Öshri phonology

This article details the phonology of Öshri.

### Diphthongs

Diphthongs occur with the dropping of intervocalic /b,d/ as well as /ɣ/ between two identical vowels. Some emerge through affixation, as in thout. However, certain combinations produce a hiatus instead.

Regular diphthongs appear in orange (this also accounts for any reduction of close vowels into near-close non-syllabic vowels). Other diphthongs, in red, show assimilation or reversal. The hiatuses are in green, and may turn near-close vowels into fully close vowels. The cells in grey yield tones (see #Tones).

Diphthongs cannot occur with tonal vowels. For example, zhrepedhodel has a dipththong /xɾeˈpʰeðwel/ whereas zhrepedhoodel is pronounced with a hiatus /xɾe.pʰe.ˈðó.el/.

### Phonological diachrony

The following are the sound changes from  Proto-Öshri to  Öshri .

* **C** = any consonant
* **V** = any vowel
* **R** = rounded vowel
* **U** = unrounded vowel
* **W** = V - /i/
* **N** = m,n
* **G** = glide
* **P** = plosive consonant
* **K** = voiceless consonant

* e[-s] → i // \_**N**
* eʕ → uː / [+s]
* m# → ∅
* eʕ → ɯ
* eː → e
* oː → ow / \_**C**
* a → i / \_s|\_x [-s]
* s(e,i)r → ʒ(ə̆)r
* s(e,i)r̥ → ʃ(ə̆)r
* ɯ → ə / poststress
* o → ø / **V**\_ [-s]
* o → ə / [-s]
* e,a → ə / r(**G**)\_
* u(ː) → ɨ(ː) → y(ː) / [-s]
* ew → ø / [+s]
* wa, we → u / **V**\_
* wi, wa → yː, uː
* w → ɸ → f / \_**K** [+s]
* b → βˤ / r(**G**)\_|\_ə
* uʕ → βˤ / \_**V**
* ʕ → βˤ / \_**R**|\_ɯ
* ʕ → zˤ / \_**U**|\_ə
* ʕ# → m / a\_|o\_|u\_
* ʕ → ə / **V**\_**C**
* w#, j# → βˤ, zˤ
* m# → βˤ / u\_
* ə → ∅ / #\_**CCV**ː
* ə → e / \_**N**
* ə → ɯ / \_r
* si / ? / **V**\_
* s → x / (#,**V**)\_**W** [-κ]
* x → x / \_**P** (yielding ‹sh› instead of ‹h›)
* ʒ → d͡ʒ / \_**V**[+s] / \_**G**
* r → ʒ / \_i [+s]
* d# → r
* k → x / \_l
* l → ɾ → r / \_**V** [+s] (sporadic)
* l → ∅ / \_**CC**
* (n)dj,(n)tj → d͡ʒ
* d͡ʒ → t͡ʃ / \_**K**
* ts,tx,fs → sj,zj,f / \_**N**
* ts,tx,fs → s,x,f / \_**C**
* ts,tx,fs → tj
* f → ∅ / #\_
* **V** → **V**ː / [light]\_ [+s]

Harmonising Vs come from /ə/.

These additional sound changes apply beforehand to words derived from  Proto-Ov .

* **C** = any consonant
* **K** = voiceless consonant
* **V** = any vowel
* **B** = back vowel

* ŋ → k / \_**K**
* kʰ → x / \_**V**
* pʰ → f / \_**V**
* tʰ → s / \_**V**
* **C**,**C**ʰ → **C**
* je → ī / [-κ]
* i~j → ʒ / \_**V** / ɹ\_
* ʒ → s / [must unvoice]
* ɨ → ɯ
* eː → iː
* a → ɑ → o / \_l|\_r
* ao,eo → aʕ,eʕ
* l → a / **B**\_
* o → w / \_**V**
* qm → βˠ
* qn → zˠ
* q,χ → x
* ɹ → ʒ / \_i|\_e
* ɹ → f / **C**\_
* **V**ɹ → **V**ː
* ɹ → z
* **V** → **V**ː / \_**V**

#### Etymological spelling base

This is the spelling of Middle Öshri as it was still fully phonetic, and what the current orthography directly derived from.

* ‹a› /a/
* ‹ë› /ɯ/
* ‹ö› /ø/
* ‹b› /b/
* ‹d› /d/
* ‹dj› (mod. ‹dh›) /d͡ʒ/
* ‹e› /e/
* ‹f› /f/
* ‹g› /g/
* ‹h› /x/
* ‹i› /i/
* ‹k› (mod. ‹c›) /k/
* ‹l› /l/
* ‹m› /m/
* ‹ḅ› (mod. ‹mh›) /βˤ/
* ‹n› /n/
* ‹ḍ› (mod. ‹nh›) /zˤ/
* ‹o› /o/
* ‹p› /p/
* ‹r› /r/
* ‹rh› /r̥/
* ‹s› /s/
* ‹sj› (mod. ‹sh›) /ʃ/
* ‹t› /t/
* ‹tj› (mod. ‹th›) /t͡ʃ/
* ‹u› /u/
* ‹z› /z/
* ‹zj› (mod. ‹zh›) /ʒ/
* ‹ā› /aː/
* ‹ī› /iː/
* ‹ū› /uː/
* ‹y› (mod. ‹i›) /y/
* ‹ȳ› (mod. ‹ü›) /yː/

Final ‹h› was later dropped, as well as ‹m› and ‹n› before a fricative. Most of the time, /p,t,k/ in N\_# are protected and nowadays written as ‹b,d,g› so as to show the sound are unchanged (see  Proto-Öshri *\*bənt* → mhend); on exceptions, they become ‹f,s,sr› (see  Proto-Öshri *\*bənt* → mhensnëhus). There is also a later Vw → ? / **CC**\_, yielding for example *shneu* instead of the expected *\*shnöde*, from *\*tsnewdem*.

## Orthography

1. Dialectally /ɨ/ or /ʌɪ̯/.
2. Dialectally /ø:/ or /æʊ̯/.
3. Dialectally /y:/ or /iʊ̯/.
4. /ɾʼ/ in the dialects that have ‹rh› as /ɾ/ or /r/.
5. Dialectally /ɾ/, /r/, /r̥/, /ʃ/ or /ð/.
6. Dialectally /ʂ/.
7. Dialectally /ʐ/.
8. Dialectally /ʊə̯/.
9. Dialectally /ɪə̯/.

The digraphs ‹eu› /o/ and ‹ao› /ɐ:/ may appear in the reloaned forms from Old Öshri in field-specific lexica.

The middle dot is used to avoid <V̄V> structures. Thus, we have hlī·si instead of \**hlīisi*. Historically, the middle dot was used as a separator (see the earlier *hlī·isi*) and not as part of a grapheme. The middle dot cannot be used word-finally; thus, ‹nh› or ‹mh› is used instead, as in -ūmh /û/.

Öshri has undergone a popular spelling reform in 1927 that led to its being almost entirely phonetic. However, the Thousand Flower War started in 1937 saw the reinstatement of the traditional orthography in 1939 as a sign of the new regime's prestige. When it was overthrowned in 1949, the return to the traditional orthography was not abolished and changes planned in the educational's system were postponed due to the administrative turmoil that was going on, and never ended up applied. Thus the traditional spelling kept on being taught, and only a few populary adopted words like gūiu survive in today's vocabulary.

## Allophony

Some relevant extent of allophony, related to the orthography of the language being etymological, is used throughout this wiki's phonological transcription.

### Consonants

Digraphs ‹nh› /ʒ/ and ‹mh› /ɣ/ can yield one another's sound [ɣ] and [ʒ] if placed respectively before a back or front vowel.

All word-final plosives undergo an allophonic shift: voiceless plosives turn into fricatives (zhrep [xɾef], shret [xɾes], gac [gɐʃ]), except if they are preceded by a fricative (see odacst [wɐkʰstʰ]) and voiced plosives become voiceless plosives (thgūib [θkʰuːɪ̯p], umhud [út], löug [løʊ̯k]).

Voiced /g/ becomes [h] intervocalically (mīgor /miːhoɾ/). Voiced plosives /b,d/ disappear intervocalically, as well as /ɣ/ but only if the same vowel is on either side of it, yielding a diphthong (zhibü /fjy/, rudis /ɾʊʏ̯s/) or a tonal vowel if it is the same one on either part of the consonant, as is always the case with /ɣ/ (umhud /út/, umhudu /ǔ/, see below). In conservative dialects without tones, intervocalic /b,d,g,ɣ/ emerge as [β,ð,ɣ,ɣ], or [β,ð,ɣ,j] before front vowels.

Although ‹sh› and ‹zh› both produce /x/, they do not share the same allophones. The former yields [f] in contact with a front vowel and becomes silent before a consonant (except at the beginning of a word), whereas the latter becomes [h] before a consonant (although nowadays this outcome tends to become silent as well) except at the beginning of a word.

The digraph ‹hl› produces [ɬ].

### Vowels

There are a few instances of vowel-lengthening allophony, such as ‹g› being silent in V\_rV (see mhogrung /ɣoːɾʊŋk/) as well as ‹mh› and ‹nh› word-finally (see thamh /θɐː/ and renh /ɾeː/).

Tonal /ɐ,ɪ,ʊ/ occur as [a,i,u].

### Assimilation

Clusters ‹zhr› and ‹shr› produce [ʒ], dialectally [r̥], [ʃ] or [ð], except at the beginning of a word. The cluster ‹sr› produces [ʃ]. The cluster ‹rl› simplifies into /ɾ/, or /ɾʼ/ in the dialects that have it.

A voiced consonant in contact with a voiceless one, regardless of either one's mode of articulation, will always assimilate into the latter. Thus, gusdüb is pronounced as [ˈgʊs.typ]. However, note that normally voiced plosives do not aspirate when assimilated into a voiceless consonant.

## Tones

Öshri developped tones as a replacement strategy for repetitive syllables with the same vowel, that could go up to /VːVːVːVː/ (e.g. /e:e:e:/), partly because pure and triangular harmonies often feed those into words where /b,d,g/ are entirely dropped intervocalically, as well as /ɣ/ between the same two vowels.

The language now has a set of three tones: V(ː)V(ː)V(ː) clusters inherited a rising tone /V̌/, smaller V(ː)V(ː) clusters now have a falling tone /V̂/ and simple VV clusters now use a plain high tone /V́/ equivalent to a very prominent and conditional kind of stress (see #Stress). Keep in mind that V here is one single vowel assuming a given cluster.

Assuming H as a high tone, R as a rising tone and D as a falling tone, it is important to keep in mind that HC(C)H becomes DC(C)H, meaning for example that *doboröböd* (talk-VOLT.3) does not yield \*/dóɾǿt/ but /dôɾǿt/.

None of the dialects that retained voiced intervocalic plosives underwent tonogenesis. Some that dropped those consonants use a three-way distinction between short, long and overlong vowels.

#### Diachrony

Öshri's tonogenesis is peculiar in that it was caused only by the dropping of intervocalic sounds that gave rise to long, overlong, and twice overlong vowels reinterpreted through pitch. The diachrony of *dūrībīdīb* (think-VOLT.3PL) highlights the genesis of the phenomenon.

/duːriːbiːdiːb > duːɾiːðiːβiːp > duːɾiːíːiː > duːɾiːíː > duːɾǐ/

Diachronically, V(:)V(:)V(:)V(:) clusters had a falling-rising tone which was merged with the descending tone /V̂/ derived from VːV(ː) clusters.

Note that V:V clusters emerging on morphological grounds (and not phonological grounds) are simplified to /V́/ instead of /V̂/. Thus hū /huː/ does not yield \**hū·l* \*/hûl/ (standard respelling of \**hūul*) in its definite form, but *huul* /húl/; conversely,  Proto-Öshri *\*klī'si* becomes  Öshri *hlī·si* /ˈɬî.sɪ/.

#### Dialectal studies

Due to the consequent variations in size for the historic vowel clusters that were reduced into tones, the length of the tonal vowel varies dialectally as well as its exact height. However, the transcriptions used in this wiki are quite common and mostly consistent with the dialectal tendencies. The percentages in the table below show the proportion of the population that used a given specific tone according to a 2017 study conducted on 10,283 Oshri speakers of diverse dialects.

### Stress

Historically, Öshri words were stressed on the final syllable, except any inflected form that had penultimate stress if beginning with an open syllable (light), and initial stress if beginning with a closed syllable (heavy). The prominence of Öshri tones gradually transformed the intensity accent into pitch accent. However, toneless words retain only an intensity accent.

Words without a distinctive tone are stressed on the penultimate syllable, but it is final if the final syllable is heavy. Heavy syllables are syllables with a triphthong (see zhrepedhoödel /xɾepʰeˈðoʏ̯el/) or a long vowel (diphthongs do not yield heavy syllables – see zhrepedhodel /xɾeˈpʰeðwel/, which is regularly stressed). In null-derived pairs of a noun and a verb, this rule does not apply to the noun, which is differenciated from its homophone this way (see fithlūn).

In certain minority dialects, /V²/ is heard in stressed syllables to retain the distinction with /V́/ realized as /V³/. Some dialects seemed to have had stress as /V⁴/ and /V́/ as /V³/, causing stress versus high tone reversion, but only a few studies brought this up in the 1940s and 1950s; should this distinction ever have been relevant, it is now extinct. Most dialects with /V́/ realized as /V³/ undergo stress and high tone merger, sometimes analysed as high tone dropping.

## Vowel harmony

### Diachrony

Öshri vowel harmony is horizontal, meaning it causes aperture harmonisation, unlike Turkic and Finnic vowel harmonies that are vertical with a harmonisation of the point of articulation and/or rounding. The apparent orthographic discrepancy in Öshri can be explained diachronically.

#### Old Öshri

In Old Öshri, the vowel harmony was almost fully functional, with the exception of /ao̯ ~ ɑː/ that stood alone. /eu̯/ had earlier simplified to a single vowel, shifting to /ʌ/ and enabling its harmonisation with /e/, but the aforementioned /ao̯ ~ ɑː/ hadn't undergone the full shift yet.

Some later modifications in the vocalic system of the language lead to some simplification of the harmony.

#### Middle Öshri

The Middle Öshri vowel harmony has /ao̯ ~ ɑː/ shift to /ɐː/, which is still out of harmony. /æ/ also came out of harmony as it merged with /a ~ ɑ/ into /ɐ/ (harmonising is now entirely regular). /ʌ/ merged into /o/ and both are now spelled ‹o›, causing /e/ to switch its harmony group (former harmony was e>ʌ, whereas the new harmony is e>o). The same phenomenon occurred with the merging of /ɯ/ into /u/, except that the spelling was retained: nowadays, both ‹ë› and ‹u› are /u/ and the harmony is retained graphically, albeit not phonetically.

Upon reading the second chart, mind the shift of ‹y,ȳ› /y,yː/ to ‹i,ü› /i,y/.

### Synchrony

Harmony will apply to certain suffixes. They usually comprise a dummy vowel represented by V (as in -shpVr or -Vb) which will be replaced by the right vowel depending on the type of harmony and the preceding vowel. The lexicon entries specify which harmony each affix falls under.

In practice, there are three types of vowel harmony. Different paradigms or affixes may apply different harmony. Examples from the masculine root zhibü are provided below.

* -gVng, an adjectival ending equivalent to ”-like”, applies reciprocal harmony, which turns *zhibü* into *zhibügung*, “cat-like”.
* -rVng, the instrumental marker, applies triangular harmony, which turns *zhibü* into *zhibüring*.
* -shpVr, an adjectival ending denoting a quality, applies pure harmony, which turns *zhibü* into *zhibüshpür*.

Certain affixes have two harmonising vowels, such as -VᴾdhVᴿ.

Harmony may distinguish between seemingly identical affixes. For example, -shpVrᴾ is the affix mentioned above, whereas -shpVrᵀ is the dative marker, with *zhibüshpir* meaning ”for cat”.

In this wiki, the type of harmony is given with a superscript uppercase letter as seen in the subheadings below.

#### Reciprocal harmony (ᴿ)

The reciprocal vowel will apply to the ending.

* i → ë
* ī → ū
* ü → u
* e,ö → o
* ë → i
* u → ü
* ū → i
* o → e
* a,ā → a

#### Triangular harmony (ᵀ)

One of three vowels will be used depending on the preceding vowel.

* (e,ö,ü,ī,i) → i
* (o,ë,u,ū) → u
* a,ā → a

#### Pure harmony (ᴾ)

The last vowel will be reused.

* i → i
* ü → ü
* ī → ī
* e → o
* ö → ö
* ë → ë
* u → u
* ū → ū
* o → o
* a,ā → a

Note that reproducing vowel length in the pure harmony is becoming obsolete in younger generations.

## Consonantal mutations

There are five types of consonantal mutations applying to the initial consonant of a word (if any) similarly to vowel harmony under various morphological contexts.

This wiki uses custom glosses for each mutations, indicated here in the subheading.

### Softening (MUTS)

* n,l > l
* p > b
* t > d
* c > g
* th > dh
* s > z
* sh,zh > h

### Fronting (MUTF)

* n > m
* p,b > u
* th,dh > ∅
* c,g > t,d
* t,d > p,b
* s,z,sh,zh > th,dh
* l > r

### H-bound (MUTH)

* c,g,s,z > h
* th,dh > sh,zh
* t,d > th,dh
* m,n,r,l > hm,hn,hl,hr

### Nasal (MUTN)

* c,g,sh,zh > h
* th,dh > tn,dn
* t,d,s,z,l,r > nt,nd,nz,nz,nl,nr
* p,b,m,n > mb,mb,mm,nn
* h > hn

### Prothetic (MUTP)

* m,n > tm,pn
* p,b > shp
* t,d > ct,gd
* c,g > nc,ng
* s,z,sh,zh > ts,dz,tsh,dzh
* th,dh > cth,gdh