The Yoruba alphabet is based on the Latin script and consists of 25 letters. It includes a combination of vowels and consonants, as well as specific tonal marks that are crucial for correct pronunciation and meaning. Here’s a detailed guide to the Yoruba alphabets along with their pronunciation.
Vowels
Yoruba has seven vowels, and they are pronounced distinctly.
- A – /a/ as in “father” (pronounced “ah”)
- E – /ɛ/ as in “bet” (pronounced “eh”)
- Ẹ – /e/ as in “say” (pronounced “ay”)
- I – /i/ as in “see” (pronounced “ee”)
- O – /ɔ/ as in “saw” (pronounced “aw”)
- Ọ – /o/ as in “go” (pronounced “oh”)
- U – /u/ as in “blue” (pronounced “oo”)
Consonants
The Yoruba language includes 18 consonants:
- B – /b/ as in “bat”
- D – /d/ as in “dog”
- F – /f/ as in “fish”
- G – /g/ as in “go”
- GB – a voiced labial-velar plosive (pronounced like a simultaneous “g” and “b” sound)
- H – /h/ as in “hat”
- J – /dʒ/ as in “jump”
- K – /k/ as in “kite”
- L – /l/ as in “love”
- M – /m/ as in “man”
- N – /n/ as in “net”
- P – /p/ as in “pen”
- R – /r/ as in “red” (a trilled or rolled ‘r’)
- S – /s/ as in “see”
- Ṣ – /ʃ/ as in “shoe” (pronounced “sh”)
- T – /t/ as in “top”
- W – /w/ as in “water”
- Y – /j/ as in “yes”
Tones
Yoruba is a tonal language with three primary tones, which are essential for distinguishing meanings of words:
- High Tone: Indicated by an acute accent (e.g., á, é, í, ó, ú)
- Mid Tone: Usually left unmarked (e.g., a, e, i, o, u)
- Low Tone: Indicated by a grave accent (e.g., à, è, ì, ò, ù)
Examples of Tones in Use
- Bàtà (low tone, high tone) – Shoe
- Bàtá (low tone, mid tone) – Drum
- Bátá (high tone, mid tone) – A type of dance
Pronunciation Tips
- Pay attention to the tone marks as they change the meaning of words.
- Practice the unique consonant sounds like GB and Ṣ.
- Vowels should be pronounced clearly and distinctly.
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