Ingrian phonology
Ingrian is a nearly extinct Finnic language of Russia. The spoken language remains unstandardised, and as such statements below are about the four known dialects of Ingrian (Ala-Laukaa, Hevaha, Soikkola and Ylä-Laukaa) and in particular the two extant dialects (Ala-Laukaa and Soikkola).
The written forms are, if possible, based on the written language (referred to as kirjakeeli, "book language") introduced by the Ingrian linguist Väinö Junus [fi] in the late 1930s. Following 1937's mass repressions in the Soviet Union, the written language was abolished and ever since, Ingrian does not have a (standardised) written language.
Vowels
The following chart shows the monophthongs present in the Ingrian language:
Front | Central | Back | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
unrounded | rounded | |||
Close | i /i/ | y /y/ | (ь /ɨ/) | u /u/ |
Mid | e /e/ | ö /ø/ | o /o/ | |
Open | ä /æ/ | a /ɑ/ |
- The vowel /ɨ/ is only present in some Russian loanwords, like rьbakka ("fisher"); this vowel has been replaced by /i/ in some idiolects.[1]
All vowels can occur as both short (/æ e i ɨ ø y ɑ o u/) and long (/æː eː iː ɨː øː yː ɑː oː uː/). The long vowel /ɨː/ is extremely rare, occurring in borrowed words like rььžoi ("red-haired"). The vowels /eː øː oː/ are often realised as either diphthongs ([ie̯ yø̯ uo̯]) or diphthongoids ([i̯eː y̯øː u̯oː]) and in some dialects even as [iː yː uː].[1]
Diphthongs
Besides the diphthongs that arise due to diphthongisation of the long mid vowels ([ie̯ yø̯ uo̯]), Ingrian has a wide range of phonemic diphthongs, present in both dialects:
-i | -u | -i | -y | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
a- | ai /ɑi̯/ | au /ɑu̯/ | ä- | äi /æi̯/ | äy /æy̯/ |
i- | – | iu /iu̯/ | |||
e- | ei /ei̯/ | eu /eu̯/ | |||
o- | oi /oi̯/ | ou /ou̯/ | ö- | öi /øi̯/ | öy /øy̯/ |
u- | ui /ui̯/ | – | y- | yi /yi̯/ | – |
Ingrian has only one falling phonemic diphthong, iä (/iæ̯/), which is only present in the personal pronouns miä ("I") and siä ("you", singular).
Vowel reduction
Vowel reduction is a very common feature of the Ala-Laukaa dialect, and is to a very restricted extent also present in Soikkola. The term refers to the process of acoustically weakening the unstressed vowels.
In Soikkola, vowel reduction is restricted to the vowels a and ä; These vowels are sometimes reduced to [ə], but mostly in quick speech, making it a purely phonetic feature:[1]
- linna /ˈlinːɑ/ [ˈlinːə] ("city")
- ilma /ˈilmɑ/ [ˈiɫmə] ("weather")
In Ala-Laukaa, this process is much more common. In open final syllables, the vowels /ɑ æ e/ are reduced to [ə], the other vowels (/i ø y o u/) are simply shortened ([ĭ ø̆ y̆ ŏ ŭ]). The process of reducing vowels is contrastive in Ala-Laukaa:[4]
- linna /ˈlinːə/ ("city", NOM) linnaa /ˈlinːɑ/ ("city", PTV)
In a closed final syllable, the reduction of the vowel /e/ is much more uncommon, and occurs primarily in polysyllabic words. In words with three syllables and a long third syllable (in the form CVV), the penultimate syllable will reduce in the same way as described above. In three-syllable words with a short final syllable (in the form (C)CV), however, any short vowel in the second syllable will be reduced to [ə]. In polysyllabic words, reduction of the even syllables doesn't occur after short syllables.
The reduced vowels in Ala-Laukaa Ingrian can further experience deletion:[1]
- istuisi ("he/she sat down") [ˈistŭsĭ] ~ [ˈistŭsʲ] ~ [ˈistŭzʲ]
Vowel harmony
Ingrian, just like its closest relatives Finnish and Karelian, has the concept of vowel harmony. The principle of this morphophonetic phenomenon is that vowels in a word consisting of one root are all either front or back. As such, no native words can have any of the vowels {a, o, u} together with any of the vowels {ä, ö, y}.[2][5]
To harmonise formed words, any suffix containing one of these six vowels have two separate forms: a front vowel form and a back vowel form. Compare the following two words, formed using the suffix -kas: liivakas ("sandy") from liiva ("sand") and iäkäs ("elderly") from ikä ("age").[2][5]
The vowels {e, i} are considered neutral and can co-occur with both types of vowels. However, stems with these vowels are always front vowel harmonic: kivekäs ("rocky") from kivi ("rock").[2]
Compound words don't have to abide by the rules of vowel harmony, since they consist of two stems: rantakivi ("coastal stone") from ranta ("coast") + kivi ("stone").[2]
Consonants
The consonantal phonology of Ingrian varies greatly among dialects. For example, while Soikkola Ingrian misses the voiced-unvoiced distinction, it has a three-way consonant length distinction, missing in the Ala-Laukaa dialect.[1]
Soikkola dialect
Labial | Dental | Postalveolar/ Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plosive | p, b /p/ | t, d /t/ | k, g /k/ | ||
Nasal | m /m/ | n /n/ | [ŋ] | ||
Fricative | f /f/ | s, z /s/ | [x] | h /h/ | |
Lateral | l /l/ | ||||
Trill | r /r/ | ||||
Affricate | ts /t͡s/ | c /t͡ʃ/ | |||
Approximant | v /ʋ/ | j /j/ |
- The velar nasal [ŋ] is a form of /n/ occurring before the plosive /k/ (written ⟨nk⟩).
- The velar fricative [x] is a (half-)long version of /h/ (written ⟨hh⟩).
- Common realisations of /s/ are [ʃ] (in most subdialects) and [s̠] (in some subdialects).[6]
- /t͡ʃ/ is most commonly realised as the palatalised [t͡ɕ]
- /t͡s/ may be realised as the consonant cluster [ts̠].
Consonant length
In the Soikkola dialect, consonants have a three-way distinction in length. Geminates can be either short (1.5 times the length of a short consonant) or long (twice the length of a short consonant):[4]
- tapa /ˈtɑpɑ/ ("manner" NOM)
- tappaa /ˈtɑpˑɑː/ ("he/she catches" also: "manner" PTV)
- tappaa /ˈtɑpːɑː/ ("to kill")
A similar phenomenon can be observed in the related Estonian language.
A word with the underlying structure *(C)VCVCV(C) is geminated to (C)VCˑVːCV(C) in the Soikkola dialect:
- omena /ˈomˑeːnɑ/ ("apple" NOM; respelled ommeena)
- omenan /ˈomˑeːnɑn/ ("apple" GEN; respelled ommeenan)
- orava /ˈorˑɑːʋɑ/ ("squirrel" NOM; respelled orraava)
This rule however does not apply to forms that are underlyingly tetrasyllabic:
- omenaal (< *omenalla) /ˈomenɑːl/ ("apple" ADE)
- omenaks (< *omenaksi) /ˈomenɑːks/ ("apple" TRANSL)
Consonant voicing
The Soikkola dialect also exhibits a phonetic three-way voicing distinction for plosives and the sibilant:
- Intervocalically, short (ungeminated) consonants, when followed by a short vowel, are generally realised as semi-voiced, so [b̥], [d̥], [ɡ̊] and [ʒ̊] for /p/, /t/, /k/ and /s/ respectively:[4][7]
- poika /ˈpoi̯kɑ/, [ˈpoi̯ɡ̊ɑ]
- poikaa /ˈpoi̯kɑː/, [ˈpoi̯kɑː]
- When preceding a hiatus, word-final consonants are also semi-voiced. When not, voicing assimilation occurs, resulting in voiced consonants ([b], [d], [ɡ], [ʒ]) before voiced consonants and vowels, and voiceless consonants ([p], [t], [k], [ʃ]) before voiceless consonants:[4][7]
- pojat /ˈpojɑt/, [ˈpojɑd̥]
- pojat nooret /ˈpojɑt ˈnoːret/, [ˈpojɑd‿ˈnoːred̥]
- pojat suuret /ˈpojɑt ˈsuːret/, [ˈpojɑt‿ˈʃuːred̥]
- pojat ovat /ˈpojɑt ˈoʋɑt/, [ˈpojɑd‿ˈoʋɑd̥]
- Word-initially, plosives and sibilants are generally voiceless. Some speakers, however, may pronounce Russian loanwords, deriving from Russian words with a word-initial voiced plosive, with a voiced initial consonant:[4]
- bocka [ˈpot͡ɕkɑ] ~ [ˈbot͡ɕkɑ]; compare also pocka [ˈpot͡ɕkɑ]
Nasal assimilation
A word-final dental nasal (/n/) assimilates to the following stop and nasal:[7]
- meehen poika [ˈmeːhem‿ˈpoi̯ɡ̊ɑ]
- meehen koira [ˈmeːheŋ‿ˈkoi̯rɑ]
- kanan muna [ˈkɑnɑm‿ˈmunɑ]
Some speakers also assimilate word-final /n/ to a following liquid, glottal fricative or bilabial approximant:[7]
- meehen laps [ˈmeːhel‿lɑps]
- joen ranta [ˈjoer‿rɑnd̥a]
- miul on vene [ˈmiul oʋ‿ˈʋene]
- varis on harmaa [ˈʋɑriz ox‿ˈxɑrmɑː]
Ala-Laukaa dialect
Labial | Dental | Postalveolar/ Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plosive | p /p/ | b /b/ | t /t/ | d /d/ | k /k/ | g /ɡ/ | |||
Nasal | m /m/ | n /n/ | /ŋ/ | ||||||
Fricative | f /f/ | s /s/ | z /z/ | š /ʃ/ | ž /ʒ/ | h /h/ | |||
Lateral | l /l/ | ||||||||
Trill | r /r/ | ||||||||
Affricate | ts /t͡s/ | c /t͡ʃ/ | |||||||
Approximant | v /ʋ/ | j /j/ |
- The velar nasal /ŋ/ only appears before the plosive /k/ (written ⟨nk⟩) or /ɡ/ (written ⟨ng⟩)
- /t͡s/ may be realised as the consonant cluster [ts].
- /t͡s/ sometimes corresponds to Soikkola /t͡ʃ/ and is thus written ⟨c⟩: compare mancikka (Soikkola /ˈmɑnt͡ʃikːɑ/, Ala-Laukaa /ˈmɑnt͡sikːə/).
Palatalisation
In the Ala-Laukaa dialect, phonetic palatalisation of consonants in native words occurs first of all before the vowels {y, i} and the approximant /j/:[1]
- tyttö [ˈtʲytːø̆] ("girl"); compare Soikkola [ˈtytːøi̯] and Standard Finnish [ˈt̪yt̪ːø̞].
The palatalised /t/ and /k/ may both be realised as [c] by some speakers. Furthermore, palatalisation before /y(ː)/ and /i(ː)/ that have developed from an earlier */ø/ or */e/ respectively is rare:
- töö [ˈtøː] ~ [ˈtyø̯] ~ [ˈtyː] ("you (plural)")
The cluster ⟨lj⟩ is realised as a long palatalised consonant in the Ala-Laukaa dialect:[7]
- neljä [ˈnelʲː(ə)] ("four"); compare Soikkola [ˈneljæ]
- paljo [ˈpɑlʲːŏ] ("many"); compare Soikkola [ˈpɑljo]
- kiljua [ˈkilʲːo] ("to shout"); compare Standard Finnish [ˈkiljuɑ]
These same phenomena are noticed in the extinct Ylä-Laukaa dialect:[7]
- tyttö [ˈtʲytːøi̯] ("girl")
- neljä [ˈnelʲːæ] ("four")
Sibilant voicing
At the end of a word, the sibilant ⟨s⟩ is voiced:
- lammas [ˈlɑmːəz] ("sheep")
- mees [ˈmeːz] ("man")
Like in the Soikkola dialect, when preceding a word beginning with a voiceless stop, this sibilant is again devoiced:
- lammas pellool [ˈlɑmːəs‿ˈpelolː(ə)]
- mees kyläs [ˈmeːs‿ˈkylæsː(ə)]
Prosody
Stress
Stress in Ingrian falls on the first syllable in native words, but may be shifted in loanwords. An exception is the word paraikaa (/pɑrˈɑi̯kɑː/, "now"), where the stress falls on the second syllable. Secondary stress falls on odd-numbered syllables or occurs as a result of compounding and is not phonemic.[1][5]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h N. V. Kuznetsova (2009). Фонологические системы Ижорских диалектов [The phonological systems of the Ingrian dialects]. Institute for Linguistic Studies (dissertation).
- ^ a b c d e V. I. Junus (1936). Iƶoran Keelen Grammatikka [The grammar of the Ingrian language]. Riikin Ucebno-pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva.
- ^ A. Laanest (1966). "Ижорский Язык". Финно-Угорские и Самодийские языки. Языки народов мира. pp. 102–117.
- ^ a b c d e N. V. Kuznetsova (2015). "Две фонологические редкости Ижорского языка" [Two phonological rarities of the Ingrian language]. Acta Linguistica Petropolitana. XI (2).
- ^ a b c O. I. Konkova; N. A. D'jachinkov (2014). Inkeroin Keel: Пособие по Ижорскому Языку. Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography .
- ^ F. I. Rozhanskij (2010). "Ижорский язык: Проблема определения границ в условиях языкового континуума". Вопросы языкознания: 74–93. ISSN 0373-658X.
- ^ a b c d e f R. E. Nirvi (1971). Inkeroismurteiden sanakirja [Dictionary of the Ingrian dialects].
- v
- t
- e
- Phonologies
- Orthographies
- Grammars
- Adjectives
- Determiners
- Nouns
- Prepositions
- Pronouns
- Verbs
- Faroese
- Finnish
- French
- Galician
- German
- Greek
- Greenlandic
- Gujarati
- Hawaiian
- Hebrew (Modern)
- Hindustani
- Hungarian
- Icelandic
- Ingrian
- Inuit
- Irish
- Italian
- Japanese
- Kiowa
- Konkani
- Korean
- Kurdish
- Kyrgyz
- Latgalian
- Latin
- Latvian
- Limburgish
- Lithuanian
- Luxembourgish