Igbo Lettering - Culture - Nairaland
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| Igbo Lettering by somegirl1: 9:03pm On Sep 22, 2013 |
I've often wondered what the basis for writing Igbo and other African alphabets in English letters was. What we've come to know as the Igbo lettering system incorporates some common consonant clusters/ blends known as Udamkpi in Igbo. However several other consonant clusters, common and uncommon, (appear to) have been left out. The system as we know it is as follows: Ọ́nwụ́ alphabet Letter Below is a list of other Udamkpi I've identified and examples of words in which they occur. Mb - mbo (comb); mbe (tortoise) Mgb - mgbochiume (consonant); mgbe (when) Mkp - mkpuru/ mkpulu oka (corn kernel); mkpisiri aka (fingers) Mv - mvo (comb) [Owerri], mvo aka (finger nails) [Owerri] Nch - ncha (soap); nchichi (velvet tamarind)[Owerri] Nd - Nda (Aunt/ Uncle, Brother/ Sister – Prefix for addressing one older); Ndidi (Patience) Ng - ngaji (spoon); nga (here) [Owerri] Ngw -Ngwa (the place name); ngwa (get going/ quickly) Nj - Njo (bad), Njoku (surname/ deity) Nk - Nkem (mine); Nku (wood) Nkw - Nkwo (4th day in the Igbo Calendar); nkwa (music?) Nm - nma (beauty/ good sometimes spelled as “mma”]; nmehe (sin) Nn - Nna (father); Nne (mother) Nr - nri (food); nro (dream) Ns - Nso (holy); Nsogbu (problem) Nṣ - nshiko (crab) [Owerri] Nt - nti (small); ntutu (hair) Nz - Nze (the title); Nzoputa (redemption) Also some clusters that feature in Yoruba language not included in the alphabets include; Nl - nla (big) Kp (written as “P”) - pepeye (duck); Du(p)e (the name) Is there a known reason for the omission of so many consonant clusters? p.s a single letter which could be included is: ʒ- O(ʒ)i (mission/errand). This sound as far as I know is exclusive to Owerri dialect speakers. Pronounced like “j” in “bon jour”. Is there a known reason for the omission of so many consonant clusters? |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 11:29pm On Sep 22, 2013 |
Interesting.. But if "nri" means food, then the Nri god must have been the god of food. I now see why Nri_priest likes food a lot - what a glutton that nyggah is.  |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by ChinenyeN(m): 12:44am On Sep 23, 2013 |
The tone pattern for "nri" (food) and "Nri" (the community) are distinctly different, and the words are etymologically not related. 1 Like |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 12:56am On Sep 23, 2013 |
ChinenyeN: The tone pattern for "nri" (food) and "Nri" (the community) are distinctly different, and the words are etymologically not related. Oh ok. Thanks for the clarification. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by ChinenyeN(m): 1:19am On Sep 23, 2013 |
Some-girl, the clusters you identified are technically not clusters or consonant blends, at least not for Igbo. The reason being that they do not form a single sound unit. Instead, what you have there is a listing of two distinct sound units (m-b[i]; m-gb[i]; n-gw[i]; n-z[i], etc.). Aside from the standard "gb", "kp", etc. sounds found in the Onwu alphabet, nothing else qualifies as a cluster or consonant blend. However, you are very correct to say that the current Onwu standard omits a wide variety of consonant blends that are otherwise commonplace in the various Igbo speech forms. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by ChinenyeN(m): 1:19am On Sep 23, 2013 |
shymexx: Oh ok. No problem. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 1:30am On Sep 23, 2013 |
The 'mv', 'mb' , 'nt', 'nr' etc in 'mvo', 'mbo' 'nti', 'nri' etc are not exactly consonant clusters. In each of these examples, the 'm' and the 'n' play the role of what Igbo grammarians call 'myiriudaume' (pseudo-vowels/ nasalized vowels). Check the following out: Nna Mma In both words, the first n/m acts like vowel (ie, is an 'myiriudaume) while the second n/m is a normal consonant. 'Nn' and 'mm' aren't consonant clusters in both examples. Note that m and n are the only consonants in igbo that are known to sometimes act like vowels. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by ChinenyeN(m): 1:36am On Sep 23, 2013 |
"Myiriudaume"... Interesting. So Igbo language studies has progressed to the extent of natively categorizing and otherwise describing linguistic features as obscure as this one. I like it. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by somegirl1: 1:43am On Sep 23, 2013 |
ChinenyeN: Some-girl, the clusters you identified are technically not clusters or consonant blends, at least not for Igbo. The reason being that they do not form a single sound unit. Instead, what you have there is a listing of two distinct sound units (m-b[i]; m-gb[i]; n-gw[i]; n-z[i], etc.). Aside from the standard "gb", "kp", etc. sounds found in the Onwu alphabet, nothing else qualifies as a cluster or consonant blend. However, you are very correct to say that the current Onwu standard omits a wide variety of consonant blends that are otherwise commonplace in the various Igbo speech forms. Radoillo: The 'mv', 'mb' , 'nt', 'nr' etc in 'mvo', 'mbo' 'nti', 'nri' etc are not exactly consonant clusters. In each of these examples, the 'm' and the 'n' play the role of what Igbo grammarians call 'myiriudaume' (pseudo-vowels/ nasalized vowels). Thanks. I can accept these explanations however the cluster "Gw" which is included in the alphabets consists of two distinct sounds. Radoillo "myiriudaume"? I have never come across an "my" cluster in Igbo language. Did you mean "nyiri udaume"? or "m yiri udaume"? |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 1:43am On Sep 23, 2013 |
ChinenyeN: "Myiriudaume"... Interesting. So Igbo language studies has progressed to the extent of natively categorizing and otherwise describing linguistic features as obscure as this one. I like it. Yea. I remember my Secondary School Igbo teachers trying to get us to understand the concept of myiriudame (a decade ago). I never understood it then. I came to understand it independently much later. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 1:48am On Sep 23, 2013 |
some-girl: Oh pardon me. I often mix 'standard Igbo' with the dialects. Nyiri udaume. If I might say something about 'Gw', following what Chinenye has already said, it is pronounced as a single sound, not as 'G-w' , so its a genuine 'cluster'. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by somegirl1: 1:54am On Sep 23, 2013 |
Radoillo: Ok, "nyiri udaume" definitely looks less alien  . What dialect is "myiri" or is it "m yiri"?The two distinct letters can be made out in "Gw" unlike "Ny", "Nw" etc |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 2:13am On Sep 23, 2013 |
. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by Nobody: 2:14am On Sep 23, 2013 |
[quote author=some-girl] [color=#990000] Ok, "nyiri udaume" definitely looks less alien . What dialect is "myiri" or is it "m yiri"? [quote]I don't know particularly. I grew up speaking a very mixed kind of Igbo. I don't even know for certain where some of the components come from. But on the 'nyiri/myiri 'controversy, I think I find 'myiri' preferrable in written Igbo because its less ambiguous ( I can't remember exactly which spelling my college texts used). 'Nyiri' can easily be mistaken for 'too strong for...' Instead of 'n-yiri' which means 'resembling another' Note that in the first 'nyiri', 'ny' is a consonant cluster, but in the second one, 'ny' is not, the 'n' acting rather like a vowel. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by ChinenyeN(m): 2:21am On Sep 23, 2013 |
some-girl: It isn't about letters, but rather the sound units that said letters represent. "Gw" qualifies as a distinct cluster in the language, because it can be rendered as a single sound unit. To really understand this, try to see that in Igbo language, there exists an identifiable difference between saying something like n-g[i]-w[i] and n-gw[i]. i.e. a-gi-wa (yourself) as opposed to a-gwa (conduct). |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by somegirl1: 2:12pm On Sep 24, 2013 |
ChinenyeN: ok daalu unu Another question, why do we have "Sh" instead of Ṣ in our alphabets when we don't (to my knowledge) officially write words with "Sh". |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by ChinenyeN(m): 6:56pm On Sep 24, 2013 |
I have no clue. Your guess on that one is as good as mine. I actually have a copy of the 1961 official orthography document by the Onwu committee. When they listed out the alphabet, they included "sh", but none of their examples makes use of "sh". Officially, according to the "standard", Igbo language does not include an "sh" sound. So it really shouldn't appear in the alphabet. However, the sound is a very prominent and commonplace feature of a number of Igbo lects. The Onwu committee also included "v", even though standard Igbo doesn't use the sound. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by PreciousBro: 6:53pm On Jun 05, 2015 |
Hmmm I like this. Very interesting. |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by PreciousBro: 7:04pm On Jun 05, 2015 |
ChinenyeN: Now I grab why the "N" in nri for food has a silent tone compared to the Deity "Nri when pronounced, there's a. Stress sound in the "nri" (deity)..... The "myiriudaume" sounds very new to me |
| Re: Igbo Lettering by chinon(f): 5:05pm On Nov 15, 2020 |
Help oo.. Deputa mkpuruokwu iri ebe M na N bu Myiriudaume na Mgbochiume |
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