Indigenous languages American Indian tribes What's new on our site today!

Damana Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

The following charts show the pronunciation for the Damana spellings we have used on our site, as well as some alternate spellings that you may find in other books and websites.

˜Vowels

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
a		a	Like the a in father.
e		e	Like the e sound in Spanish, similar to 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.
u	ə, i, ü, ï	ə ~ i	Like the a in English about. Sometimes it is pronounced higher in the mouth, like the Russian "dark i" sound.

˜Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
b		b ~ β	Like b in boy. Between vowels it is often pronounced like the bilabial v in Spanish navidad.
ch	č	t	Like ch in chair.
d		d	Like the d in day.
g		g ~	Like the g in girl. Between vowels it is often pronounced like the raspy g in Spanish saguaro.
h	j	h	Like h in hay.
k	c, qu	k	Like the k in kiss.
l		l	Like l in light.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
p		p	Like the p in pin.
r			Like the r in Spanish pero, somewhat like the tt in American English butter.
rr	r	r	Like the rolling rr in Spanish perro.
s		s	Like s in sun.
t		t	Like the t in tell.
w		w	Like w in way.
y	j	d	Like j in jar.
zh	ž		Like the ge in garage.

Back to Native American Groups
Back to Native American Links for kids
Back to South American Languages

Indian garments Delawares Choctaw art Beading information Possible bags

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

Native Languages of the Americas website © 1998-2008 Contacts and FAQ page