Klamath Tribes Language Project
waq dal ?i gee ?ewksiknii ?elGank
How do you say that in Klamath?
Pronounciation
Vowels Part II: Long Vowels There is a distinction in Klamath involving the time it takes to say a vowel. Klamath vowels are either short or long in duration. Barker used a raised period to note that a vowel is pronounced long. This course simply doubles the vowel. Note that ? is a glottal sound
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ii
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niis = neck |
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?ii = yes |
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oo
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Goos = tree |
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yohoo = buffalo |
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ee
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beep = daughter |
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gee = this |
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aa
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dwaa = what |
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laap = two |
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Short and Long Vowels Contrasted
In Klamath, short vowels are represented with single letters (a, e, i, o) and long vowels are represented with double letters (aa, ee, ii, oo). The following examples illustrate the differences between the short and long sounds
| a vs aa | |
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?at = now |
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?aat = you all |
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| e vs ee | |
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gena = go |
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geena = all around there |
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| i vs ii | |
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?i = you |
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?ii = yes |
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| o vs oo | |
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Gos = swan |
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Goos = tree |
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loq = grizzly |
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looq = seed, core |