Aguacateco Mayan Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

Vowels

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
a	ä	a	Like the a in father.
aa	a·, a:	a	Like a only held longer.
e	ë	e	Like the Spanish e, similar to the a in English gate.
ee	e·, e:	e	Like e only held longer.
i	ï	i	Like the i in police.
ii	i·, i:	i	Like i only held longer.
o		o	Like the o in note.
oo	o·, o:	o	Like o only held longer.
u	ü	u	Like the u in flute.
uu	u·, u:	u	Like u only held longer.

Diphthongs

Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
b'	b	б	Like b in boy, only implosive. To English speakers, it sounds as if Maya speakers are 'swallowing' the b sound, similar to the way b is pronounced in Vietnamese.
ch	č	t	Like ch in chair.
ch'	č', chh, 'ch	t	Like ch, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
h	j	h	Like the h in hay.
j	h, x	x	Like the raspy j in Spanish jalapeño.
k	c, qu	k	Like k in key.
k'	c', q'u, qu', , 'c		Like k, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
ky	cy	kj	Like c in cute.
ky'	cy', ky	kj'	Like ky, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
l		l	Like l in light.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
nh	ñ, ng, ŋ	ŋ	Like ng in sing.
p		p	Like the p in pie.
p'	, 'p		Like p, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
q	k	q	Like k only pronounced further back in the throat. This is the same sound as the q in Arabic.
q'	k', , 'k		Like q, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
r			Like Spanish r, somewhat like the tt in English butter.
s		s	Like the s in sun.
t		t	Like the t in tell.
t'	tt		Like t, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
tx	č, tʂ	tʂ	A retroflex sound ch sound like the cz of Polish. To English speakers, it sometimes sounds a little like "chr."
tx'	č', tʂ'	tʂ'	Like tx, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
tz	ts, c, ¢	ts	Like ts in cats.
tz'	ts', c', , ¢', 'tz	t	Like tz, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
w	v, hu, vu	w	Like w in way.
x	š, s, , ʂ	ʂ	A retroflex s sound like the sz of Polish. To English speakers, it sometimes sounds a little like "shr."
xh	x, š, sh		Like sh in shell.
y		j	Like y in yes.
’	7		A pause sound, like the one in the middle of the word "uh-oh."

Aguacatec Pronunciation and Vocabulary Resources

Back to the Native American cultures homepage
Back to Native American Indian Words
Back to Guatemala Indigenous Language
Back to South American Native tribes



Indian artists Abenaki Mazipskwik Ataniel fiction Indian tattoos

Would you like to help support our organization's work with endangered American Indian languages?

or buy some books through this link:

Native Languages of the Americas website © 1998-2012 Contacts and FAQ page