Yukpa Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

˜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.
ü	y, ï	i~	This sound does not exist in English. It sounds like the i in police only pronounced further back in the mouth. Examples of such sounds in Eurasian languages include the "dark i" of Russian or the undotted ı of Turkish.
o		o	Like o in note.
u		u	Like u in flute.

˜Diphthongs

˜Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
ch		t	Like ch in cheese.
h	j	h	Like h in hay.
k	c, qu	k	Like the soft k sound in English ski.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
p		p	Like the soft p in spin.
r			Like the r in Spanish pero, somewhat like the tt in American English butter.
s		s	Like the s in sun.
sh			Like sh in shell.
t		t	Like the soft t in star.
ts		ts	Like the ts in tsunami.
v	w, b	β ~ b	Like v only pronounced between the two lips, as Spanish speakers pronounce navidad. Sometimes it is pronounced more like b in boy, especially before the vowel o.
w	hu	w	Like w in way.
y		j	Like y in yes.

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