RE: Klingon phonetics..

["Andeen, Eric" <Eric.Andeen@Sequencia.com>]

jatlh Zrajm C Akfohg:

>> I also would like to know whether {q} should be 
>> aspirated or not (seems logical, all other [ie {p} 
>> and {t}] voiceless stops are).

jang ~mark:
> I wonder how many Klingonists are careful to aspirate 
> those stops?  I know I'm not.  I bet they usually come 
> out fine in syllable-initial position, and Klingon 
> doesn't have syllable-initial consonant clusters, but 
> I bet I don't aspirate them word- or syllable-finally.  
> Then again, perhaps Klingons don't either; it isn't 
> like they need the contrast: there are no unaspirated 
> stops for them to contrast with.  Any Indian Klingonists 
> out there?  (insofar as it matters to me, I'm inclined 
> to believe {q} is aspirated as {p} and {t} are).

I'm pretty certain I *don't* aspirate any of them, at least as well and as
often as I should. I'm improving, but it's a slow process.

> (BUT, beware of what happens to syllable-final /t/s!  Many 
> of us English-speakers regularly reduce them to glottal 
> stops, and I learned that was a mistake the hard way at 
> the qep'a', as I posted not long ago).

This really can get you into trouble. After the last qep'a', I became fairly
conscious of this, and have started trying to improve. It has even affected
my English.


pagh
Beginners' Grammarian

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