Voiced retroflex approximant
Ipa symbolɻ
Ipa number152
Decimal635
Xsampar\`
Braille256
Braille 2number

A voiced retroflex approximant is a type of consonant used in some languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is , a turned lowercase letter r with a rightward hook protruding from the lower right of the letter.

The velar bunched approximant found in some varieties of Dutch and American English is nearly indistinguishable from a retroflex approximant in sound, but has a different articulation.

Features

Features of the voiced retroflex approximant:

Occurrence

FamilyLanguageWordIPAMeaningNotes
SiniticChineseMandarin ròu[ɻ̺oʊ̯˥˩]'meat'Apical.[1] Can be transcribed as fricative ʐ. See Standard Chinese phonology
NungishDerungTvrung[tə˧˩ɻuŋ˥˧]'Derung'
GermanicEnglishSome American dialectsred[ɻ(ʷ)ɛd]'red'Labialized (pronounced with lips rounded). See Pronunciation of English /r/
Some Hiberno-English dialects
Some West Country English
ArnhemEnindhilyagwaangwura[aŋwuɻa]'fire'
GermanicFaroese[2]hoyrdi[hɔiɻʈɛ]'heard'Allophone of /ɹ/.[2] Sometimes voiceless ɻ̊.[2] See Faroese phonology
HellenicGreekCretan (Sfakia and Mylopotamos variations) region[3]γάλα la[ˈɣaɻa]'milk'Intervocalic allophone of /l/ before /a, o, u/. Recessive. See Modern Greek phonology
Eskimo-AleutInuktitutNattilingmiututkiuřuq/kiuɻuq/'she replies'
DravidianMalayalamഴ���am[aːɻɐm]'depth'Represented by the letter ⟨ഴ⟩. Subapical retroflex. See Malayalam phonology
MapudungunMapuche[4]rayen[ɻɜˈjën]'flower'Possible realization of /ʐ/; may be ʐ or ɭ instead.[4]
RomancePortugueseMany Centro-Sul registerscartas[ˈkaɻtə̥̆s]'letters'Allophone of rhotic consonants (and sometimes /l/) in the syllable coda. Mainly[5] found in rural São Paulo, Paraná, south of Minas Gerais and surrounding areas, with the more common and prestigious realization in metropolitan areas being ɹ and/or rhotic vowel instead. As with ɽ, it appeared as a mutation of [ɾ].[6][7][8] See Portuguese phonology.
Caipiratemporal[tẽɪ̯̃pʊˈɾaɻ]'rainstorm'
Conservative Piracicabanograto[ˈgɻatʊ̥]'thankful' (m.)
DravidianTamil[9]தமிழ்/Tami[t̪əˈmɨɻ]'Tamil'See Tamil phonology. May be merged with ɭ for some modern speakers.
Pama-NyunganWestern DesertPitjantjatjara dialectUluu[ʊlʊɻʊ]'Uluru'
IsolateYaghanrho[ˈwaɻo]'cave'

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Lee, Wai-Sum (1999). An articulatory and acoustical analysis of the syllable-initial sibilants and approximant in Beijing Mandarin. Proceedings of the 14th International Congress of Phonetic Sciences. S2CID 51828449
  2. ^ Árnason (2011), p. 115.
  3. ^ Trudgill (1989), pp. 18–19.
  4. ^ Sadowsky et al. (2013), p. 90.
  5. ^ Brandão, Silvia Figueiredo (15 December 2007). "Nas trilhas do -R retroflexo". Signum: Estudos da Linguagem. 10 (2): 265. doi:10.5433/2237-4876.2007v10n2p265
  6. ^ Ferraz, Irineu da Silva (2005). Características fonético-acústicas do /r/ retroflexo do portugues brasileiro : dados de informantes de Pato Branco (PR). hdl:1884/3955
  7. ^ (in Portuguese) Syllable coda /r/ in the "capital" of the paulista hinterland: sociolinguistic analysis. Archived 2013-09-26 at the Wayback Machine Cândida Mara Britto LEITE. Page 111 (page 2 in the attached PDF)
  8. ^ (in Portuguese) Callou, Dinah. Leite, Yonne. "Iniciação à Fonética e à Fonologia". Jorge Zahar Editora 2001, p. 24
  9. ^ Keane (2004), p. 111.

References

  • Árnason, Kristján (2011), The Phonology of Icelandic and Faroese, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-922931-4
  • Keane, Elinor (2004), "Tamil", Journal of the International Phonetic Association. 34 (1): 111–116, doi:10.1017/S0025100304001549
  • Sadowsky, Scott; Painequeo, Héctor; Salamanca, Gastón; Avelino, Heriberto (2013), "Mapudungun", Journal of the International Phonetic Association. 43 (1): 87–96, doi:10.1017/S0025100312000369
  • Trudgill, Peter (1989), "The Sociophonetics of /l/ in the Greek of Sphakiá", Journal of the International Phonetic Association. 15 (2): 18–22, doi:10.1017/S0025100300002942. S2CID 143943154