Editing Ejective consonant (section)

==Types==
Almost all ejective consonants in the world's languages are [[Stop consonant|stop]]s or [[affricate]]s, and all ejective consonants are [[obstruent]]s. {{IPA|[kʼ]}} is the most common ejective, and {{IPA|[qʼ]}} is common among languages with [[uvular consonant|uvulars]], {{IPA|[tʼ]}} less so, and {{IPA|[pʼ]}} is uncommon. Among affricates, {{IPA|[tsʼ], [tʃʼ], [tɬʼ]}} are all quite common, and {{IPA|[kxʼ]}} and {{IPA|[ʈʂʼ]}} are not unusual ({{IPA|[kxʼ]}} is particularly common among the [[Khoisan languages]], where it is the ejective equivalent of {{IPA|/k/}}).

{|class=wikitable
|+Attested ejective consonants<ref>Bickford & Floyd (2006) ''Articulatory Phonetics'', Table 25.1, augmented by sources at the articles on individual consonants</ref><br><small>(excluding [[ejective click (disambiguation)|ejective click]]s and secondary articulations)</small>
|- align=center
!
! [[Bilabial consonant|Bilabial]]
! [[Labiodental consonant|Labio-<br>dental]]
! [[Dental consonant|Dental]]
! [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! [[Labial-alveolar consonant|Labial-<br>alveolar]]
! [[Postalveolar consonant|Post-<br>alveolar]]
! [[Retroflex consonant|Retroflex]]
! [[Alveolo-palatal consonant|Alveolo-<br>palatal]]
! [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! [[Uvular consonant|Uvular]]
! [[Pharyngeal consonant|Epi-<br>glottal]]
|- align=center
! [[Stop consonant|Stop]]<br><small>(voiced)</small>
| {{IPA link|pʼ}}
|
|{{IPA link|t̪ʼ}}
|{{IPA link|tʼ}}
|{{IPA link|t͡pʼ}}{{efn|In [[Ubykh language|Ubykh]]; in free variation with {{IPA|[tʷʼ]}}; also found in Abkhaz in free variation with {{IPA|[tʷʼ]}}.}}
|
|{{IPA link|ʈʼ}}
|
|{{IPA link|cʼ}}
|{{IPA|{{IPAplink|kʼ}} <br>{{nowrap|ɡ͡kʼ}}}}
|{{IPA|{{IPAplink|qʼ}} <br>{{nowrap|ɢ͡qʼ}}}}
|{{IPA link|ʡʼ}}
|- align=center
! [[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]<br><small>(voiced)</small>
|
|{{IPA link|p̪fʼ}}
|{{IPA link|t̪θʼ}}
|{{IPA|{{IPAplink|tsʼ}} <br>{{nowrap|d͡tsʼ}}}}
|
|{{IPA|{{IPAplink|tʃʼ}} <br>{{nowrap|d͡tʃʼ}}}}
|{{IPA link|ʈʂʼ}}
|{{IPA link|tɕʼ}}
|
|{{IPA|{{IPAplink|kxʼ}} <br>{{nowrap|ɡ͡kxʼ}}}}
|{{IPA|{{IPAplink|qχʼ}} <br>{{nowrap|ɢ͡qχʼ}}}}
|
|- align=center
![[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
|{{IPA link|ɸʼ}}
|{{IPA link|fʼ}}
|{{IPA link|θʼ}}
|{{IPA link|sʼ}}
|
|{{IPA link|ʃʼ}}
|{{IPA link|ʂʼ}}
|{{IPA link|ɕʼ}}
|
|{{IPA link|xʼ}}
|{{IPA link|χʼ}}
|
|-align=center
![[Lateral consonant|Lateral]]&nbsp;[[affricate]]
|style="background:#ccc" colspan="2" rowspan="2"|
|
|{{IPA link|tɬʼ}}
|style="background:#ccc" rowspan="2"|
|
|
|
|{{IPA link|c𝼆ʼ}} ({{IPA|cʎ̝̊ʼ}})
|{{IPA link|k𝼄ʼ}} ({{IPA|kʟ̝̊ʼ}})
|
|style="background:#ccc" rowspan="2"|
|-align=center
![[Lateral consonant|Lateral]]&nbsp;[[Fricative consonant|fricative]]
|
|{{IPA link|ɬʼ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-align=center
![[Trill consonant|Trill]]
| colspan="9" | (theoretical)
|style="background:#ccc"|
| colspan="2" |
|- align=center
! [[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
| colspan="11" | (theoretical)
|style="background:#ccc" |
|}

A few languages have ejective fricatives. In some dialects of [[Hausa language|Hausa]], the standard affricate {{IPA|[tsʼ]}} is a fricative {{IPA|[sʼ]}}; [[Ubykh language|Ubykh]] (Northwest Caucasian, now extinct) had an ejective lateral fricative {{IPA|[ɬʼ]}}; and the related [[Kabardian language|Kabardian]] also has ejective labiodental and alveolopalatal fricatives, {{IPA|[fʼ], [ʃʼ], and [ɬʼ]}}. [[Tlingit language|Tlingit]] is an extreme case, with ejective alveolar, lateral, velar, and uvular fricatives, {{IPA|[sʼ], [ɬʼ], [xʼ], [xʷʼ], [χʼ], [χʷʼ]}}; it may be the only language with the last type. [[Totonacan languages|Upper Necaxa Totonac]] is unusual and perhaps unique in that it has ejective fricatives (alveolar, lateral, and postalveolar {{IPA|[sʼ], [ʃʼ], [ɬʼ]}}) but lacks any ejective stop or affricate (Beck 2006). Other languages with ejective fricatives are [[Yuchi language|Yuchi]], which some sources analyze as having {{IPA|[ɸʼ], [sʼ], [ʃʼ], and [ɬʼ]}} (but not the analysis of the Wikipedia article), [[Keresan languages|Keres dialects]], with {{IPA|[sʼ], [ʂʼ] and [ɕʼ]}}, {{Citation needed|date=September 2010}} and [[Lakota language|Lakota]], with {{IPA|[sʼ], [ʃʼ], and [xʼ]}} .{{citation needed|date=November 2011}} [[Amharic]] is interpreted by many as having an ejective fricative {{IPA|[sʼ]}}, at least historically, but it has been also analyzed as now being a sociolinguistic variant (Takkele Taddese 1992).

An ejective retroflex stop {{IPA|[ʈʼ]}} is rare. It has been reported from [[Yawelmani language|Yawelmani]] and other [[Yokutsan languages|Yokuts languages]], [[Tolowa language|Tolowa]], and [[Gwich'in language|Gwich'in]].

{{anchor|Voiced ejective}}Because the complete closing of the glottis required to form an ejective makes voicing impossible, the allophonic voicing of ejective phonemes causes them to lose their glottalization; this occurs in [[Blin language|Blin]] (modal voice) and [[Kabardian language|Kabardian]] (creaky voice). A similar historical sound change also occurred in [[Veinakh languages|Veinakh]] and [[Lezgic languages|Lezgic]] in the Caucasus, and it has been postulated by the [[glottalic theory]] for Indo-European.<ref name=Fallon/> Some [[Khoisan languages]] have voiced ejective stops and [[ejective-contour click|voiced ejective clicks]]; however, they actually contain [[contour (linguistics)|mixed voicing]], and the ejective release is voiceless.

{{vanchor|Ejective trill}}s aren't attested in any language, even allophonically. An ejective {{IPA|[rʼ]}} would necessarily be voiceless,<ref>John Esling (2010) "Phonetic Notation", in Hardcastle, Laver & Gibbon (eds) ''The Handbook of Phonetic Sciences'', 2nd ed., p 700.</ref> but the vibration of the trill, combined with a lack of the intense voiceless airflow of {{IPA|[r̥]}}, gives an impression like that of voicing. Similarly, ejective nasals such as {{IPA|[mʼ, nʼ, ŋʼ]}} (also necessarily voiceless) are possible.<ref>Barker, M. A. R. (1963a).</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=March 2024}}<ref>Heselwood (2013: 148)</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=March 2024}} (An apostrophe is commonly seen with ''r'', ''l'' and nasals, but that is [[Americanist phonetic notation]] for a [[glottalized consonant]] and does not indicate an ejective.<!--Laver (1994) ''Principles of Phonetics'' (p. 241) was tricked by the notation into thinking Salishan languages have ejective trills, and described the Columbian <r'> as an "ejective trilled stop".-->)

Other ejective [[sonorant]]s are not known to occur. When sonorants are transcribed with an apostrophe in the literature as if they were ejective, they actually involve a different airstream mechanism: they are [[glottalic consonant|glottalized]] consonants and vowels whose glottalization partially or fully interrupts an otherwise normal voiced pulmonic airstream, somewhat like English ''uh-uh'' (either vocalic or nasal) pronounced as a single sound. Often the constriction of the larynx causes it to rise in the vocal tract, but this is individual variation and not the initiator of the airflow. Such sounds generally remain voiced.<ref>Esling, John H.; Moisik, Scott R.; Benner, Allison; Crevier-Buchman, Lise (2019). Voice Quality: The Laryngeal Articulator Model. Cambridge University Press.</ref>

[[Yeyi language|Yeyi]] has a set of prenasalized ejectives like /ⁿtʼ, ᵑkʼ, ⁿtsʼ/.