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Tlahuica Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

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

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Tlahuica pronunciation:
a		a	Like the a in father.
aa	a:	a	Like a only held longer.
e		e	Like the e sound in Spanish, similar to the a in gate.
ee	e:	ε	Like e only held longer.
i		i	Like the i in police.
ii	i:	i	Like i only held longer.
o		o	Like the o in note.
oo	o:	o	Like o only held longer.
u		u	Like the u in flute.
y	i, ü	i	Somewhat like the u in lettuce... like i but further back in the throat.

Tlahuica Glottalized Vowels

All ten Tlahuica vowel sounds can also be given a glottalized pronunciation. To English or Spanish speakers, glottalized Tlahuica vowels sound guttural or creaky. Vowel glottalization does not appear to be phonemic in Tlahuica and rarely if ever changes the meaning of a word. However, glottalization is frequently represented in orthographies, either by drawing a slash through the vowel or by writing a small glottal symbol above or beside it, like this:

ø
ỏ
o

Tlahuica Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	Tlahuica pronunciation:
b		b	Like the b in boy.
ch	ch	t	Like ch in chair.
d		d	Like the d in day.
g		g	Like the g in gate.
j		h	Like h in hay.
k	c, qu	k	Like the k in key.
l		l	Like l in light.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
ñ		n^y	Like Spanish ñ, somewhat like ny in canyon.
p		p	Like the p in pie.
r			Like the r in Spanish pero, somewhat like the tt in American English butter.
s	z, c	s	Like the s in sun.
t		t	Like the t in tell.
ts	tz	ts	Like ts in cats.
w	hu	w	Like w in way.
x	sh		Like sh in shell.
y		j	Like y in yes).
z		z	Like z in zoo).
’			A pause sound, like the one in the middle of the word "uh-oh."

Tlahuica Indian Pronunciation and Vocabulary Resources

   Tlahuica words
   Tlahuica picture dictionary
   Oto-Manguean family
   Indian tribes of Mexico