Voiced dental, alveolar and postalveolar nasals

The voiced alveolar nasal is a type of consonantal sound used in numerous spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental, alveolar, and postalveolar nasals is ⟨n⟩, and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is n.

For consonants followed by superscript ⁿ, see Nasal release.
"Alveolar nasal" redirects here. For the voiceless consonant, see Voiceless alveolar nasal.
Voiced alveolar nasal
n
IPA Number116
Audio sample
source · help
Encoding
Entity (decimal)n
Unicode (hex)U+006E
X-SAMPAn
Braille⠝ (braille pattern dots-1345)

The vast majority of languages have either an alveolar or dental nasal. There are a few languages that lack either sound but have [m], such as Yoruba, Palauan, and colloquial Samoan (however, these languages all have [ŋ]. An example of a language without [n] and [ŋ] is Edo). There are some languages (e.g. Rotokas) that lack both [m] and [n].

True dental consonants are relatively uncommon. In the Romance, Dravidian, and Australian languages, n is often called "dental" in the literature. However, the rearmost contact, which gives a consonant its distinctive sound, is actually alveolar or denti-alveolar. The difference between the Romance languages and English is not so much where the tongue contacts the roof of the mouth but the part of the tongue that makes contact. In English, it is the tip of the tongue (such sounds are termed apical), but in the Romance languages, it is the flat of the tongue just above the tip (such sounds are called laminal).

However, there are languages with true apical (or less commonly laminal) dental n. It is found in the Mapuche language of South America, where it is actually interdental. A true dental generally occurs allophonically before /θ/ in the languages that have it, as in English tenth. Similarly, a denti-alveolar allophone occurs in languages that have denti-alveolar stops, as in Spanish cinta.

Some languages contrast laminal denti-alveolar and apical alveolar nasals. For example, in the Malayalam pronunciation of Nārāyanan, the first n is dental, the second is retroflex, and the third alveolar.

A postalveolar nasal occurs in a number of Australian Aboriginal languages, including Djeebbana and Jingulu.[1]

Features

Features of the voiced alveolar nasal:

  • Its manner of articulation is occlusive, which means it is produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract. Because the consonant is also nasal, the blocked airflow is redirected through the nose.
  • There are four specific variants of [n]:
    • Dental, which means it is articulated with either the tip or the blade of the tongue at the upper teeth, termed respectively apical and laminal.
    • Denti-alveolar, which means it is articulated with the blade of the tongue at the alveolar ridge, and the tip of the tongue behind upper teeth.
    • Alveolar, which means it is articulated with either the tip or the blade of the tongue at the alveolar ridge, termed respectively apical and laminal.
    • Postalveolar, which means it is articulated with either the tip or the blade of the tongue behind the alveolar ridge, termed respectively apical and laminal.
  • Its phonation is voiced, which means the vocal cords vibrate during the articulation.
  • It is a nasal consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the nose, either exclusively (nasal stops) or in addition to through the mouth.
  • It is a central consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.
  • The airstream mechanism is pulmonic, which means it is articulated by pushing air solely with the intercostal muscles and diaphragm, as in most sounds.

Occurrence

Dental or denti-alveolar
LanguageWordIPAMeaningNotes
Belarusian[2]новы/novy[ˈn̪ovɨ]'new'Laminal denti-alveolar. Contrasts with palatalized form. See Belarusian phonology
Bulgarian[3]жена/žena[ʒɛˈn̪a]'woman'Laminal denti-alveolar.
Catalan[4]cantar[kɐ̃n̪ˈt̪ɑ(ɾ)]'to sing'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /n/ before /t, d/.[4] See Catalan phonology
Chuvash шăна/šăna [ʃɒn̪a] 'a fly'
DutchBelgiannicht[n̻ɪxt̻]'niece'Laminal denti-alveolar, sometimes simply alveolar. See Dutch phonology
Englishmonth[mʌn̪θ]'month'Interdental. Allophone of /n/ before /θ, ð/.
EsperantoEsperanto[espeˈran̪t̪o]'one who hopes'See Esperanto phonology
Finnish[5]ranta[ˈran̪t̪a]'beach'Allophone of /n/ before /t̪/.
French[6]connexion[kɔn̻ɛksjɔ̃]'connection'Laminal denti-alveolar, sometimes simply alveolar. See French phonology
Greek[7]άνθος/ánthos[ˈɐn̪θo̞s]'flower'Interdental. Allophone of /n/. See Modern Greek phonology
Hindustani Hindi नया / najā [n̪əjaː] 'new' See Hindi–Urdu phonology
Urdu نیا / najā
Hungarian[8]nagyi[ˈn̪ɒɟi]'grandma'Laminal denti-alveolar. See Hungarian phonology
Italian[9][10]cantare[kän̪ˈt̪äːre]'to sing'Laminal denti-alveolar.[10] Allophone of /n/ before /t, d, s, z, t͡s, d͡z/.[9][10] See Italian phonology
Irishnaoi[n̪ˠɰiː]'nine'Velarized.
Japanese 涙/namida [n̪ämʲid̪ä] 'tear' Laminal denti-alveolar. See Japanese phonology
Kashubiannaprësk[n̪aprəsk]'shower'Laminal denti-alveolar.[11]
Kazakhкөрінді/körindi[kœɾɪn̪d̪ɪ]'it seemed'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /n/ before /t, d/.
Kyrgyzбеделинде/bedelinde[be̞d̪e̞lin̪d̪e̞]'in the authority'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /n/ before /t, d/.
Latvian[12]nakts[n̪äkt̪s̪]'night'Laminal denti-alveolar. See Latvian phonology
Macedonian[13]нос/nos[n̪o̞s̪]'nose'Laminal denti-alveolar. See Macedonian phonology
Malayalamപന്നി/panni[pɐn̪ːi]'pig'Interdental for some speakers. See Malayalam phonology
Mapudungun[14]müṉa[mɘ̝ˈn̪ɐ̝]'male cousin on father's side'Interdental.[14]
Marathi नख/nakh [n̪əkʰ] 'fingernail' See Marathi phonology
Nepali सुगन्ध [suˈɡʌn̪d̪ʱʌ] 'fraɡrance' Allophone of /n/ in neighbourhood of /t̪, t̪ʰ, d̪, d̪ʱ/.
Polish[15]nos[n̪ɔs̪]'nose'Laminal denti-alveolar. Alveolar before /t͡ʂ, d͡ʐ/. See Polish phonology
PortugueseGeneral[16][17]narina[n̻ɐˈɾin̻ɐ]'nostril'Laminal denti-alveolar. May nasalize preceding vowel (especially if stressed). Has [ɲ̟] as allophone, forming from clusters with [j], and before /i/.
Vernacular Paulista[18][19]percebendo[pe̞ʁse̞ˈbẽn̻u]'perceiving'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /d/ after a stressed nasal vowel in more stigmatized varieties. See Portuguese phonology
Romanian[20]alună[äˈl̪un̪ə]'hazelnut'Laminal denti-alveolar. See Romanian phonology
Russianнаш/nash[n̪aʂ]'our'Laminal denti-alveolar, contrasts with palatalized form. See Russian phonology
Serbo-Croatianстудент / student[s̪t̪ǔd̪e̞n̪t̪]'student'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /n/ before /t, d, s, z, t͡s/. See Serbo-Croatian phonology
Sloveneprevarant[pɾeʋaˈɾǎːn̪t̪]'con artist'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /n/ before /t, d, s, z, t͡s/. See Slovene phonology
SpanishMost dialectscantar[kän̪ˈt̪är]'to sing'Laminal denti-alveolar. Allophone of /n/ before /t, d/. See Spanish phonology
Tamilநாடு/nāḍu[n̪ɑːɖɯ]'country'See Tamil phonology
Teluguనములుట[n̪amu]'To chew'Occurs as an allophone of anuswara when followed by dental stops.
Ukrainian[21]наш/nash[n̪ɑʃ]'our'Laminal denti-alveolar, contrasts with palatalized form. See Ukrainian phonology
Uzbek[22]Laminal denti-alveolar.

Alveolar
LanguageWordIPAMeaningNotes
Adygheнэфнэ/nėfnė[nafna]'light'
ArabicStandardنور/nūr[nuːr]'light'See Arabic phonology
Assyrianܢܘܪܐ nōra[noːɾaː]'mirror'
Basqueni[ni]'I'
Bengaliনাক/naak/nāk[naːk]'nose'See Bengali phonology
Catalan[23]neu[ˈneʊ̯]'snow'See Catalan phonology
ChineseMandarin難/nán[nan˧˥]'difficult'See Mandarin phonology
Czechna[na]'on'See Czech phonology
Dutch[24]nacht[nɑxt]'night'See Dutch phonology
Englishnice[naɪs]ⓘ'nice'See English phonology
Finnishannan[ˈɑnːɑn]'I give'See Finnish phonology
Germanfünf[fʏnf]'five'See German phonology
Georgian[25]კანი/k'ani[ˈkʼɑni]'skin'
Greekνάμα/náma[ˈnama]'communion wine'See Modern Greek phonology
Gujaratiનહી/nahi[nəhi]'no'See Gujarati phonology
Hawaiian[26]naka[naka]'to shake'See Hawaiian phonology
Hebrewנבון/navon[navon]'wise'See Modern Hebrew phonology
Italian[27]nano[ˈnäːno]'dwarf'See Italian phonology
Irishbinn[bʲiːnʲ]'peak'Palatalized.
Khmerនគរ nôkôr[nɔkɔː]'kingdom'See Khmer phonology
Korean나라/nara[nɐɾɐ]'Country'See Korean phonology
Kurdish Northern giyanewer [ˈgʲɪjä:ˈnɛwɛˈɾ] 'animal' See Kurdish phonology
Central گیانلەبەر/gîyânlabar [ˈgʲiːäːnˈlæbæˈɾ]
Southern [ˈgʲiːäːnˈlabaˈɾ]
Kyrgyz[28]банан/banan[baˈnan]'banana'
Malaynasi[näsi]'cooked rice'
Malayalamആന[äːn]'elephant'See Malayalam phonology
Malteselenbuba[lenbuˈba]'truncheon'
Mapudungun[14]müna[mɘ̝ˈnɐ̝]'enough'
NgweMmockngie dialect[nøɣə̀]'sun'
Nepali नक्कल/nakkal [nʌkːʌl] 'imitation' See Nepali phonology
Odiaନାକ/nāka[näkɔ]'nose'
Persian نون/nun [nun] 'bread'
Pirahãgíxai[níˈʔàì̯]'you'
Polish[15]poncz[ˈpɔn̥t͡ʂ]'punch'Allophone of /n/ (which is normally laminal denti-alveolar [n̪]) before /t͡ʂ, d͡ʐ/. See Polish phonology
Punjabiਨੱਕ/nakk[nəkː]'nose'
Slovakna[nä]'on'
Slovene[29] Commonnovice[noˈʋìːt̪͡s̪ɛ́]'news'
Some speakers konj [ˈkɔ̂nː] 'horse' See Slovene phonology
Spanish[30]nada[ˈnäð̞ä]'nothing'See Spanish phonology
Swahili ndizi [n̩dizi] 'banana'
Tagalognipis[nipis]'thin'Tagalog phonology
Thai นอน/non [nɔːn] 'sleep' See Thai phonology
Toki Pona noka [noka] 'foot'
Turkishneden[ne̞d̪æn]'reason'See Turkish phonology
Tamilமனசு/manasu[mʌnʌsɯ]'mind', 'heart'See Tamil phonology
Vietnamese[31]bạn đi[ɓanˀ˧˨ʔ ɗi]'you're going'Occurs only before alveolar consonants. See Vietnamese phonology
Welshnain[nain]'grandmother'See Welsh phonology
Western Apachenon[nòn]ⓘ'cache'
West Frisiannekke[ˈnɛkə]'neck'
Yiꆅ/na[na˧ ]'hurt'
ZapotecTilquiapan[32]nanɨɨ[nanɨˀɨ]'lady'contrasts with a fortis alveolar nasal that is not represented in the orthography.

Postalveolar
See also: Retroflex nasal
LanguageWordIPAMeaningNotes
Catalan[4]panxa['pän̠ɕə][33]'belly'Allophone of /n/ before /ʃ, ʒ, t͡ʃ, d͡ʒ/, may be alveolo-palatal instead.[4] See Catalan phonology
Djeebbana[34]barnmarramarlón̠a[ban̠maramal̠ɔn̪a]'they two swam'Result of rhotic plus alveolar [n].[34]
EnglishAustralian[35]enrol[əṉˈɹ̠ɔo̯ɫ]'enrol'Allophone of /n/ before /r/.[35] See Australian English phonology
Italian[36]angelo[ˈän̠ʲːd͡ʒelo]'angel'Palatalized laminal; allophone of /n/ before /ʃ, t͡ʃ, d͡ʒ/.[36] See Italian phonology

Variable
LanguageWordIPAMeaningNotes
EnglishScottish[37]nice[nəis]'nice'

Laminal denti-alveolar for some speakers, alveolar for other speakers.[37][38]

Welsh[38]
GermanStandard[39]Lanze[ˈlant͡sə]'lance'Varies between laminal denti-alveolar, laminal alveolar and apical alveolar.[39] See Standard German phonology
NorwegianUrban East[40]mann[mɑn̻ː]'man'Varies between laminal denti-alveolar and laminal alveolar.[40] See Norwegian phonology
SwedishCentral Standard[41]nu[nʉ̟ː]'now'Varies between laminal denti-alveolar and alveolar, with the former being predominant.[41] See Swedish phonology

See also

Notes
  1. Chadwick, Neil J. (1975). A descriptive study of the Djingili language. Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies.
  2. Padluzhny (1989), pp. 49–50.
  3. Klagstad (1958), p. 46.
  4. Rafel (1999), p. 14.
  5. Suomi, Toivanen & Ylitalo (2008), p. 29.
  6. Fougeron & Smith (1993), p. 73.
  7. Arvaniti (2007), p. 15.
  8. Siptár & Törkenczy (2000), pp. 75–76.
  9. Bertinetto & Loporcaro (2005), p. 133.
  10. Canepari (1992), p. 58.
  11. Jerzy Treder. "Fonetyka i fonologia". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04.
  12. Nau (1998), p. 6.
  13. Lunt (1952), p. 1.
  14. Sadowsky et al. (2013), pp. 88–89.
  15. Rocławski (1976), p. 136.
  16. Cruz-Ferreira (1995), p. 91.
  17. Barbosa & Albano (2004), p. 230.
  18. (in Portuguese) Unesp's digital collection – The deleting of /d/ in the morpheme of the gerund in São José do Rio Preto's accent Archived 2012-12-31 at archive.today
  19. (in Portuguese) The deletting of /d/ in the morpheme of the gerund in São José do Rio Preto's accent – PDF
  20. Chițoran (2001), p. 10.
  21. Danyenko & Vakulenko (1995), p. 10.
  22. Sjoberg (1963), p. 12.
  23. Carbonell & Llisterri (1992), p. 53.
  24. Gussenhoven (1992), p. 45.
  25. Shosted & Chikovani (2006), p. 255.
  26. Ladefoged (2005), p. 139.
  27. Rogers & d'Arcangeli (2004), p. 117.
  28. Kara (2003), p. 11.
  29. Pretnar & Tokarz (1980), p. 21.
  30. Martínez-Celdrán, Fernández-Planas & Carrera-Sabaté (2003), p. 255.
  31. Thompson (1959), pp. 458–461.
  32. Merrill (2008), p. 108.
  33. Valencian pronunciation: ['pän̠t͡ɕä]. What are transcribed /ʃ, ʒ, t͡ʃ, d͡ʒ/ in Catalan are actually alveolo-palatal sibilants [ɕ, ʑ, t͡ɕ, d͡ʑ].
  34. Dixon (2002), p. 585.
  35. Mannell, Cox & Harrington (2009).
  36. Canepari (1992), pp. 58–59.
  37. Scobbie, Gordeeva & Matthews (2006), p. 4.
  38. Wells (1982), p. 388.
  39. Mangold (2005), p. 49.
  40. Kristoffersen (2000), p. 22.
  41. Riad (2014), p. 46.

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