Editing Tlingit language (section)

==Phonology==

Tlingit has a complex [[phonology|phonological]] system compared to [[Indo-European languages]] such as English or [[Spanish language|Spanish]]. It has an almost complete series of [[ejective]] consonants accompanying its stop, fricative, and affricate consonants. The only missing consonant in the Tlingit ejective series is {{IPA|[ʃʼ]}}. The language is also notable for having several [[lateral consonant|laterals]] but no voiced {{IPA|[l]}} and for having no [[labial consonant|labials]] in most dialects, except for {{IPA|[m]}} and {{IPA|[p]}} in recent English [[loanword]]s.

===Consonants===
The consonants in the table are given in the IPA, with the popular orthography equivalents in brackets.

:{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|-
! rowspan=2 colspan=2| 
! rowspan=2 | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! colspan=3 | [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! rowspan=2 | [[Palato-alveolar consonant|Palato-<br />alveolar]]
! colspan=2 | [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! colspan=2 | [[Uvular consonant|Uvular]]
! colspan=2 | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|- 
! <small>plain</small> || <small>[[sibilant]]</small> || <small>[[lateral consonant|lateral]]</small>
! <small>plain</small> || <small>[[labialisation|labial]]</small>
! <small>plain</small> || <small>labial</small>
! <small>plain</small> || <small>labial</small>
|-
! rowspan=3 | [[Plosive]]
! <small>unaspirated</small>
| 
| {{IPA link|t}} {{angbr|d}}
| {{IPA link|ts}} {{angbr|dz}}
| {{IPA link|tɬ}} {{angbr|dl}}
| {{IPA link|tʃ}} {{angbr|j}}
| {{IPA link|k}} {{angbr|g}}
| {{IPA link|kʷ}} {{angbr|gw}}
| {{IPA link|q}} {{angbr|gh}}
| {{IPA link|qʷ}} {{angbr|ghw}}
| {{IPA link|ʔ}} {{angbr|.}}
| {{IPA link|ʔʷ}} {{angbr|.w}}{{efn|name=Leer|Leer (1991) argues the existence of two labialized glottal consonants, {{IPA|[ʔʷ]}} and {{IPA|[hʷ]}}, which could be written in the popular orthography as ''.w'' and ''hw''. The latter sound does appear in the speech of some speakers, but only in the highly variable word ''oohwaan'' ("first person plural independent pronoun"). This particular word is also pronounced (and hence spelled) ''oohaan'', ''hoowaan'', and ''oowaan'' among other variations. The labialized glottal stop is not attested in any Tlingit transcriptions or recordings, although speakers seem to be able to produce it when requested.}}
|-
! <small>[[aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]]</small>
| 
| {{IPA link|tʰ}} {{angbr|t}}
| {{IPA link|tsʰ}} {{angbr|ts}}
| {{IPA link|tɬʰ}} {{angbr|tl}}
| {{IPA link|tʃʰ}} {{angbr|ch}}
| {{IPA link|kʰ}} {{angbr|k}}
| {{IPA link|kʷʰ}} {{angbr|kw}}
| {{IPA link|qʰ}} {{angbr|kh}}
| {{IPA link|qʷʰ}} {{angbr|khw}}
| 
|
|-
! <small>[[ejective consonant|ejective]]</small>
| 
| {{IPA link|tʼ}} {{angbr|tʼ}}
| {{IPA link|tsʼ}} {{angbr|tsʼ}}
| {{IPA link|tɬʼ}} {{angbr|tlʼ}}
| {{IPA link|tʃʼ}} {{angbr|chʼ}}
| {{IPA link|kʼ}} {{angbr|kʼ}}
| {{IPA link|kʷʼ}} {{angbr|kʼw}}
| {{IPA link|qʼ}} {{angbr|khʼ}}
| {{IPA link|qʷʼ}} {{angbr|khʼw}}
| 
| 
|-
! rowspan=2 | [[Fricative]]
! <small>[[voiceless]]</small>
| 
|
| {{IPA link|s}} {{angbr|s}}
| {{IPA link|ɬ}} {{angbr|l}}
| {{IPA link|ʃ}} {{angbr|sh}}
| {{IPA link|x}} {{angbr|x}}
| {{IPA link|xʷ}} {{angbr|xw}}
| {{IPA link|χ}} {{angbr|xh}}
| {{IPA link|χʷ}} {{angbr|xhw}}
| {{IPA link|h}} {{angbr|h}}
| {{IPA link|hʷ}} {{angbr|hw}}{{efn|name=Leer}}
|-
! <small>ejective</small>
| 
|
| {{IPA link|sʼ}} {{angbr|sʼ}}
| {{IPA link|ɬʼ}} {{angbr|lʼ}}
| 
| {{IPA link|xʼ}} {{angbr|xʼ}}
| {{IPA link|xʷʼ}} {{angbr|xʼw}}
| {{IPA link|χʼ}} {{angbr|xh’}}
| {{IPA link|χʷʼ}} {{angbr|xhʼw}}
| 
| 
|-
! colspan=2 | [[Sonorant]]
| {{IPA link|m}} {{angbr|m}}{{efn|The consonant ''m'' is a variant of ''w'' found in the Interior dialect; ''amsikóo'' "(he) knew it" would be ''awsikóo'' in the Coastal dialects. It is not strictly an [[allophone]], as Interior speakers appear to distinguish the two; it is more likely that the distinction is allomorphic.}}
| {{IPA link|n}} {{angbr|n}}
|
| {{IPA link|l}} {{angbr|ll}}{{efn|The consonant ''ll'' is an allophone of ''n'' now mostly obsolete, but still occasionally heard among the oldest speakers, particularly in the Interior dialect. However, its former allophony with ''n'' is still evident in many Tlingit loanwords in which ''n'' replaces the {{IPA|[l]}} in the source language, such as ''sgóon'' "school".}}
| {{IPA link|j}} {{angbr|y}}
| {{IPA link|ɰ}} {{angbr|ÿ}}{{efn|The consonant ''ÿ'' ({{IPA|/ɰ/}}) has recently merged with ({{IPA|/j/}}) ''y'' or ({{IPA|/w/}}) ''w'', depending on the phonological environment, with ''w'' next to [[roundedness|rounded]] vowels and [[labialisation|labialized]] consonants, and ''y'' elsewhere. It occurs as  ''g'' occasionally in placenames derived from Tlingit during the 18th and the 19th centuries as well as in some broad transcriptions by earlier anthropologists: "Gan Gulihashee Hit" for ''Ÿan Ÿuliháshi Hít'' "Drifted Ashore House" as recorded by Olson, today written ''Yan Wuliháshi Hít''. Because the use of ''y'' versus ''w'' is predictable from context where it was originally a ''ÿ'', this graph is used consistently in linguistic transcription, but not in ordinary writing. Note that this consonant has been erroneously referred to as "gamma", confused with the similar {{IPA|[ɣ]}} which is however the [[voiced velar fricative]], not an [[approximant]].}}
| {{IPA link|w}} {{angbr|w}}
| 
| 
| 
| 
|}
{{Notelist}}

[[Nasal stop|Nasal consonants]] [[assimilation (linguistics)|assimilating]] with {{IPA|/n/}} and the [[velar consonant|velar]] and [[uvular consonant|uvular]] [[stop consonant|plosives]] is common among Tlingit-speakers of all dialects. For example, the sequence ''ng'' ({{IPA|/nk/}}) is often heard as {{IPA|[ŋk]}} and ''ngh'' ({{IPA|/nq/}}) as {{IPA|[ɴq]}}. Native speakers in a teaching position may admonish learners when they produce these assimilated forms, deriding them as "not Tlingit" or "too English", but it is common to later hear such speakers producing those forms themselves. It is uncertain whether this assimilation is autochthonous or if it arose from contact with English, but the former is more likely from a purely articulatory perspective.

Young speakers and second-language learners are increasingly making a [[voice (phonetics)|voiced/unvoiced]] distinction between consonants, rather than the traditional [[aspiration (phonetics)|unaspirated/aspirated]] distinction. That is because of the influence of English, which makes a similar distinction. For speakers who make the voiced/unvoiced distinction, the distribution is symmetrical with the unaspirated/aspirated distinction among other speakers.

Phonetic analysis shows that all Tlingit word final non-ejective stops are phonemically unaspirated, although there is a wide variation in ordinary speech, ranging from unreleased {{IPA|[t̚]}} to a very delayed aspiration {{IPA|[tːʰ]}}.<ref name=":0" /> The underlying phoneme is the unaspirated stop, since this form is consistently produced when the word is suffixed. The orthography usually but not always reflects that: ''hít'' "house" is written ''(du) hídi'' "(his) house" when marked with the possessive suffix ''-ÿí''. It is possible but has not been verified that aspirated and unaspirated stops are collapsed into a single phoneme word-finally.

Phonetic analysis also shows that the [[ejective consonant|ejective]] [[fricative consonant|fricatives]] in Tlingit are in fact true ejectives, with complete closure of the glottis before frication begins and the larynx raising in the same manner as with ejective stops.<ref name=":0" /> This contrasts with common analyses in some other languages with ejective fricatives, which considers them a sequence of fricative and glottal stop.<ref name=":0" />{{Verify source|date=April 2025}}

Characteristically, the ejective fricatives in Tlingit feature a much smaller aperture for frication than is found in ordinary fricatives. That articulation provides increased resistance to counter the continual loss of dynamic airstream pressure. Also, ejective fricatives appear to include tightening of the pharyngeal muscles, which reduces the diameter of the air column and so further increases pressure. That pharyngeal constriction is not true pharyngealization, however, since the diameter is still greater than what is found in pharyngealized consonants in other languages.

===Vowels===

Tlingit has eight [[vowel]]s, four vowels further distinguished formally by [[vowel length|length]]. However, the length distinction is often in terms of [[tenseness]] rather than length, particularly in rapid speech. For the Northern dialect, the dominant spoken dialect of Tlingit and the standard for written Tlingit, every vowel may take either high or low [[tone (linguistics)|tone]]; in the orthography high tone is indicated by an [[acute accent]] (''áa'') and low tone is unmarked (''aa''). The Southern and Transitional dialects have a mid tone which is unmarked and additional low tone which is marked by a [[grave accent]] (''àa'').

The Inland Tlingit orthography does not use vowel digraphs. Instead, short high vowels are marked with an acute accent, long high vowels are marked with a [[circumflex]], and long low vowels are marked with a grave accent. Short low vowels are unmarked. Coastal Tlingit <áa> and <aa> are Inland <â> and <à> respectively. Coastal <éi> and <ei> are Inland <ê> and <è>, Coastal <ée> and <ee> are Inland <î> and <ì>, and Coastal <óo> and <oo> are Inland <û> and <ù>.

:{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|-
! rowspan=2|
! colspan=3| [[Long vowel|Tense/Long]]
! colspan=3| [[Lax vowel|Lax/Short]]
|-
! <small>[[Front vowel|front]]</small> || <small>central</small> || <small>[[Back vowel|back]]</small>
! <small>[[Front vowel|front]]</small> || <small>[[Central vowel|central]]</small> || <small>[[Back vowel|back]]</small>
|-
! [[Close vowel|close]]
| {{IPA link|iː}} {{angbr|ee}}
| 
| {{IPA link|uː}} {{angbr|oo}}
| {{IPA link|ɪ}} {{angbr|i}}
| 
| {{IPA link|ʊ}} {{angbr|u}}
|-
! [[Mid vowel|mid]]
| {{IPA link|eː}} {{angbr|ei}}
| 
| 
| {{IPA link|ɛ}} {{angbr|e}}
| 
| {{IPA link|ʌ}} {{angbr|a}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|open]]
| 
| {{IPA link|aː}} {{angbr|aa}}
| ({{IPA link|ɒː}} {{angbr|aa}}){{efn|Allophone of {{IPA|/aː/}} which is realized as {{IPA|[ɒː]}} under the influence of uvular consonants. However this is not consistent for all speakers. The backness influence arises from articulation with uvular consonants and so the word {{lang|tli|kháa}} "person" is often spoken as {{IPA|[qʰɒ́ː]}}, but the word {{lang|tli|(a) káa}} "on (its) surface" is said as {{IPA|[(ʔʌ) kʰáː]}} by the same speakers.}}
| 
| ({{IPA link|ɐ}} {{angbr|a}})
| 
|}
{{notelist}}

Word onset is always consonantal in Tlingit and so words never begin with a vowel. Where a vowel would theoretically have occurred, such as by prefixing or compounding, the vowel is always followed by either {{IPA|[ʔ]}} or {{IPA|[j]}}. The former is universal in single words, and both are found in word-medial position in compounds. The orthography does not reflect the {{IPA|[ʔ]}} in word-initial position, but either ''.'' or ''y'' may be seen in medial position. For example:

{{interlinear|indent=3
|top={{IPA|[qʰuːwʌtʼáː]}}{{br}}khoowat'áa
|khu- ÿu- ÿa- t'áa
|{{gcl|INDH|indefinite human}}.OBJ- PERF- {{gcl|(ø, -D, +I)|classifier}}- hot
|"the weather is hot"}}

But when the perfective prefix ''ÿu-'' is word-initial, the glottal stop appears to ensure that the word begins with a consonant.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|top={{IPA|[ʔʊwʌtʼáː]}}{{br}}uwat'áa
|∅- ÿu- ÿa- t'áa
|3.{{gcl|NEU|neutral}}.OBJ- PERF- {{gcl|(ø, -D, +I)|classifier}}- hot
|"it is hot"}}