Alveolar anddental ejective stops areconsonantal sounds, usually described as voiceless, that are pronounced with aglottalic egressive airstream. In theInternational Phonetic Alphabet, ejectives are indicated with a "modifier letter apostrophe" ⟨ʼ⟩,[1] as in this article. A reversed apostrophe is sometimes used to represent light aspiration, as inArmenian linguistics ⟨p‘ t‘ k‘⟩; this usage is obsolete in the IPA. In other transcription traditions, the apostrophe representspalatalization: ⟨pʼ⟩ = IPA ⟨pʲ⟩. In someAmericanist traditions, an apostrophe indicates weak ejection and an exclamation mark strong ejection: ⟨k̓ , k!⟩. In the IPA, the distinction might be written ⟨kʼ, kʼʼ⟩, but it seems that no language distinguishes degrees of ejection.
In alphabets using the Latin script, an IPA-like apostrophe for ejective consonants is common. However, there are other conventions. InHausa, the hooked letterƙ is used for /kʼ/. InZulu andXhosa, whose ejection is variable between speakers, plain consonant letters are used:p t k ts tsh kr for /pʼ tʼ kʼ tsʼ tʃʼ kxʼ/. In some conventions forHaida andHadza, double letters are used:tt kk qq ttl tts for /tʼ kʼ qʼ tɬʼ tsʼ/ (Haida) andzz jj dl gg for /tsʼ tʃʼ cʎ̥˔ʼ kxʼ/ (Hadza). InOromo, one of the Ethopian languages that have this consonant, it is written with the letter x.
Itsmanner of articulation isocclusive, which means it is produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract. Since the consonant is also oral, with nonasal outlet, the airflow is blocked entirely, and the consonant is aplosive.
There are four specific variants of[tʼ]:
Dental, which means it is articulated with either the tip or the blade of the tongue at the upperteeth, termed respectivelyapical andlaminal.
Denti-alveolar, which means it is articulated with the blade of the tongue at thealveolar ridge, and the tip of the tongue behind upper teeth.
Alveolar, which means it is articulated with either the tip or the blade of the tongue at the alveolar ridge, termed respectivelyapical andlaminal.
Postalveolar, which means it is articulated with either the tip or the blade of the tongue behind the alveolar ridge, termed respectivelyapical andlaminal.
Itsphonation is voiceless, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords.
It is anoral consonant, which means that air is not allowed to escape through the nose.
It is amedian consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream down the midline of the tongue, rather than to the sides.
Dum-Tragut, Jasmine (2009),Armenian: Modern Eastern Armenian, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Maddieson, Ian; Spajić, Siniša; Sands, Bonny;Ladefoged, Peter (1993),"Phonetic structures of Dahalo", in Maddieson, Ian (ed.),UCLA working papers in phonetics: Fieldwork studies of targeted languages, vol. 84, Los Angeles: The UCLA Phonetics Laboratory Group, pp. 25–65
