[h]→[ɕ]Certainty: 4/5Commonality: 3/5

Palatalization Niger-Congo Fricative Kwa

Voiceless glottal fricative to Voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative

The voiceless glottal fricative /h/ can undergo palatalization to the voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative /ɕ/ in certain phonetic environments. This sound change involves a shift in the place of articulation from the glottis to the alveolo-palatal region, typically triggered by the presence of a following front vowel.

Phonetic Effects

Palatalization, Change in Place of Articulation

Language Examples

Asante Twi Kwa

hia→hyia— In Asante Twi, the /h/ in words like 'hia' (to meet, from Bono dialect) palatalizes to /ɕ/ before the high front vowel /i/, resulting in 'hyia'. The 'hy' orthography represents the /ɕ/ sound.

Related Transformations

Reverse

More Palatalization Shifts

[b] → [bʲ] — Palatalization [dʲ] → [dʒ] — Affrication [d] → [dʲ] — Palatalization [d] → [dʒ] — Palatalization [d] → [dʑ] — Palatalization

Sources & References

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