the labialized voiceless uvular fricative [XW] and the labialized uvular ejective fricative
[X' W] respectively.
b) Spirantization ofthe velar stops and velar ejective stops after gutturals
The voiceless velar stop /k/ and the velar ejective stop !k'i after a guttural change to the
voiceless uvular fricative [xl and the uvular ejective fricative [X'] respectively. In the
same manner, the voiceless labialized velar stop Ikwi and the labialized ejective stop !k,wI
change to the voiceless labialized uvular fricative [XW] and the labialized uvular ejective
fricative [X,W] respectively.
4. A feature observed in Tigrinya but not treated in the previous studies
The alveolar nasal In! before the labialized velar stops I kW, k'w, gWI gets assimilated by
the velar and the labial features
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