Phonotactics: Difference between revisions
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Toki Pona's '''{{wp|phonotactics}}''', that is the rules for putting sounds together, are well defined. Unlike its [[phonology]], knowing the phonotactics is not needed to speak the language orally, since the main set of words already adheres to them. It is most useful for creating [[name]]s and {{tp|[[nimi sin]]}}. An asterisk marks a sequence that is not allowed phonotactically. |
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An *asterisk marks a sequence that is not allowed phonotactically. |
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==Rules== |
==Rules== |
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In |
In the lesson "Proper Names", {{pu}} lists the phonotactic rules of Toki Pona in the following order: |
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# '''(C)V({{tp|n}}) syllable structure''': "Each syllable consists of a consonant plus a vowel, plus an optional {{tp|n}}." |
# '''(C)V({{tp|n}}) syllable structure''': "Each syllable consists of a consonant plus a vowel, plus an optional {{tp|n}}." |
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At least one other rule is often noted: |
At least one other rule is often noted: |
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* '''No adjacent nasals.''' {{Indent|In sequences like {{tp|*anna}} and {{tp|*anma}}, the first syllable's coda {{tp|-n}} would {{wp|Assimilation (phonology)|assimilate}} to the second syllable's onset nasal: respectively {{tp|ana}} and {{tp|ama}}. |
* '''No adjacent nasals.''' {{Indent|In sequences like {{tp|*anna}} and {{tp|*anma}}, the first syllable's coda {{tp|-n}} would {{wp|Assimilation (phonology)|assimilate}} to the second syllable's onset nasal: respectively {{tp|ana}} and {{tp|ama}}.}} |
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===Coda nasal=== |
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The '''coda nasal''' or '''moraic nasal''' is an {{w|archiphoneme}}, that is an underspecificied {{wp|phoneme}}, written as {{IPA|/N/}} and realized as {{IPA|[m ~ n ~ ɲ ~ ŋ]}} depending on context. It undergoes {{w|Assimilation (phonology)|assimilation}}, that is it gets more similar to the following consonant, in words such as {{tp|anpa}}, which may be pronounced as {{IPA|[ˈampa]}}, and {{tp|enko}} (an obscure {{tp|nimi sin}}), which may be pronounced as {{IPA|[ˈeŋko]}}. |
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==Palatalization== |
===Palatalization=== |
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{{tp|*ti}} is disallowed because of {{wp|Palatalization (sound change)|palatalization}}, a common sound |
The syllable {{tp|*ti}} is disallowed because of {{wp|Palatalization (sound change)|palatalization}}, a common sound change that has occurred in many languages. An English example is the suffix "-tion", as in "motion". The previous phonemes {{IPA|/ti/}} have been palatalized to {{IPA|/ʃ/}}, so it sounds like "-sion" as in "mission". For the same reason, {{tp|*ti}} is changed to {{tp|si}}. |
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As the phoneme {{IPA|/k/}} can also be palatalized, many languages merge {{IPA|[ki ti si]}}. There are no minimal pairs between {{tp|ki}} and {{tp|si}} in the 120 {{tp|[[nimi pu]]}} and among all [[ijo Linku#Word usage surveys|commonly used words]], except for the word {{tp|kin}} can be mistaken for {{tp|sin}}. |
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=={{tp|wuwojiti}}== |
=={{tp|wuwojiti}}== |
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|PoS=content word |
|PoS=content word |
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}} |
}} |
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'''{{tp|wuwojiti}}''' is a mnemonic for the disallowed syllables in [[Toki Pona]] phonotactics: {{tp|*wu}}, {{tp|*wo}}, {{tp|*ji}}, {{tp|*ti}}, and their equivalents with coda |
'''{{tp|wuwojiti}}''' is a {{w|mnemonic}} word for the disallowed syllables in [[Toki Pona]] phonotactics: {{tp|*wu}}, {{tp|*wo}}, {{tp|*ji}}, {{tp|*ti}}, and their equivalents with coda nasal. Some uncommon {{tp|nimi sin}} flout this rule, often as a joke. |
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{|class="wikitable" |
{|class="wikitable" |
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!Disallowed |
! Disallowed syllable |
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!colspan="2"|Alternatives |
! colspan="2" | Alternatives |
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|- |
|- |
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!{{tp|*wu(n)}} |
! {{tp|*wu(n)}} |
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| {{tp|u(n)}}<ref group="lower-alpha" name="word-initially">Chiefly word-initially.</ref> |
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|{{tp|u(n)}} ^ |
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|rowspan="2"|{{tp|wa(n)}} |
| rowspan="2" | {{tp|wa(n)}} |
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|- |
|- |
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!{{tp|*wo(n)}} |
! {{tp|*wo(n)}} |
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|{{tp|o(n)}} |
| {{tp|o(n)}}<ref group="lower-alpha" name="word-initially"/> |
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|- |
|- |
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!{{tp|*ji(n)}} |
! {{tp|*ji(n)}} |
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|{{tp|i(n)}} |
| {{tp|i(n)}}<ref group="lower-alpha" name="word-initially"/> |
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|{{tp|je(n)}} |
| {{tp|je(n)}} |
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|- |
|- |
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!{{tp|*ti(n)}} |
! {{tp|*ti(n)}} |
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|{{tp|si(n)}} |
| {{tp|si(n)}} |
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|{{tp|te(n)}} |
| {{tp|te(n)}} |
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|} |
|} |
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^ <small>Word-initially</small> |
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==Syllables== |
==Syllables== |
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The following chart shows all 92 syllables under Toki Pona phonotactics. |
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{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |
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!{{tp|∅}} |
!{{tp|∅}} |
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!rowspan="10" style="padding:0.4em 0.2em;text-orientation:sideways;transform:rotate(0.5turn);width:1.6em;writing-mode:vertical-rl;"|Null coda |
!rowspan="10" style="padding:0.4em 0.2em;text-orientation:sideways;transform:rotate(0.5turn);width:1.6em;writing-mode:vertical-rl;"| Null coda |
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|style="width:2em;"|{{tp|a}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|e}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|i}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|o}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|u}} |
|style="width:2em;"|{{tp|a}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|e}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|i}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|o}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|u}} |
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!rowspan="10" style="padding:0.4em 0.2em;text-orientation:sideways;transform:rotate(0.5turn);width:1.6em;writing-mode:vertical-rl;"|Coda |
!rowspan="10" style="padding:0.4em 0.2em;text-orientation:sideways;transform:rotate(0.5turn);width:1.6em;writing-mode:vertical-rl;"| Coda nasal |
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|style="width:2em;"|{{tp|an}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|en}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|in}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|on}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|un}} |
|style="width:2em;"|{{tp|an}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|en}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|in}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|on}}||style="width:2em;"|{{tp|un}} |
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===Number of possible words=== |
===Number of possible words=== |
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The number of phonotactically allowed words, up to <var>n</var> syllables, is: {{Indent|<math>92\cdot\sum_{\sigma=1}^{n}72^{\left(\sigma-1\right)}</math>}} |
The number of phonotactically allowed words, up to <var>n</var> syllables, is given by the following equation: {{Indent|<math>92\cdot\sum_{\sigma=1}^{n}72^{\left(\sigma-1\right)}</math>}} |
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That is: |
That is: |
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|1 |
|1 |
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|style="text-align:start;"|{{tp| |
|style="text-align:start;"|{{tp|a–win}} |
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|92 |
|92 |
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