ħ
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Translingual
Pronunciation
IPA (file)
Symbol
ħ
- (IPA) voiceless pharyngeal fricative.
- Dirac constant (pronounced "aitch-bar", sometimes written as h-bar or hbar)
Maltese
Pronunciation
- (phoneme) IPA(key): /ħ/
Letter
ħ (upper case Ħ)
Usage notes
- Maltese ħ continues Arabic ح (ḥ) and خ (ḵ). In the early 19th century, the two phonemes were apparently still distinguished as /ħ/ and /χ/ respectively. Soon afterwards, however, they were merged into one phoneme /ħ/. This is the phonological system on which Maltese spelling is based.
- In contemporary Maltese, the letter ħ represents /ħ/ in all positions. Chiefly word-finally, the same phoneme may also be represented by għ or h. The actual realisation varies (by position and dialect) between [χ], [ħ], and [h]. This variation is purely allophonic.
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