[ɴ]→[∅]Certainty: 4/5Commonality: 3/5
Uvular nasal to Empty sound / Zero
The uvular nasal, often an allophonic realization of the velar nasal in certain phonetic environments (such as before back vowels), can undergo complete deletion, particularly in word-initial or onset positions. This process represents a form of lenition, where a consonant is weakened to the point of disappearance.
Phonetic Effects
Lenition, Consonant Deletion
Language Examples
[ɴa4]→[a4]— Deletion of the historical onset nasal, which can be realized as a uvular nasal, in words like 'teeth'.
[ɴan5]→[an5]— Deletion of the historical onset nasal, which can be realized as a uvular nasal, in words like 'eye'.
Related Transformations
More Lenition Shifts
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