Back to Matrix [g] → [kʰ] Edit this Data

[kʰ]→[g]Certainty: 4/5Commonality: 5/5

Voiceless aspirated velar plosive to Voiced velar plosive

The transformation from a voiceless aspirated velar plosive (kʰ) to a voiced velar plosive (g) is a classic example of lenition, a sound change that 'weakens' consonants. This shift involves two primary phonetic effects: the loss of aspiration (deaspiration) and the onset of vocal cord vibration (voicing). It typically occurs in specific phonological environments, such as intervocalically, where the consonant is surrounded by voiced sounds, making it more susceptible to voicing.

Phonetic Effects

Deaspiration, Voicing, Lenition

Language Examples

Welsh Celtic

/k/→[g]— In Welsh, the initial /k/ of a word like 'cath' (cat) changes to [g] in 'y gath' (the cat) due to a consonant mutation historically rooted in intervocalic lenition. While the source specifies /k/ to [g], the aspiration inherent in many initial voiceless stops would be lost in this voicing process.

Related Transformations

Reverse

More Lenition Shifts

[a] → [∅] — Elision [b] → [v] — Spirantization [tɕ] → [ʃ] — De-affrication [tɕ] → [ɕ] — Lenition [d] → [∅] — Elision

Sources & References

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