tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Dec 06 21:54:36 1995

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Re: KLBC: Federation Pronunciation

ghItlh R.B Franklin

>The {'} in {'etlh}, you don't have to worry about.  In English, when you
>say a word beginning with a vowel, you normally start with a glottal stop
>(the {'} sound).
     Indeed so, but in his name, HoS'etlh, the stop is not initial.  He
should be sure to put it in, something an English speaker would not
normally do, although an Arabic speaker would have no trouble with it.

>The {tlh} is tricker because it is a sound which does not occur in
>English.  To make the sound, position the tip of your tongue on the boney
>ridge behind your upper teeth as if you are a making a "t" sound.  Make a
>puff of air while the tip of your tongue stays touching that ridge.  The
>airflow should blow out on both sides of the tongue, making a sudden
>hissing sound.
>It's not a very hard sound to make.  I find it a lot easier ...
    The sound should be quite similar to the Nahuatl "tl."  KLD even cites
the Nahuatl "tetl" = "egg" or "rock" as an example.  (KLD says "Aztec."
{sigh})  Nahuatl "tl" is a lateralized /t/, usually written phonologically
as a lambda.  When I was trying to learn the sound in Nahuatl, I was told
to hold my tongue in the lateral position as though I were going to say an
initial English "L" and then say "T."  That procedure may work for some.


     Qapla'

     qeSmIv HarghwI'

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