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Amundava Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

Welcome to our Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau alphabet page! The following charts show the pronunciation for the Amondawa orthography we have used on our site, as well as some alternate spellings that you may find in other books and websites.

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Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Vowels

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Amundava pronunciation:
a		a	Like the a in father.
e		e	Like Spanish e, pronounced somewhat like the a in gate.
i		i	Like the i in police.
o		o	Like the o in note.
u		u	Like the u in flute.
y	ï, i, u	i	This sound does not exist in English. It sounds like the i in police only pronounced further back in the mouth. If you've ever heard a Slavic language like Russian or Polish being spoken, it is the same "dark i" sound from those languages.

Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Nasal Vowels

Nasal vowels don't exist in English, but you may be familiar with them from French (or from hearing people speak English with a French accent.) They are pronounced just like oral ("regular") vowels, only using your nose as well as your mouth. To English speakers, a nasal vowel often sounds like a vowel with a half-pronounced "n" at the end of it. You can hear examples of nasal vowels at the end of the French words "bon" and "Jean," or in the middle of the word "Français."

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:
ã	ą, añ	ã
ẽ	ę, eñ	ẽ
ĩ	į, iñ	ĩ
õ	, oñ	õ
ũ	ų, uñ	ũ
ỹ	ĩ, ïñ	ĩ

Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Diphthongs

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Amundava pronunciation:
au	aw	aw	Like ow in English cow.
ai	ay	aj	Like English eye.

Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Amundava pronunciation:
b		b	Like the b in boy.
ch	x	t	Like ch in child.
d		d	Like the d in day.
g		g	Like the g in go.
h		h	Like the h in heart.
k	c	k	Like the k in kite.
l		l	Like the l in light.
kw	qu	kʷ	Like the qu in queen.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
ng		ŋ	Like ng in sing.
nh	ñ	ɲ	Like ny in canyon.
p		p	Like the p in pie.
r			Like a Spanish r, similar to the tt in English butter.
t		t	Like the t in tell.
v	w, u, gu	υ ~ β	This is an approximant v sound that doesn't exist in English. It sounds like a cross between a v and a w.
’			A pause sound, like the one in the middle of the word "uh-oh."

Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Pronunciation and Vocabulary Resources

Amondawa words
Tupi Guarani languages