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While [[Swedish language|Swedish]] as a written language is uniform and [[standard language|standardized]], the '''Swedish phonology''' is somewhat complicated by the existence of at least three [[prestige dialect]]s, in the meaning that the speakers of their respective speech communities do not usually consider other varieties of spoken Swedish to be more prestigious. |
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''This is an article describing the [[phonology]] of [[Standard Swedish]] and it's various regional variations. For the phonologies of Swedish [[dialect]]s, see each dialects respective article.'' |
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The terminology is sometimes confusing, and translations to [[English language|English]] may differ, but in this article we will use the terms: |
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* ''Central Swedish'' for the high-status variety of [[Stockholm]]/[[Uppsala]], whose speech community is the largest, including all of [[Svealand]] and [[Åland]] |
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* ''South Swedish'' for the high-status variety of [[Lund]], whose speech community approximately can be defined as the population of Sweden's west coast and the provinces south of [[Westrogothia]]–[[Ostrogothia]] |
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* ''Finland Swedish'' for the high-status variety of [[Helsinki]], also known as ''Högsvenska,'' that is spoken by the smallest speech community, but is taught as a foreign language to all pupils in [[Finland]] |
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The following article will only exceptionally refer to other [[Swedish dialects]]. |
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Although these prestige dialects have developed as a means of communication with speakers of distant and different dialects, and their phonology hence is more uniform than can be said for the more genuine dialects, there exist notable differences with regard to: |
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* [[prosody]] |
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* the /[[r]]/-[[phoneme]] |
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* [[fricative consonant]]s |
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* [[diphtong]]s |
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* [[assimilation (linguistics)|assimilation]] |
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==Vowels== |
==Vowels== |
Revision as of 23:13, 25 March 2005
While Swedish as a written language is uniform and standardized, the Swedish phonology is somewhat complicated by the existence of at least three prestige dialects, in the meaning that the speakers of their respective speech communities do not usually consider other varieties of spoken Swedish to be more prestigious.
The terminology is sometimes confusing, and translations to English may differ, but in this article we will use the terms:
- Central Swedish for the high-status variety of Stockholm/Uppsala, whose speech community is the largest, including all of Svealand and Åland
- South Swedish for the high-status variety of Lund, whose speech community approximately can be defined as the population of Sweden's west coast and the provinces south of Westrogothia–Ostrogothia
- Finland Swedish for the high-status variety of Helsinki, also known as Högsvenska, that is spoken by the smallest speech community, but is taught as a foreign language to all pupils in Finland
The following article will only exceptionally refer to other Swedish dialects.
Although these prestige dialects have developed as a means of communication with speakers of distant and different dialects, and their phonology hence is more uniform than can be said for the more genuine dialects, there exist notable differences with regard to:
Vowels
Like many other Germanic languages, Swedish has long and short versions of each vowel. As a general rule, a vowel followed by two consonants is short; otherwise it is long. For example, the Swedish word "glas" (glass) has a long "a", while "glass" (ice cream) has a short "a". To indicate a short vowel preceding a "k", "ck" is used instead of "kk". For example, "tak" (roof) vs. "tack" (thank you). Stressed vowels can be either long or short, but unstressed onees can never be long.
Phoneme (IPA) |
Grapheme | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
iː | i | [iːs], "ice" | is,
yː | y | [ˈˈyːla], "howl" | yla,
ʉː | u | [ʉ̟ːt], "out" | ut,
eː | e | [eːk], "oak" | ek,
ɛː | ä | [lɛːs], "read" (imperative) | läs,
ɑː | a | [ˈɑːl], "alder" | al,
øː | ö | [øːl], "beer" | öl,
uː | o | [ˈuːruː], "unease", "worry" | oro,
oː | å, o | [ˈoːka], "travel", "go" | åka,
/ɛː/ and /øː/ are lowered when followed by /r/, /l/ dental consonants or by their retroflex counterparts. Especially younger speakers are showing an ever increasing tendency in using [ɶː] in other phonotactic contexts as well. Words like fördömande ("judging") and fördummande ("dumbing") often are pronounced similarly, if not identically.
- [ɛː] -> [ˈæː] ( ära, [æːra] "honor").
- [øː] -> [œ̟ː] ( öra, [œ̟ːra], "ear").
Phoneme (IPA) |
Grapheme | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
ɪ | i | [ˈɪma], "mist" | imma
ʏ | y | [ˈʏlə], "wool" (textile) | ylle,
ɵ | u | [ɵl], "wool" (material) | ull,
œ | ö | [çœt], "meat"; "flesh" | kött,
ɛ | e, ä | [ɛst], "estonian" | est,
a | a | [ark], "ark"; "sheet" (of paper) | "ark",
ɔ | å, o | [ˈɔta], "eight"} | åtta,
ʊ | o | [ʊʈ], "(geographic) place" | ort,
Just like the long vowels, the short ones exhibit the same allophonic pattern when preceding supradental consonants.
- [œ] -> [ɶ̟] ( dörr, /dœ̟r/, "door"). The
- [ɛ] -> [æ] ( ärt, /æʈ/ , "pea").
Unstressed "e"s are pronounced [ə] ( stele, /bəˈgoː ˈsteːlə/, "commit", "stela"), i.e. a basic schwa.
Consonants
Phoneme (IPA) | Graphemes | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
p | p | /pal/, "stool" | pall,
b | b | /buːk/, "book" | bok,
t | t | /stuːr tand/, "big", "tooth" | stor, tand
d | d | /dɑːg/, "day" | dag,
ʈ¹ | rt | |
ɖ¹ | rd | /hoːɖ/, "hard" | hård,
k | k | /koʈ skɑːl/, "short", "shell" | kort , skal,
g | g | /gɑːs/, "gas" | gas,
Phoneme (IPA) |
Graphemes | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
f | f | /fɵl/, "full" | full,
v | v | /vɑːk/, "hole in the ice" | vak,
s | s | /sɪst/, "last" | sist,
ʂ² | rs, sch | /koʂ ˈʂlɑːgɛr/, "cross", "hit" (song) | kors, schlager,
ɧ² | sj, stj, | /ɧʉː ˈɧæːrnaa ɧʉːl/, "seven", "star", "shed" | sju, stjärna, skjul,
ɕ | k, tj | /ɕʉːr, ɕɪnd/, "bull", "cheek" | tjur, kind,
j | j, g | /juːɖ/, "earth"; "soil" | jord,
h | h | /hoːɖ/, "hard" | hård,
Phoneme (IPA) |
Graphemes | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
r | r | /rɑːk/, "straight" | rak,
Phoneme (IPA) |
Graphemes | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
l | l | /liːla/, "purple" | lila,
ɭ | rl | /soːɭ/, "murmur" | sorl,
Phoneme (IPA) |
Graphemes | Pronunciation sample, IPA and translation |
---|---|---|
m | m | /mɑːl/, "moth" | mal,
n | n | /noːl/, "needle" | nål,
ɳ¹ | rn | /gɑːɳ/, "yarn" | garn,
ŋ | ng, gn | /gɔŋ/, "path", "(style of) walk" | gång,
- ¹ The combination of "r" with "t", "d" or "n" results in retroflex consonants, which are not limited by word boundaries. Example: Vi går nu ("we're leaving now") and vi går till sta'n ("we're going downtown (to the city)") are rendered [vɪˈgoːɳʉː] and [vɪgoʈɪˈstɑːn].
- ² Most variations distinguish betweeen /ɧ/ and [ʂ], but both are rendered [ʂ] in northern Sweden and in Finland-Swedish areas of Finland. Although the differentiated use of the two fricatives have distinct rules in the dialects that use both, they should be considered allophones.
The letter "r" has many quite distinct variations in Standard Swedish. In the southern variants the sound is rendered with [ʀ]. Around Stockholm and in central Sweden the "r"s can vary greatly depending on social and phonotactic context. The "correct" pronunciation is usually considered to be [r] but in reality the variations are considerable. At the beginning of words, the /r/ is often pronunced as a the fricative [ʐ], in consonant clusters often as [ʂ] and especially in Stockholm as the approximant [ɹ]. Uses of taps like [ɾ] are also common.
References
- Engstrand, Olle Fonetikens grunder (Studenlitteratur, Lund 2004) ISBN 91-44-04238-8