Table 2. Vowel phonemes
Front Central
Back
High i
u Non-high
ɛ ɔ
a The word h
ʊ́tʊ́k ‘mouth’ has the vowel ʊ, which is contrastive with the vowel ɔ in hɔ̀lɔ̀ŋ ‘day’ and with the vowel u in bùsùk ‘bull’. However, h
ʊ́tʊ́k ‘mouth’ is the only word found thus far with the vowel
ʊ. Turner 2001ː40 proposes a 9-vowel system in his description of the Lolongo dialect of Lopit. In
this description, the four vowels of table 2 have a corresponding [+ or – ATR] vowel [i]-[ ɪ], [u]-[ʊ],
[e]-[ ɛ], [o]-[ɔ]. Moodie 2012ː16 acknowledges a 9-vowel system in the Dorik dialect of Lopit, but
mostly ignores the [ATR] distinction in his transcription of data. The [ATR] distinction explains the vowel contrast between h
ʊ́tʊ́k [-ATR] ‘mouth’ and bùsùk [+ATR] ‘bull’. However, it causes us to ask why there is no [ATR] contrast for the vowels i,
ɛ and ɔ. Perhaps a contrast with these vowels will be found in a larger data set, or perhaps only certain
speakers or dialects are aware of the [ATR] contrast in these vowels. The speakers I worked with from five different dialects were not aware of and did not speak with an [ATR] distinction in the data for this
analysis
2
. 1.2.1
Vowel distribution in word positions
All Lopit vowels occur in word-medial and word-final positions. The vowels i, ɛ, a occur in word-initial
position of a few nouns. 9
Word-initial Word-medial
Word-final
i ítàk
‘ostrich’ hìɟì
‘middle’ hárí
‘river’ ɛ ɛ̀fír
‘fat adj’ fɛ́rɛ́
‘spear’ tɛ́rɛ́
‘hail’ a
áwɔ́ŋ ‘oribi, monkey’
hárá ‘stool’
yàfà ‘moon, month’
ɔ ---- hɔ́tɔ́
‘blood’ gɔ̀rɔ̀
‘gourd jug’ u
---- múnú
‘snake’ mùgù
‘granary’
1.2.2 Vowel contrasts
The words with contrastive pairs of vowels in 10 show that each of the vowels are phonemes.
2
In analyzing the vowels, I relied both on speaker intuition and on my own hearing. That is, each of 285 nouns were written in all dialects on slips of paper and sorted according to the syllable structure of the Ngotira dialect. After
reading each noun, the Lopit speakers from five different dialects sorted the Ngotira words into piles as a group effort, arriving at a consensus for each placement decision. The result was five different vowel piles for each syllable
structure. It was only when I pointed out the difference in vowel quality of h ʊ́tʊ́k ‘mouth’ that the speakers separated
this word into a sixth pile. Apparently the speakers were not even aware of the sound difference for this word until I pointed out the difference. I did not hear a difference in [ATR] vowel quality for other vowel pairs [i] – [
ɪ], [e] – [
ɛ], [o] – [ɔ] in any of the Lopit data, although I have heard this difference clearly in Mandari and other Eastern Sudanic languages.
10 i –
ɛ sìhɛ̂t
‘chicken comb’ sɛhi
‘thing, property’ ɛ – a
hɛɟu ‘leg, foot’
hàɟì ‘house’
a – ɔ
màrìŋ ‘fence, pen’
mɔ̀rìŋ ‘dikdik’
a
ɔ – u sɔ̀hɔ̀t-í
‘palm tree’ súhɛ́
‘chest’ i – u
sìhɛ̂t ‘chicken comb’
súhɛ ‘chest’
ɛ – ɔ lɛkyɛrɛ
‘pebble’ lɔkuduk
‘crow, bird type’
a
a type of gazelle
1.2.3 Vowel distribution in two adjacent syllables of roots
The Ngotira data of 11 show that all possible combinations of vowels in adjacent syllables of roots are found. There are no co-occurance restrictions on vowels in adjacent syllables, and the same vowel
distribution in two adjacent syllables of roots occurs in other Lopit dialects.
11 Vowel distribution in adjacent syllables i, i
ìdîs ‘shadow’
ɔ, i mɔ̀tì
‘pot’ i, ɛ
sìhɛ̂t ‘chicken comb’
ɔ, ɛ tɔ́mɛ́
‘elephant’ i, a
rísá ‘tail’
ɔ, a rɔ̀fán
‘roof frame’ i, ɔ
ídɔ́ ‘sky’
ɔ, ɔ wɔ̀lɔ̂
‘dove’ i, u
ihuma ‘tortoise’
ɔ, u lɔkuduk ‘crow’
ɛ, i dɛ́mí
‘knife’ u, i
bùnî ‘pool’
ɛ, ɛ fɛ́rɛ́ ‘spear’
u, ɛ súhɛ́
‘chest’ ɛ, a lɛ́wá
‘gazelle type’ u, a
bùlà ‘stable’
ɛ, ɔ teterɔk ‘prepare’
u, ɔ hùrɔ̂ ‘kid’
ɛ, u kɛ̀bù ‘hoe’
u, u múnú
‘snake’ a, i
hàɟì ‘house’
a, ɛ hàddɛ̀ ‘roots’
a, a hárá
‘stool’ a,
ɔ tàmɔ̀t ‘bull’
a, u tàmù
‘helmet’
1.3 Syllables
