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Quiche Mayan Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

Welcome to our Quiche alphabet page! The following charts show the pronunciation for the Quiche 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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Quiche Vowels

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Quiche pronunciation:
a	ă	a	Like the a in father.
aa	a·, a:	a	Like a only held longer.
ä		ə	Like the a in about.
e	ĕ	e	Like the Spanish e, similar to the a in English gate.
ee	e·, e:	e	Like e only held longer.
i	ĭ	i	Like the i in police.
ii	i·, i:	i	Like i only held longer.
o	ŏ	o	Like the o in note.
oo	o·, o:	o	Like o only held longer.
u	ŭ, v	u	Like the u in flute.
uu	u·, u:	u	Like u only held longer.

Quiche Diphthongs

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Quiche pronunciation:
ay	ai	aj	Like English eye.
ey	ei	ej	Like ey in English they.
oy	oi	oj	Like oy in English boy.
uy	ui	uj	like the uoy in English buoy.

Quiche Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Quiche pronunciation:
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', '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.)
l	ll	l	Like l in light.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
p		p	Like the p in pie.
q	k	q	Like k only pronounced further back in the throat. The Quiche pronunciation of this sound resembles 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'			Like t, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
tz	ts, ¢	ts	Like ts in cats.
tz'	ts', , ¢', 'tz	t	Like tz, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
w	v, hu, vu	w	Like w in way.
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."

Quiche Indian Pronunciation and Vocabulary Resources

   Quiche words
   Quiche picture dictionary
   K'iche' colors
   The Kiche alphabet
   The Maya languages
   Legends of the Mayas