Help:IPA/Luxembourgish

This is the pronunciation key for IPA transcriptions of Luxembourgish on Wikipedia.

It provides a set of symbols to represent the pronunciation of Luxembourgish in Wikipedia articles, and example words that illustrate the sounds that correspond to them. Integrity must be maintained between the key and the transcriptions that link here; do not change any symbol or value without establishing consensus on the talk page first.

For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA. For the distinction between [ ], / / and ⟨ ⟩, see IPA § Brackets and transcription delimiters.

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The charts below show the way in which the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) represents Luxembourgish language pronunciations in Wikipedia articles. For a guide to adding IPA characters to Wikipedia articles, see Template:IPA and Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Pronunciation § Entering IPA characters.

See Luxembourgish phonology for a more thorough look at the sounds of Luxembourgish.

Consonants
IPA	Examples	English approximation
Native
b	Been [beːn]^[1]	ball
ɕ	liicht [liːɕt], Bieg [biəɕ]^[1]^[2]	she, but more of a y-like sound
d	Iddi [ˈidi]^[1]	done
f	Fësch [fəʃ]^[1]	fuss
ɡ	Gitt [ɡit]^[1]	guest
h	hei [hɑɪ]	hut
j	Jong [joŋ], bëllegen [ˈbələjən]^[3]	yard
k	Kiischt [kiːʃt]^[1]	cold
l	liesen [ˈliəzən]	last
m	Maul [mæːʊl]	must
n	Nues [nuəs]	not
ŋ	eng [eŋ]	long
p	Paart [paːt]^[1]	puck
ʀ	Rou [ʀəʊ], Comptoir [ˈkõːtwaːʀ]^[4]	Northumbrian burr
ʁ	Kugel [ˈkuːʁəl],^[1]^[2] Parmesan [ˈpɑʁməzaːn]^[5]	Northumbrian burr
s	Taass [taːs]^[1]	fast
ʃ	Schnéi [ʃnəɪ]^[1]^[2]	shall
t	Taart [taːt], Jugend [ˈjuːʁənt]^[1]	tall
ts	Zuch [tsuχ]^[1]	cats
tʃ	Brëtsch [bʀətʃ],^[1] d'Stad [tʃtɑt]	match
v	wëschen [ˈvəʃən]^[1]	vanish
χ	Sprooch [ʃpʀoːχ],^[1]^[2] Force [foχs]^[5]	Scottish loch
z	Summer [ˈzumɐ]^[1]	hose
ʒ	Juli [ˈʒuːliː]^[1]^[2]	pleasure
Marginal consonants
bv	Kampf opginn [ˈkɑmbv ˈopɡin]^[6]	obvious
dz	spadséieren [ʃpɑˈdzəɪəʀən]^[1]^[7]	heads
dʒ	Jeans [dʒiːns]^[1]	jeans
pf	Pflicht [pfliɕt]	cupful
w	zwee [tsweː], Comptoir [ˈkõːtwaːʀ]^[8]	we
ʑ	héijen [ˈhəɪʑən]^[1]^[2]	measure, but more of a y-like sound

Vowels
IPA	Examples	English approximation
Monophthongs
ɑ	Kapp [kɑp]	art
aː	Kap [kaːp], waarm [vaːm]^[5]	Australian bad
æ	Käpp [kæp]	back
ə	Fësch [fəʃ],^[9] Drogen [ˈdʀoːɡən],^[10] Böcker [ˈbəkɐ]^[11]	roughly like hurt
e	drécken [ˈdʀekən]^[9]	let
eː	Been [beːn]	Scottish pays
ɛː	Stär [ʃtɛːɐ̯],^[12] nämlech [ˈnɛːmləɕ]	bed
i	Gitt [ɡit]	tip
iː	siwen [ˈziːvən], Kiischt [kiːʃt]	be
o	So [zo], Sonn [zon]	off
oː	Sprooch [ʃpʀoːχ]	story
u	Hutt [hut]	put
uː	Tut [tuːt], Luucht [luːχt]	cool
Non-native monophthongs
ɑ̃ː	Chance [ʃɑ̃ːs]	French vin blanc
ɛ̃ː	Dinde [dɛ̃ːt]	French vin blanc
õː	Comptoir [ˈkõːtwaːʀ]	French Mont Blanc
œː	Interieur [ˈɛ̃ːtəʀiœːʀ], flirten [ˈflœːtən]^[11]	roughly like herd
øː	Blöd [bløːt]	roughly like herd
y	Hüll [hyl]	roughly like shoe, but shorter
yː	Süden [ˈzyːdən]	roughly like shoe
Diphthongs
ɑɪ	Gebai [ɡəˈbɑɪ], deier [ˈdɑɪɐ]	price
ɑʊ	Mauer [ˈmɑʊɐ]	roughly like spa water
æːɪ	räich [ʀæːɪɕ]	England and Wales share yachts
æːʊ	Maul [mæːʊl]	England and Wales share walls
əɪ	Schnéi [ʃnəɪ]	a yacht
əʊ	Schoul [ʃəʊl]	goat
ɛːɐ̯	Stär [ʃtɛːɐ̯]^[5]	traditional RP square
iə	liesen [ˈliəzən], Biergem [ˈbiəʑəm]^ⓘ^[13]	roughly like yearn
iːɐ̯	wier [viːɐ̯]^[5]^[13]	see other
oːɐ̯	Joer [joːɐ̯]^[5]	Scottish no other
uə	Buedem [ˈbuədəm], Lëtzebuerg [ˈlətsəbuəɕ]^[13]	roughly like word
uːɐ̯	kuerz [kuːɐ̯ts]^[5]^[13]	too upbeat
Non-native diphthongs
oɪ	Euro [ˈoɪʀoː]	boy
øːɐ̯	Röhr [ʀøːɐ̯]	roughly like herd
yːɐ̯	Lürmann [ˈlyːɐ̯mɑn]	roughly like you utter
Reduced vowels
ɐ	Mauer [ˈmɑʊɐ]^[5]	nut or sofa

Suprasegmentals
IPA	Examples	Explanation
ˈ	Kugel [ˈkuːʁəl]	primary stress, as in dearest /ˈdɪərəst/
ˌ	Méckebaatsch [ˈmekəˌbaːtʃ]	secondary stress, as in commandeer /ˌkɒmənˈdɪər/

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t Word-finally, the voiceless-voiced distinction in the obstruent pairs [p–b, t–d, k–ɡ, ts–dz, tʃ–dʒ, f–v, s–z, ɕ–ʑ, ʃ–ʒ, χ–ʁ] is neutralized, mostly in favor of the voiceless obstruents, but see the table titled Suprasegmentals (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68)).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Both [ɕ, ʑ] and [χ, ʁ] are allophones of /χ, ʁ/. [χ, ʁ] occur after back vowels, and [ɕ, ʑ] occur in all other environments, but the voiced [ʑ] occurs only in a few words. Speakers increasingly merge [ɕ, ʑ] and [ʃ, ʒ] (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68–69)).
^ The alveolo-palatal fricative [ʑ] is weakened to an approximant [j] when both unstressed and intervocalic between [ə, iə, uə] and [ə, ɐ]. The approximant realization is not subjected to merging with /ʒ/.
^ The /ʀ/ phoneme is realized as a trill [ʀ] when it is prevocalic within the same word and often when it is non-prevocalic in French loanwords (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 71)).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h
When it is non-prevocalic within the same word, the /ʀ/ phoneme has many allophones:
- after short vowels, the non-prevocalic /ʀ/ is realized as a fricative, either voiced [ʁ] or voiceless [χ], depending on whether the following consonant is voiced or voiceless;
- /ʀ/ is fully absorbed into the preceding /aː/ in the non-prevocalic sequence /aːʀ/ and so Paart, Taart and waarm are pronounced [paːt], [taːt] and [vaːm], as if they were spelled Paat, Taat and waam;
- after long vowels (excluding /aː/), non-prevocalic /ʀ/ is vocalized to [ɐ̯], creating the centering diphthongs [ɛːɐ̯, iːɐ̯, oːɐ̯, uːɐ̯] and, in loanwords from Standard German, also [øːɐ̯, yːɐ̯];
- the unstressed, non-prevocalic orthographic sequence ⟨er⟩ corresponds to the marginal phoneme /ɐ/, although this can also be analysed as simple a sequence of /e/ and /ʀ/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 70–71)).
^ Apart from being the main realisation of phonemes /b, d, dz, ɡ, v, z, ʒ, dʒ/, [b, d, dz, ɡ, v, z, ʒ, dʒ] occur as word-final allophones of both /p, t, ts, k, f, s, ʃ, tʃ/ and /b, d, dz, ɡ, v, z, ʒ, dʒ/ (in this position, some scholars may analyse both of the sets as /p, t, ts, k, f, s, ʃ, tʃ/) if the next word begins with a vowel and is pronounced without a pause. [ʁ, ʑ, bv] also occur as allophones of /χ, χ, pf/ in the same environment, but [bv] does not occur in other circumstances. In this context, the final voiceless obstruents are not only voiced but also resyllabified, or moved to the onset of the first syllable of the following word. Therefore, a somewhat more phonetically-accurate transcription of sech eens would be [zəˈʑeːns] (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 72)), but it is transcribed [zəʑ ˈeːns] instead so that it corresponds more closely to the spelling.
^ Phonemic /dz/ occurs only in a few words (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:72))
^ [w] is an allophone of /v/ occurring after /k, ʃ, ts/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:69)). It also occurs in loanwords as a marginal phoneme.
^ ^a ^b [ə] and [e] are allophones of a single phoneme /e/. [e] appears before velar consonants and [ə] elsewhere (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:70)).
^ Unlike in Standard German, [ə] appears in both stressed and unstressed syllables, and unstressed sequences of [ə] and a sonorant do not form syllabic sonorants (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:70–71)).
^ ^a ^b The short [œ] in loanwords from German and French is transcribed with ⟨ə⟩ in transcriptions of Luxembourgish as the latter is typically realized with lip rounding. The long counterpart of this sound is transcribed with ⟨œː⟩, which does not imply a difference in quality.
^ In native words, [ɛː] appears only as an allophone /eː/ before /ʀ/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:70)).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d The contrast between [iə uə] and [iːɐ̯ uːɐ̯] is unstable and the former set appears in some words that have ⟨r⟩ in spelling.

[finalobstruents-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t Word-finally, the voiceless-voiced distinction in the obstruent pairs [p–b, t–d, k–ɡ, ts–dz, tʃ–dʒ, f–v, s–z, ɕ–ʑ, ʃ–ʒ, χ–ʁ] is neutralized, mostly in favor of the voiceless obstruents, but see the table titled Suprasegmentals (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68)).

[uvularpalatal-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Both [ɕ, ʑ] and [χ, ʁ] are allophones of /χ, ʁ/. [χ, ʁ] occur after back vowels, and [ɕ, ʑ] occur in all other environments, but the voiced [ʑ] occurs only in a few words. Speakers increasingly merge [ɕ, ʑ] and [ʃ, ʒ] (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68–69)).

[3] The alveolo-palatal fricative [ʑ] is weakened to an approximant [j] when both unstressed and intervocalic between [ə, iə, uə] and [ə, ɐ]. The approximant realization is not subjected to merging with /ʒ/.

[trilledr-4] The /ʀ/ phoneme is realized as a trill [ʀ] when it is prevocalic within the same word and often when it is non-prevocalic in French loanwords (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 71)).

[nottrilledr-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h When it is non-prevocalic within the same word, the /ʀ/ phoneme has many allophones:
after short vowels, the non-prevocalic /ʀ/ is realized as a fricative, either voiced [ʁ] or voiceless [χ], depending on whether the following consonant is voiced or voiceless;

/ʀ/ is fully absorbed into the preceding /aː/ in the non-prevocalic sequence /aːʀ/ and so Paart, Taart and waarm are pronounced [paːt], [taːt] and [vaːm], as if they were spelled Paat, Taat and waam;

after long vowels (excluding /aː/), non-prevocalic /ʀ/ is vocalized to [ɐ̯], creating the centering diphthongs [ɛːɐ̯, iːɐ̯, oːɐ̯, uːɐ̯] and, in loanwords from Standard German, also [øːɐ̯, yːɐ̯];

the unstressed, non-prevocalic orthographic sequence ⟨er⟩ corresponds to the marginal phoneme /ɐ/, although this can also be analysed as simple a sequence of /e/ and /ʀ/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 70–71)).

[6] ter short vowels, the non-prevocalic /ʀ/ is realized as a fricative, either voiced [ʁ] or voiceless [χ], depending on whether the following consonant is voiced or voiceless;

[7] /ʀ/ is fully absorbed into the preceding /aː/ in the non-prevocalic sequence /aːʀ/ and so Paart, Taart and waarm are pronounced [paːt], [taːt] and [vaːm], as if they were spelled Paat, Taat and waam;

[8] ter long vowels (excluding /aː/), non-prevocalic /ʀ/ is vocalized to [ɐ̯], creating the centering diphthongs [ɛːɐ̯, iːɐ̯, oːɐ̯, uːɐ̯] and, in loanwords from Standard German, also [øːɐ̯, yːɐ̯];

[9] the unstressed, non-prevocalic orthographic sequence ⟨er⟩ corresponds to the marginal phoneme /ɐ/, although this can also be analysed as simple a sequence of /e/ and /ʀ/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 70–71)).

[resyllabification-6] Apart from being the main realisation of phonemes /b, d, dz, ɡ, v, z, ʒ, dʒ/, [b, d, dz, ɡ, v, z, ʒ, dʒ] occur as word-final allophones of both /p, t, ts, k, f, s, ʃ, tʃ/ and /b, d, dz, ɡ, v, z, ʒ, dʒ/ (in this position, some scholars may analyse both of the sets as /p, t, ts, k, f, s, ʃ, tʃ/) if the next word begins with a vowel and is pronounced without a pause. [ʁ, ʑ, bv] also occur as allophones of /χ, χ, pf/ in the same environment, but [bv] does not occur in other circumstances. In this context, the final voiceless obstruents are not only voiced but also resyllabified, or moved to the onset of the first syllable of the following word. Therefore, a somewhat more phonetically-accurate transcription of sech eens would be [zəˈʑeːns] (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:68, 72)), but it is transcribed [zəʑ ˈeːns] instead so that it corresponds more closely to the spelling.

[7] Phonemic /dz/ occurs only in a few words (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:72))

[8] [w] is an allophone of /v/ occurring after /k, ʃ, ts/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:69)). It also occurs in loanwords as a marginal phoneme.

[closemide-9] [ə] and [e] are allophones of a single phoneme /e/. [e] appears before velar consonants and [ə] elsewhere (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:70)).

[10] Unlike in Standard German, [ə] appears in both stressed and unstressed syllables, and unstressed sequences of [ə] and a sonorant do not form syllabic sonorants (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:70–71)).

[openoe-11] The short [œ] in loanwords from German and French is transcribed with ⟨ə⟩ in transcriptions of Luxembourgish as the latter is typically realized with lip rounding. The long counterpart of this sound is transcribed with ⟨œː⟩, which does not imply a difference in quality.

[12] In native words, [ɛː] appears only as an allophone /eː/ before /ʀ/ (Gilles & Trouvain (2013:70)).

[diphthongsneutralized-13] The contrast between [iə uə] and [iːɐ̯ uːɐ̯] is unstable and the former set appears in some words that have ⟨r⟩ in spelling.

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