Editing Chechen language (section)

==Phonology==
Some phonological characteristics of Chechen include its wealth of consonants and sounds similar to [[Arabic language|Arabic]] and the [[Salishan languages]] of North America, as well as a large vowel system resembling those of [[Swedish language|Swedish]] and [[German language|German]].

===Consonants===
The Chechen language has, like most indigenous [[languages of the Caucasus]], a large number of [[consonant]]s: about 40 to 60 (depending on the [[dialect]] and the analysis), far more than most [[languages of Europe|European languages]]. Typical of the region, a four-way distinction between [[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]], [[voiceless]], [[ejective]] and [[geminate]] [[fortis (phonetics)|fortis]] [[stop consonant|stop]]s is found.<ref>[[Johanna Nichols]], Chechen, ''The Indigenous languages of the Caucasus'' (Caravan Books, Delmar NY, 1994) {{ISBN|0-88206-068-6}}.</ref> Furthermore, all variants except the ejective are subject to phonemic pharyngealization.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! colspan="3" rowspan="2" |
! colspan="2" |[[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! colspan="2" |[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! colspan="2" |[[Postalveolar consonant|Postalveolar]]
! rowspan="2" |[[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! rowspan="2" |[[Uvular consonant|Uvular]]
! rowspan="2" |[[Epiglottal consonant|Epiglottal]]
! colspan="2" |[[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
!<small> plain </small>
!<small> [[Pharyngealization|phar.]] </small>
!<small> plain </small>
!<small> [[Pharyngealization|phar.]] </small>
!<small> plain </small>
!<small> [[Pharyngealization|phar.]] </small>
!<small> plain </small>
!<small> [[Pharyngealization|phar.]] </small>
|-
! colspan="3" |[[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
| {{IPA link|m}} 
|{{IPA link|mˤ}}
| {{IPA link|n}}
|{{IPA link|nˤ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="4" |[[Plosive consonant|Plosive]]
! rowspan="2" |<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
!<small> [[lenis]] </small>
|{{IPA link|pʰ}}
|{{IPA link|pˤ}}
|{{IPA link|tʰ}}
|{{IPA link|tˤ}}
|
|
|{{IPA link|kʰ}}
|{{IPA link|qʰ}}
|{{IPA link|ʡ}}
|{{IPA link|ʔ}}
|({{IPA link|ʔˤ}})
|-
!<small> [[Fortis consonant|fortis]] </small>
|{{IPA link|pː}}
|{{IPA link|pˤː}}
|{{IPA link|tː}}
|{{IPA link|tˤː}}
|
|
|{{IPA link|kː}}
|{{IPA link|qː}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
|{{IPA link|b}}
|{{IPA link|bˤ}}
|{{IPA link|d}}
|{{IPA link|dˤ}}
|
|
|{{IPA link|ɡ}}
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Ejective consonant|ejective]]</small>
|{{IPA link|pʼ}}
|
|{{IPA link|tʼ}}
|
|
|
|{{IPA link|kʼ}}
|{{IPA link|qʼ}}
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="4" |[[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
! rowspan="2" |<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
!<small> [[lenis]] </small>
|
|
|{{IPA link|tsʰ}}
|{{IPA link|tsˤ}}
|{{IPA link|tʃʰ}}
|{{IPA link|tʃˤ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!<small> [[Fortis consonant|fortis]] </small>
|
|
|{{IPA link|tsː}}
|{{IPA link|tsˤː}}
|{{IPA link|tʃː}}
|{{IPA link|tʃˤː}}
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
|
|
|{{IPA link|dz}}
|{{IPA link|dzˤ}}
|{{IPA link|dʒ}}
|{{IPA link|dʒˤ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Ejective consonant|ejective]]</small>
|
|
|{{IPA link|tsʼ}}
|
|{{IPA link|tʃʼ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
|({{IPA link|f}})
|
|{{IPA link|s}}
|{{IPA link|sˤ}}
|{{IPA link|ʃ}}
|{{IPA link|ʃˤ}}
| colspan="2" |{{IPA link|x}}
|
|{{IPA link|h}}
|
|-
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
|({{IPA link|v}})
|
|{{IPA link|z}}
|{{IPA link|zˤ}}
|{{IPA link|ʒ}}
|{{IPA link|ʒˤ}}
| colspan="2" |{{IPA link|ɣ}}
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Rhotic consonant|Rhotic]]
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
|
|
|{{IPA link|r̥}}
|
|
|
|
|
|{{IPA link|ʜ}}
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |<small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
|
|
|{{IPA link|r}}
|{{IPA link|rˤ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="3" |[[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|{{IPA link|w}} ({{IPA link|ɥ}}) 
|{{IPA link|wˤ}}
|{{IPA link|l}} 
|{{IPA link|lˤ}}
|{{IPA link|j}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|}

Nearly any consonant may be [[fortis and lenis|fortis]] because of focus gemination, but only the ones above are found in [[Root (linguistics)|root]]s.
The consonants of the ''t'' cell and {{IPAslink|l}} are [[denti-alveolar]]; the others of that column are [[alveolar consonant|alveolar]]. 
{{IPAslink|x}} is a back [[velar consonant|velar]], but not quite [[uvular consonant|uvular]].
The lateral {{IPAslink|l}} may be [[dark L|velarized]], unless it is followed by a front vowel. 
The trill {{IPAslink|r}} is usually articulated with a single contact, and therefore sometimes described as a [[tap consonant|tap]] {{IPAblink|ɾ}}.
Except in the literary [[Register (sociolinguistics)|register]], and even then only for some speakers, the voiced [[affricate consonant|affricate]]s {{IPAslink|dz}}, {{IPAslink|dʒ}} have merged into the [[fricative consonant|fricative]]s {{IPAslink|z}}, {{IPAslink|ʒ}}. A voiceless labial fricative {{IPAslink|f}} is found only in European [[loanword]]s.
{{IPAslink|w}} appears both in diphthongs and as a consonant; as a consonant, it has an allophone {{IPAblink|v}} before front vowels.

Approximately twenty [[pharyngealization|pharyngealized]] consonants (marked with superscript {{IPA link|ˤ}}) also appear in the table above. [[labial consonant|Labial]], [[alveolar consonant|alveolar]] and [[postalveolar consonant|postalveolar]] consonants may be pharyngealized, except for [[ejective consonant|ejectives]].

Except when following a consonant, {{IPAslink|ʢ}} is [[phonetics|phonetically]] {{IPAblink|ʔˤ}}, and can be argued to be a [[glottal stop]] before a "[[pharyngealized]]" (actually epiglottalized) vowel. However, it does not have the distribution constraints characteristic of the anterior [[pharyngealization|pharyngealized (epiglottalized) consonants]]. Although these may be analyzed as an [[wiktionary:anterior|anterior]] consonant plus {{IPAslink|ʢ}} (they surface for example as [dʢ] when [[voice (phonetics)|voiced]] and {{IPAblink|pʰʜ}} when [[voiceless]]), [[Johanna Nichols|Nichols]] argues that given the severe constraints against [[consonant cluster]]s in Chechen, it is more useful to analyze them as single consonants.

===Vowels===
Unlike most other languages of the Caucasus, Chechen has an extensive inventory of [[vowel]] sounds, putting its range higher than most languages of Europe (most vowels being the product of environmentally conditioned allophonic variation, which varies by both dialect and method of analysis). Many of the vowels are due to [[I-mutation|umlaut]], which is highly productive in the standard dialect. None of the spelling systems used so far have distinguished the vowels with complete accuracy.

{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" |
! colspan="2" |[[Front vowel|Front]]
! rowspan="2" |[[back vowel|Back]]~<br />[[central vowel|Central]]
|-
![[unrounded vowel|<small>unrounded</small>]]
![[rounded vowel|<small>rounded</small>]]
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[High vowel|High]]
|{{IPA link|ɪ}} {{IPA link|iː}}
|{{IPA link|y}} {{IPA link|yː}}
|{{IPA link|ʊ}} {{IPA link|uː}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Mid vowel|Mid]]
|{{IPA link|e̞}} {{IPA link|e̞ː}}
|{{IPA link|ø}} {{IPA link|øː}}
|{{IPA link|o̞}} {{IPA link|o̞ː}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Low vowel|Low]]
|({{IPA link|æ}}) ({{IPA link|æː}})
|
| {{IPA link|ə}} {{IPA link|ɑː}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
![[Diphthong]]
|{{IPA|je}} {{IPA|ie}}
|{{IPA|ɥø}} {{IPA|yø}}
|{{IPA|wo}} {{IPA|uo}}
|}

All vowels may be [[Nasalization|nasalized]]. Nasalization is imposed by the [[Genitive case|genitive]], [[infinitive]], and for some speakers the [[nominative case]] of [[adjective]]s. Nasalization is not strong, but it is audible even in final vowels, which are devoiced.

Some of the [[diphthong]]s have significant [[Allophone|allophony]]: {{IPA|/ɥø/}} = {{IPA|[ɥø], [ɥe], [we]}}; {{IPA|/yø/}} = {{IPA|[yø], [ye]}}; {{IPA|/uo/}} = {{IPA|[woː], [uə]}}.

In [[closed syllable]]s, [[long vowel]]s become short in most dialects (not [[Kist people|Kisti]]), but are often still distinct from short vowels (shortened {{IPA|[i]}}, {{IPA|[u]}}, {{IPA|[ɔ]}} and {{IPA|[ɑ̈]}} vs. short {{IPA|[ɪ]}}, {{IPA|[ʊ]}}, {{IPA|[o]}}, and {{IPA|[ə]}}, for example), although which ones remain distinct depends on the dialect.

{{IPA|/æ/, /æː/}} and {{IPA|/e/, /eː/}} are in [[complementary distribution]] ({{IPA|/æ/}} occurs after [[pharyngealization|pharyngealized]] consonants, whereas {{IPA|/e/}} does not and {{IPA|/æː/}}—identical with {{IPA|/æ/}} for most speakers—occurs in closed syllables, while {{IPA|/eː/}} does not) but speakers strongly feel that they are distinct sounds.

[[Pharyngealization]] appears to be a feature of the consonants, though some analyses treat it as a feature of the vowels. However, [[Johanna Nichols|Nichols]] argues that this does not capture the situation in Chechen well, whereas it is more clearly a feature of the vowel in [[Ingush language|Ingush]]: Chechen {{IPA|[tsʜaʔ]}} "one", Ingush {{IPA|[tsaʔˤ]}}, which she analyzes as {{IPA|/tsˤaʔ/}} and {{IPA|/tsaˤʔ/}}. Vowels have a delayed [[breathy voice|murmured]] onset after pharyngealized voiced consonants and a noisy [[aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]] onset after pharyngealized voiceless consonants. The high vowels {{IPA|/i/, /y/, /u/}} are diphthongized, {{IPA|[əi], [əy], [əu]}}, whereas the [[diphthong]]s {{IPA|/je/, /wo/}} undergo [[Metathesis (linguistics)|metathesis]], {{IPA|[ej], [ow]}}.

===Phonotactics===
Chechen permits syllable-initial clusters {{IPA|/st px tx/}} and non-initially also allows {{IPA|/x r l/}} plus any consonant, and any obstruent plus a uvular of the same [[manner of articulation]]. The only cluster of three consonants permitted is {{IPA|/rst/}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ingush.narod.ru/chech/book/ch1011.gif|format=GIF|title=Indigenous Language of the Caucasus (Chechen)|pages=10–11|website=Ingush.narod.ru|access-date=2016-01-21|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304072204/http://ingush.narod.ru/chech/book/ch1011.gif|archive-date=2016-03-04}}</ref>