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Prenasalized consonants are phonetic sequences of a nasal and an obstruent (or occasionally a non-nasal sonorant) that behave phonologically like single consonants. The primary reason for considering them to be single consonants, rather than clusters as in English finger or member, lies in their behaviour; however, there may also be phonetic correlates which distinguish prenasalized consonants from clusters. Because of the additional difficulty in both articulation and timing, prenasalized fricatives and sonorants are not as common as prenasalized stops or affricates, and the presence of the former implies the latter.[1] Only three languages (Sinhala, Fula, Selayarese) have been reported to have a contrast between prenasalized consonants (NC) and their corresponding clusters (NC).[2][3]
In most languages, when a prenasalized consonant is described as "voiceless", it is only the oral portion that is voiceless, and the nasal portion is modally voiced. Thus, a language may have "voiced" [ᵐb ⁿd ᶯɖ ᶮɟ ᵑɡ ᶰɢ] and "voiceless" [ᵐp ⁿt ᶯʈ ᶮc ᵑk ᶰq]. However, in some Southern Min (including Taiwanese) dialects, voiced consonants are preceded by voiceless prenasalization: [ᵐ̥b ⁿ̥d ⁿ̥ɺ ᵑ̊ɡ].[4] Yeyi has prenasalized ejectives and clicks like /ⁿtsʼ, ᵑkʼ, ᵑᵏ!ʰ, ᵑᶢ!/.[5] Nizaa has prenasalized implosives like /ᵐɓ, ⁿɗʷ/. Adzera has a /ⁿʔ/.[6]
Prenasalized stops may be distinguished from post-oralized or post-stopped nasals (orally released nasals), such as the [mᵇ nᵈ ɲᶡ ŋᶢ] of Acehnese and similar sounds (including voiceless [mᵖ]) in many dialects of Chinese.[7] (At least in the Chinese case, nasalization, in some dialects, continues in a reduced degree to the vowel, indicating that the consonant is partially denasalized, rather than actually having an oral release.) No language is believed to contrast the two types of consonant, which are distinguished primarily by a difference in timing (a brief nasal followed by longer stop, as opposed to a longer nasal followed by brief stop).[8]
- ^ Silverman (1995:65)
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Feinstein syllablewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Riehl thesiswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Chan (1987) "Post-stopped nasals in Chinese: an areal study", UCLA WPP #68
- ^ *Seidel, Frank (2008), A Grammar of Yeyi: A Bantu Language of Southern Africa. R. Köppe.
- ^ Holzknecht, Susanne (1989). The Markham Languages of Papua New Guinea. Pacific Linguistics. ISBN 0-85883-394-8.
- ^ Chan (1987) Post-stopped nasals in Chinese: an areal study
- ^ Cohn (1990) "Phonetic and Phonological Rules of Nasalization", UCLA Working Papers in Phonetics 76, p. 7.