Tojolabal Maya Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

Vowels

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
a		a	Like the a in father.
aa	a·, a:	a	Like a only held longer.
e		e	Like the Spanish e, similar to the a in English gate.
ee	e·, e:	e	Like e only held longer.
i		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	v	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. Many Maya speakers pronounce this sound implosively, as if they were 'swallowing' the b sound, similar to the way b is pronounced in Vietnamese. At the end of a word this sound often is not pronounced at all.
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 h in hay.
j	h	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		l	Like l in light.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
p		p	Like the p in pie.
p'	pp		Like p, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
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.)
ts	tz, ¢	ts	Like ts in cats.
ts'	tz', , ¢', 'tz	t	Like ts, only glottalized (pronounced with a pop of air.)
w	u, hu	w	Like w in way.
x	š, sh		Like sh in shell.
y		j	Like y in yes.
’			A pause sound, like the one in the middle of the word "uh-oh."

Tojolabal Pronunciation and Vocabulary Resources

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