[g]→[j]Certainty: 5/5Commonality: 5/5

Palatalization Lenition Germanic Hellenic

Voiced velar plosive to Voiced palatal approximant

The transformation of the voiced velar plosive /g/ into the voiced palatal approximant /j/ is a widespread and well-documented sound change in many languages. This shift, primarily driven by the process of palatalization, often occurs when the velar consonant finds itself adjacent to front vowels or palatal glides. The tongue, anticipating the front articulation of the following sound, moves the point of contact forward from the velum towards the hard palate, resulting in a 'softer' palatal sound.

Phonetic Effects

Palatalization, Lenition, Weakening

Language Examples

Old English Germanic

geolu→yellow— The Old English voiced velar plosive /g/ palatalized to a voiced palatal approximant /j/ (spelled 'y') before front vowels.

Norwegian Germanic

g- (before i or ei)→j-— In Norwegian, the written 'g' is generally pronounced as a voiced palatal approximant /j/ when it precedes front vowels like 'i' or the diphthong 'ei'. For example, 'geitost' (goat cheese) is pronounced [ˈjæɪtˌʊst].

Old Dutch Germanic

/g/ (before/after i, e)→[ʝ]— Old Dutch had a palatal allophone [ʝ] (voiced palatal fricative, a close approximant to /j/) of /g/ when it occurred before or after front vowels /i/ and /e/.

Modern Greek Hellenic

/g/ (before i, e, j)→[ʝ]— In Modern Greek dialects, velar consonants, including /g/, can turn into palatal fricatives like [ʝ] before front vowels /i/ and /e/ or the high front glide /j/.

Related Transformations

Reverse

More Germanic Shifts

[a] → [ã] — Assimilatory Nasalization [a] → [∅] — Elision [a] → [ʔ] — Glottalization [a] → [ə] — Vowel Reduction [æ] → [ɛ] — Vowel Raising

Sources & References

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