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Basic Pronunciation Guide
Burmese Syllable = Head + Rhyme.
Head Pronunciation Audio by Grace de Jong:
Rhyme Pronunciation Audio by Grace de Jong:
Head can be: (1) an “initial consonant” or (2) an initial consonant with “medial consonant(s)”.
● Aspirated (') versus Unaspirated: ကျက် (ceq) vs ချက် (c'eq)
● Breathed versus non breathed: မာ (ma) vs မှာ (hma)
hm- = breathed m: you should have air before “m”, similar sound when you try to say “humph..”
Rhyme can be:
1) “attached vowel symbol(s)” (with/without tone) or
2) a consonant with ် (= “final consonant”) or
3) “attached vowel symbol(s)” with a “final consonant”.
● Nasal = end with -n.
● Glottal stop = end with -q, sounds like Br i”t”; it is not En “-t”.
Head Pronunciation Audio by Grace de Jong:
Rhyme Pronunciation Audio by Grace de Jong:
Head can be: (1) an “initial consonant” or (2) an initial consonant with “medial consonant(s)”.
● Aspirated (') versus Unaspirated: ကျက် (ceq) vs ချက် (c'eq)
● Breathed versus non breathed: မာ (ma) vs မှာ (hma)
hm- = breathed m: you should have air before “m”, similar sound when you try to say “humph..”
Rhyme can be:
1) “attached vowel symbol(s)” (with/without tone) or
2) a consonant with ် (= “final consonant”) or
3) “attached vowel symbol(s)” with a “final consonant”.
● Nasal = end with -n.
● Glottal stop = end with -q, sounds like Br i”t”; it is not En “-t”.
(En) = pronunciation similar to English word.
(Br) = pronunciation similar to British word.
(Fr) = pronunciation similar to French word.
(It) = pronunciation similar to Italian word.