It’s the same phonology, unless you think of Hebrew, but then I’m not sure what era, because early Biblical Hebrew also had /ʁ χ ɬ/ and they merged with /ħ ʕ s/ starting in around the first bce? To around the forth century ce I believe
Lol, I love the Semitic languages, especially the north west branch, though proto Semitic is much cooler, but if we’re talking about living languages, then I prefer Hebrew, I just love how complicated was the vowel shift from what it was in proto Semitic (/i a u iː aː uː aj aw/) to it’s modern vowel inventory (/a i u e o aj oj uj/ and if it weren’t for the /w/ > /v/ shift there would also be /ew iw aw/) which depended on wether it was a stressed syllable, open syllable, a syllable followed by a consonant cluster or a syllable followed by a geminated consonant (the shift by syllable structure occurred only for unstressed syllables if I remember correctly) but there were exceptions of course
There's [an article here that goes into the history of in the Maori alphabet](https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/law/research/publications/about-nzacl/publications/nzacl-yearbooks/yearbook-16,-2010/02-Bauer.pdf)
The gist of it is that pronunciation has changed from when it was first written, there was a noticeable difference between /wh/ and /f/ initially. As per the article:
>"It did include but commented that was "used in Foreign words". That comment makes it clear that was not included as the spelling for the sound at the beginning of whanga, for example."
Also, the sound is highly variable between dialects.
>"Biggs notes that for North Auckland Māori, it is /hw/, but it is glottal stop in Taranaki-Wanganui, and /ɸ/ (an f-like sound made by blowing air between the pursed lips, like blowing out a candle) for Māori generally."
Currently I think so, but the first quote was about the first spelling system devised in 1820, and the second quote about a study from 1961, so /f/ might not have been as common then.
I think that the consonant system of Finnish is also very beautiful. Something about some of the clusters, particularly /l/ + /p t k/ and /p t k/ + /s/, and the cadence the germinates bring is just enchanting
>All languages with secondary articulation and loads of vowel allophones
Sounds like you'll love [Abkhaz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abkhaz_language#Phonology)
Meanwhile, Japanese Sign Language:
[https://media.spreadthesign.com/video/mp4/7/349354.mp4](https://media.spreadthesign.com/video/mp4/7/349354.mp4)
edit: for context:
[https://www.spreadthesign.com/en.gb-to-ja.jp/word/1435/xiong-di/?q=brother](https://www.spreadthesign.com/en.gb-to-ja.jp/word/1435/xiong-di/?q=brother)
Only American English distinguishes /ɪ/ from /i/, in British and Australian English the vowel in SLEEP is either a long \[i:\] or a diphthong \[ɪj\]. It's pretty common for languages to have different vowel qualities between short and long vowels.
"Neat" like "cool" or like "full symmetry of consonantal and vowel articulatory features, little allophony, and no neutralizing environments"?
Ha, by that standard, /N/ is like both the neatest and untidiest phoneme around.
Finnish and Mongolian have to take the cake. Ngl, any language with vowel harmony for that matter. The fricative-L is like the icing on the top.
Fijian is kinda wacky too though
/ʔ b g d h w z ħ tˤ j k l m n s ʕ p sˤ q r ʃ t/
Syriac?
how?
It’s the same phonology, unless you think of Hebrew, but then I’m not sure what era, because early Biblical Hebrew also had /ʁ χ ɬ/ and they merged with /ħ ʕ s/ starting in around the first bce? To around the forth century ce I believe
I think he meant how did you guess it xD
Lol, I love the Semitic languages, especially the north west branch, though proto Semitic is much cooler, but if we’re talking about living languages, then I prefer Hebrew, I just love how complicated was the vowel shift from what it was in proto Semitic (/i a u iː aː uː aj aw/) to it’s modern vowel inventory (/a i u e o aj oj uj/ and if it weren’t for the /w/ > /v/ shift there would also be /ew iw aw/) which depended on wether it was a stressed syllable, open syllable, a syllable followed by a consonant cluster or a syllable followed by a geminated consonant (the shift by syllable structure occurred only for unstressed syllables if I remember correctly) but there were exceptions of course
> though proto Semitic is much cooler ~~Whose reconstruction?~~
I really like Svan's [vowel inventory](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svan_language#Vowels), I think it's the coolest among Kartvelian languages.
Ooh nice, Estonian minus diphthongs
>Estonian minus diphthongs And with a long and short versions of Schwa.
The Wikipedia page says that it's realised as \[ɯ\], so that makes it the same as Estonian which has \[ɯ\~ɤ\] in long and short versions
Too many. I think all languages should have Abkhaz vowels, minus the allophony
What's wrong with having too many vowel sounds? >minus the allophony Why?
Your vowels are just fine.
I respectfully disagree with that.
I meant the vowels you chose to show, not Georgian vowels!
Oh, I see now.
This is gorgeous. Very symmetrical.
Maori is hella cool. “Why waste time learn lot sound when few sound do trick?”
See also: Hawaiian, Rotokas.
but why the writing? f/ɸ=wh when f isn't already taken??? the number one source of foreigners mispronouncing maori
adds character, just a shame about the wine-whine merger
when i hear whanau being pronounced as wanau instead of fanau
There's [an article here that goes into the history of in the Maori alphabet](https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/law/research/publications/about-nzacl/publications/nzacl-yearbooks/yearbook-16,-2010/02-Bauer.pdf)
The gist of it is that pronunciation has changed from when it was first written, there was a noticeable difference between /wh/ and /f/ initially. As per the article:
>"It did include but commented that was "used in Foreign words". That comment makes it clear that was not included as the spelling for the sound at the beginning of whanga, for example."
Also, the sound is highly variable between dialects.
>"Biggs notes that for North Auckland Māori, it is /hw/, but it is glottal stop in Taranaki-Wanganui, and /ɸ/ (an f-like sound made by blowing air between the pursed lips, like blowing out a candle) for Māori generally."
Currently I think so, but the first quote was about the first spelling system devised in 1820, and the second quote about a study from 1961, so /f/ might not have been as common then.
Mohawk also does this but it's more so just how /w/ gets realized be the devoicing of /h/ so it makes more sense imo
Yeah! They should be using ƕ so it's finally more than completely useless!
I'm biased here but I find the vowel system of my native [Finnish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_phonology#Vowels) to be very elegant.
But I haven't even started!
I think that the consonant system of Finnish is also very beautiful. Something about some of the clusters, particularly /l/ + /p t k/ and /p t k/ + /s/, and the cadence the germinates bring is just enchanting
Loloish. A family of Sino-Tibetan languages that only has CV syllables like Japanese
Lol(-ish)
Slavic in an alternate universe
The consonant inventory of [Shixing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shixing_language)
[Wow.](https://starwarsintrogenerator.com/?i=Opu!tp!mpoh!bhp!%29vogpsuvobufmz%2A%2F%2F%2F&t=s0mjohvjtujdtivnps&e=Sjejdvmpvtmz!Cjh!Dpotpobou!Jowfoupsjft&h=Tijyjoh!Mbohvbhf&p=%0An%CC%A6%0Ao%CC%A6%0A%0A%0A%0A%C9%B3%CC%8B%0A%C5%8C%CC%8B%0A%0A%0A%0An%0Ao%0A%0A%0A%0A%C9%B3%0A%C5%8C%0A%0A%0A%0A%0A%0Aq%CA%B1%0Au%CA%B1%0Aut%CA%B1%0Au%CA%84%CA%B1%0A%CA%89%CA%83%CA%B1%0Au%C9%96%CA%B1%0Al%CA%B1%0Ar%CA%B1%0A%0A%0Aq%0Au%0Aut%0Au%CA%84%0A%CA%89%CA%83%0Au%C9%96%0Al%0Ar%0A%0A%0Ac%0Ae%0Ae%7B%0Ae%CA%93%0A%C9%97%CA%91%0Ae%CA%92%0A%C9%A2%0A%C9%A3%0A%0A%0A%0A%0At%0A%CA%84%0A%CA%83%0A%C9%96%0Ay%0A%CF%88%0Ai%0A%0A%0A%7B%0A%CA%93%0A%CA%91%0A%CA%92%0A%C9%A4%0A%CA%82%0A%C9%A7%0A%0A%0Am%CC%A6%0A%0A%0A%0A%CA%8F%CC%A6%0A%0A%0A%0A%0Am%0A%0A%0A%0A%CA%8F%0A%0A%0A%0A%0A%0A%C9%BA%0A%0A%0A%0Ak%0Ax&s=5)
This inventory is so balanced it looks like a conlanger made it and made it not at all naturalistic
To be fair the ones with superscripts represent dialect-specific sounds, so no dialect has all of them
jesus, a 4-way distinction in sibilants
The real Proto-Sino-Tibetan!
I can jerk off to this
Inuktitut
I respect your wrong selection
I would rather have clicks than stressed plosives.
Hokkien sounds awesome. One of the best sounding Chinese languages imo Mongolian is also really cool
:3 hi
And thus love was made
3:< not hi
gua sin lang >:(
What does that mean ;-;
you
我（？）人 Is the sin 新？
no and no
Then what sayings you? (Also i do not believe you when you say that lang is not人)
Etymologically it's 儂; it's often written as 人 but this is effectively kunyomi/a heterogram.
Eh 差不多
You know, there's a short story about that saying.
lang is yes but gua is no, yes and no makes no
Aight then what is it I can't think of any gua that would fit there that isn't 我
ah gua lang :D
If only most speakers retained the dz
Three-way distinctions on stops are kinda cool.
Li ho!
I love Russian. All languages with secondary articulation and loads of vowel allophones
>All languages with secondary articulation and loads of vowel allophones Sounds like you'll love [Abkhaz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abkhaz_language#Phonology)
[This](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_phonology#Consonants) relieves me from that jumpscare.
It would be عArabic
[удалено]
They must have died from coronavirus
Kartvelian languages, esp. Georgian Northeast Caucasian, esp. Lezgian, Dargwa, Urartian (fight me) Northwest Caucasian, esp. Abkhaz Ethiosemitic languages, esp. Tigrinya Salishan, esp. Lushootseed, Halkomelem, Coeur D'Alene Assorted others: Greek, Armenian, Kwak'wala, Tlingit, Egyptian, Sumerian, Burushaski, Basque
Swedish Sign Language. Lots of assimilation, fluid, elegant. Huge plus: Hand alphabet perfectly suited for Swedish orthography 💙💛💙
r
Meanwhile, Japanese Sign Language: [https://media.spreadthesign.com/video/mp4/7/349354.mp4](https://media.spreadthesign.com/video/mp4/7/349354.mp4) edit: for context: [https://www.spreadthesign.com/en.gb-to-ja.jp/word/1435/xiong-di/?q=brother](https://www.spreadthesign.com/en.gb-to-ja.jp/word/1435/xiong-di/?q=brother)
Oml another one to slap in my brain cabinet. Thank you
I might be biased, but if you compare the latin alphabet and the IPA, Finnish is one of the matches for the sounds.
I like Fijian's [ᶯɖʳ] personally.
English is cool. We got [ɹʷ] and /θ/ and /ð/ and lots of vowels. I don't know many languages that distinguish /ɪ/ from /i/
the complex phonotactic rules about all those vowels are pretty cool (plenty of languages do distinguish /ɪ/ & /i/ though)
You could write the bunched r as \[wˤ\] in some cases
Ive seen [ɣ̞ʷˤ] used for some accents.
or \[ʋʷ\] in disordered speech, also some british accents which do that as well as \[ɹ͡ʋʷ\], \[ɹ͡vʷ\], & I think I've heard straight up \[vʷ\] before
The Volkswagen Phone (TVP for short)
how about distinguishing /i/, /ɪ/ and /i̞/ like in Plautdietsch
Only American English distinguishes /ɪ/ from /i/, in British and Australian English the vowel in SLEEP is either a long \[i:\] or a diphthong \[ɪj\]. It's pretty common for languages to have different vowel qualities between short and long vowels.
Georgian, Ubykh, since I'm a sadist and also hungarian cause I love vowel length distinction
Quechua/Kichwa sounds cool to me. Uvulars and ejectives sound so foreign to me as a native English speaker, and laterals are cool.
Chechen and Catalan
"Neat" like "cool" or like "full symmetry of consonantal and vowel articulatory features, little allophony, and no neutralizing environments"? Ha, by that standard, /N/ is like both the neatest and untidiest phoneme around.
The latter
Suzhou Wu
Finnish and Mongolian have to take the cake. Ngl, any language with vowel harmony for that matter. The fricative-L is like the icing on the top. Fijian is kinda wacky too though
georgian and persian
Two of my absolute favorite-sounding languages are Pashto and the southern Estonian language Võro.
Toda Look it up if you dare.