Editing Nobiin language (section)

==Phonology==
Nobiin has open and closed [[syllable]]s: {{lang|fia-Latn|ág}} {{gloss|mouth}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|één}} {{gloss|woman}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|gíí}} {{gloss|uncle}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|kám}} {{gloss|camel}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|díís}} {{gloss|blood}}. Every syllable bears a tone. Long consonants are only found in intervocalic position, whereas long vowels can occur in initial, medial and final position. [[Phonotactics|Phonotactically]], there might be a weak relationship between the occurrence of consonant and vowel length: forms like {{lang|fia-Latn|dàrrìl}} {{gloss|climb}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|dààrìl}} {{gloss|be present}} are found, but {{lang|fia-Latn|*dàrìl}} (short V + short C) and {{lang|fia-Latn|*dààrrìl}} (long V + long C) do not exist; similarly, {{lang|fia-Latn|féyyìr}} 'grow' and {{lang|fia-Latn|fééyìr}} 'lose (a battle)' occur, but not {{lang|fia-Latn|*féyìr}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|*fééyyìr}}.

===Vowels===
Nobiin has a five-[[vowel]] system. The vowels {{IPAslink|e}} and {{IPAslink|o}} can be realized [[close-mid vowel|close-mid]] or more [[Open-mid vowel|open-mid]] (as {{IPAblink|ɛ}} and {{IPAblink|ɔ}}, respectively). Vowels can be long or short, e.g., {{lang|fia-Latn|jáákí}} {{gloss|fear}} (long {{IPAslink|aː}}), {{lang|fia-Latn|jàkkàr}} {{gloss|fish-hook}} (short {{IPAslink|a}}). However, many [[#Nouns|nouns]] are unstable with regard to [[vowel length]]; thus, {{lang|fia-Latn|bálé}}~{{lang|fia-Latn|báléé}} {{gloss|feast}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|ííg}}~{{lang|fia-Latn|íg}} {{gloss|fire}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|shártí}}~{{lang|fia-Latn|sháártí}} {{gloss|spear}}. [[Diphthong]]s are interpreted as sequences of vowels and the glides {{IPAslink|w}} and {{IPAslink|j}}.

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ [[Monophthong]]s
|-
!
! [[Front vowel|Front]]
! [[Central vowel|Central]]
! [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPAlink|i}}, {{IPAlink|iː}}
|
| {{IPAlink|u}}, {{IPAlink|uː}}
|-
! [[Close-mid vowel|Close-mid]]
| {{IPAlink|e}}, {{IPAlink|eː}}
|
| {{IPAlink|o}}, {{IPAlink|oː}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
|
| {{IPAlink|ɑ}}, {{IPAlink|ɑː}}
|
|}

===Consonants===
Consonant length is contrastive in Nobiin, e.g., {{lang|fia-Latn|dáwwí}} {{gloss|path}} vs. {{lang|fia-Latn|dáwí}} {{gloss|kitchen}}. Like vowel length, consonant length is not very stable; long consonants tend to be shortened in many cases (e.g., the Arabic loan {{lang|fia-Latn|dùkkáán}} {{gloss|shop}} is often found as {{lang|fia-Latn|dùkáán}}).

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|+Consonant phonemes
|-
! colspan="2"|
! [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! rowspan="2"|[[Stop consonant|Stops]] and<br/>[[Affricate consonant|affricates]] 
!<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
| {{IPAlink|p}}
| {{IPAlink|t}}
| {{IPAlink|cç}}
| {{IPAlink|k}}
|
|-
![[Voice (phonetics)|<small>voiced</small>]]
| {{IPAlink|b}}
| {{IPAlink|d}}
| {{IPAlink|ɟʝ}}
| {{IPAlink|ɡ}}
|
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Nasal consonant|Nasals]]
| {{IPAlink|m}}
| {{IPAlink|n}}
| {{IPAlink|ɲ}}
| {{IPAlink|ŋ}}
|
|-
! rowspan="2"| [[Fricative consonant|Fricatives]]
!<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
| {{IPAlink|f}}
| {{IPAlink|s}} 
| {{IPAlink|ç}}
|
| ({{IPAlink|h}})
|-
![[Voice (phonetics)|<small>voiced</small>]]
|
| {{IPAlink|z}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Trill consonant|Trill]]
|
| {{IPAlink|r}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Approximant consonant|Approximants]]
|
| {{IPAlink|l}}
| {{IPAlink|j}}
| {{IPAlink|w}}
|
|}

The phoneme {{IPAslink|p}} has a somewhat marginal status as it only occurs as a result of certain morphophonological processes. The voiced plosive {{IPAslink|b}} is mainly in contrast with {{IPAslink|f}}. Originally, {{IPAblink|z}} only occurred as an [[allophone]] of {{IPAslink|s}} before voiced consonants; however, through the influx of loanwords from Arabic it has acquired phonemic status: {{lang|fia-Latn|àzáábí}} {{gloss|pain}}. The glottal fricative {{IPAblink|h}} occurs as an allophone of {{IPA|/s, t, k, f, ɡ/}}: {{lang|fia-Latn|síddó}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|híddó}} {{gloss|where?}}; {{lang|fia-Latn|tánnátóón}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|tánnáhóón}} {{gloss|of him/her}}; {{lang|fia-Latn|ày fàkàbìr}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|ày hàkàbìr}} {{gloss|I will eat}}; {{lang|fia-Latn|dòllàkúkkàn}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|dòllàhúkkàn}} {{gloss|he has loved}}. This process is unidirectional, i.e., /h/ will never change into one of the above consonants, and it has been termed {{gloss|consonant switching}} ({{lang|de|Konsonantenwechsel}}) by Werner.{{sfn|Werner|1987|p=36}} Only in very few words, if any, does [h] have independent phonemic status: Werner lists {{lang|fia-Latn|híssí}} {{gloss|voice}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|hòòngìr}} {{gloss|braying}}, but it might be noted that the latter example is less convincing because of its probably [[onomatopoeia|onomatopoeic]] nature. The alveolar liquids {{IPAslink|l}} and {{IPAslink|r}} are in [[free variation]] as in many African languages. The approximant {{IPAslink|w}} is a voiced labial-velar.

===Tone===
Nobiin is a [[Tone (linguistics)|tonal]] language, in which pitch is used to mark [[lexical (semiotics)|lexical contrasts]]. Tone also figures heavily in [[morphological derivation]]. Nobiin has two [[underlying representation|underlying]] tones, high and low. A falling tone occurs in certain contexts; this tone can in general be analysed as arising from a high and a low tone together.

*{{lang|fia-Latn|árré}} {{gloss|settlement}} (high)
*{{lang|fia-Latn|nùùr}} {{gloss|shadow}} (low)

In Nobiin, every utterance ends in a low tone. This is one of the clearest signs of the occurrence of a [[boundary tone]], realized as a low pitch on the last syllable of any [[Pausa|prepausal]] word. The examples below show how the surface tone of the high tone verb {{lang|fia-Latn|ókkír-}} {{gloss|cook}} depends on the position of the verb. In the first sentence, the verb is not final (because the question marker {{lang|fia-Latn|-náà}} is appended) and thus it is realized as high. In the second sentence, the verb is at the end of the utterance, resulting in a low tone on the last syllable.

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|Íttírkà ókkéé-náà?
|vegetables.DO cook:she.PRES-Q
|Does she cook the vegetables?}}

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|Èyyò íttírkà ókkè.
|yes vegetables.DO cook:she.PRES
|Yes, she cooks the vegetables.}}

Tone plays an important role in several derivational processes. The most common situation involves the loss of the original tone pattern of the derivational base and the subsequent assignment of low tone, along with the affixation of a morpheme or word bringing its own tonal pattern (see [[#Nouns|below]] for examples).

For a long time, the Nile Nubian languages were thought to be non-tonal; early analyses employed terms like "[[stress (linguistics)|stress]]" or "accent" to describe the phenomena now recognized as a tone system.<ref name="lepsius">The Egyptologist [[Karl Richard Lepsius]] spoke in 1880 of the {{lang|de|Wohlklang}} of the Nubian language, and related this to the vowel distribution and the balance between long and short consonants.</ref> [[Carl Meinhof]] reported that only remnants of a tone system could be found in the Nubian languages. He based this conclusion not only on his own data, but also on the observation that Old Nubian had been written without tonal marking. Based on accounts like Meinhof's, Nobiin was considered a toneless language for the first half of the twentieth century.<ref name="westermannward">In 1933 for example, [[Diedrich Hermann Westermann]] and [[Ida C. Ward]] wrote in their influential ''Practical Phonetics for Students of African Languages'' that "Swahili and Nuba are good examples of languages which were probably once tone languages and which are said to have lost their tones" (p. 139).</ref> The statements of ''de facto'' authorities like Meinhof, [[Diedrich Hermann Westermann]], and [[Ida C. Ward]] heavily affected the next three decades of linguistic theorizing about stress and tone in Nobiin. As late as 1968, Herman Bell was the first scholar to develop an account of tone in Nobiin. Although his analysis was still hampered by the occasional confusion of accent and tone, he is credited by Roland Werner as being the first to recognize that Nobiin is a genuinely tonal language, and the first to lay down some elementary tonal rules.<ref name="ton">Nowadays, Old Nubian is seen as a tonal language just like its descendant Nobiin. Browne writes that the Nobiin minimal pairs {{lang|fia-Latn|ín}} {{gloss|your.{{gcl|SG}}}} vs. {{lang|fia-Latn|ìn}} {{gloss|this}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|úr}} {{gloss|your.{{gcl|PL}}}} vs. {{lang|fia-Latn|ùr}} {{gloss|head}} appear in Old Nubian as {{lang|onw-Latn|en}} and {{lang|onw-Latn|our}} respectively. From the fact that the Nubians must have had a way to distinguish these forms even though they were written the same, he draws the conclusion that "[Old Nubian] probably followed the tone system observable in modern Nobiin".{{harvcoltxt|Browne|2002|p=23}}</ref>