Vowel alternations among dialects

Some lengthened consonants are found in more word positions in certain dialects. In these dialects, it may be preferable to analyze lengthened consonants as single-unit syllable onsets .C: so that they fit into word-initial CV and CVC syllable types. Word-initial ll occurs in the word ll ɛ́wá ‘gazelle type’ in Lomiaha, Lohutok and Lolongo. Word-initial tt occurs in the word ttim ‘bush, wilderness’ in Lohutok and Lolongo. Word-medial mm occurs in the word immadɔk ‘gum’ in Lomiaha, Lohutok and Lolongo. 51 Dorik Ngotira Lomiaha Lohutok Lolongo l lɛymɛ lɛ́ymɛ̀ lɛmyɛ lɛmyɛ lɛmɛ ‘lion’ l ~ ll lɛwa lɛ́wá llɛywa llɛywa llɛwa ‘gazelle type’ t taɟi táɟí taɟi taɟi taɟi ‘heart’ t ~ tt tim tìm tim ttim ttim ‘bush, wilderness’ m mana máná mana mana mana ‘farm’ hima hímá hima hima hima ‘fire’ m ~ mm madɔk màdɔ̂k immadɔk immadɔk immadɔk ‘gum’

2.3 Vowel alternations among dialects

Five Lopit dialects have the same vowel distribution as 9, and in addition, Lomiaha, Lohutok and Lolongo have word-initial ɔ as in ɔyiri ‘spirit’. Most vowel phonemes are found in five dialects of the same word. However in some words, the vowel alternations seen in 52 occur among the dialects. And which dialect has which vowel, varies from word to word. 52 Dorik Ngotira Lomiaha Lohutok Lolongo ɛ bɛl bɛ́l bɛl bɛl bɛl ‘stripe, spot’ ɔ wɔr wɔ́r wɔr wɔr wɔr ‘stream, river’ a haŋ hàŋ haŋ haŋ haŋ ‘home, village’ u huk hùk huk huk huk ‘charcoal pl’ i hit hìt hit hit hit ‘excrement pl’ y ɛ hary ɛ hàry ɛ̂ hary ɛ hary ɛ hary ɛ ‘night’ ya ifya ifya ifya ifya ifya ‘ask’ ɔy rɔrɔy rɔ́rɔ́y rɔrɔy rɔrɔy rɔrɔy ‘thing, issue’ ɛ ~ ɔ ɛfir ɛ̀fír ɔfir ɔfir ɔfir ‘fat adj’ dɔmi dɛ́mí dɛmi dɛmi dɛmi ‘knife’ ɔ ~ a lɔhɔlay lahalay lahalay ahalay ɔhɔlɛ ‘pole’ halɔha-ni halɔhɔ-ni halaha-ni halaha-ni halɔhɔ-ni ‘trapper’ ilɔma ilɔma ilama ilama ilama ‘distance’ ɛ ~ a ihɛrɛk ikarrak ikarrak ikarrak ikarrak ‘water turtle’ hayy ɔhɔni hayyɔhɔni hɛyyɔhɔni hɛyyɔhɔni hɛyyɔhɔni ‘shepherd’ u ~ i hiwaru hiwaru huwaru huwaru huwaru ‘cat general’ hunɔm húnɔ́m hinɔm hinɔm hinɔm ‘cave’ huhɔy hikwɔy huhwɛ huhɛ huhɛ ‘charcoal’ hicu husuŋ husuŋ husuŋ hisuŋ ‘cows’ ɛ ~ i pir pír pɛr pɛr pɛr ‘bicycle’ u ~ ɔ cumay sɔ̀mây sɔmay sɔmay sɔmay ‘fat n’ a ~ i hanaci hanasi hanasɛ inasi hinasi ‘sister’ y ɛ ~ ya hafyɛlay hafyalay hafyalay hafyalay hafyalay ‘claw’ iry ɛtak iry ɛtak iryatak iryatak iryatak ‘tie around neck’ ɔy ~ ɛy hɔytɔy hɔytɔ hɔytɛ hɔytɛ hɛytɔ ‘bone’ In some words, a vowel without an adjacent semivowel alternates with a vowel and adjacent semivowel among the dialects. And which dialect has which vowel and semivowel, varies from word to word. 53 Dorik Ngotira Lomiaha Lohutok Lolongo y ɔ hayy ɔhɔ-ni hayy ɔhɔ-ni hɛyyɔhɔ-ni hɛyyɔhɔ-ni hɛyyɔhɔ-ni ‘shepherd’ wɔ mɔrwɔ mɔrwɔ mɔrwɔ mɔrwɔ mɔrwɔ ‘stone’ ay cumay sɔ̀mây sɔmay sɔmay sɔmay ‘fat’ ɛ ~ yɔ dɛrɔ dɛrɔ dy ɔrɔ dy ɔrɔ dy ɔrɔti ‘rats’ ɛ ~ yɛ kɛr ky ɛr kɛr kɛr kɛr ‘sheep’ irɛfit irɛfit ily ɛfit ily ɛfit ɔlɛfit ‘container’ ɛ ~ ya imɛtak imɛtak imyatak imyatak imyatak ‘increase, become’ inɛfɔ inɛfa inɛfu inyafa inyafa ‘catch’ lɔrɛwa lɛrɛwa lɔlyawa lɔlyawa ɔlɛwa ‘husband’ ɔ ~ wɔ idɔŋɔ idɔŋɔ idwɔŋɔ idwɔŋɔ idwɔŋɔ ‘appear’ hɔmwɔŋ hɔ̀mwɔ̀ŋ hɔmɔm hɔmɔm hɔmɔm ‘face, forehead’ ɛ ~ ɛy lɛymɛ lɛ́ymɛ̀ lɛmyɛ lɛmyɛ lɛmɛ ‘lion’ lɛwa lɛ́wá llɛywa llɛywa llɛwa ‘gazelle type’ lɛyfɔri lɛyfɔri lɛyfɔri lɛyfɔri ɛfɔri ‘kitchen’ ɔ ~ ɔy mɔytɛ mɔytɛ mɔtyɛ mɔtyɛ mɔtɛ ‘morning’ a ~ ay fayti fày tî fati fati fati ‘ebony tree’ garay gàráy garay garay igara ‘dry grassland’ a ~ aw hawwɛ hàwwɛ̀ hawwɛ hawwɛ hawɔ ‘arrow’ In a few other words, there are vowel-consonant alternations among the dialects. 54 Dorik Ngotira Lomiaha Lohutok Lolongo wa mɔrwari mɔrwari mɔrwari mɔrwari mɔrwari ‘rocky place’ wa ~ wa kwan kwàn wan wan hwan ‘body’ wa ~ usa ibwari ibwari ibusari ibusari oburusari ‘escape’ ca ~ tya icaha icaha ityaha ityaha ityara ‘begin’ cɔw ~ sw hɔcɔwan haswani haswani haswani haswani ‘buffalo’ llu ~ lyu tɛ-lyu tɛ-lyu tɔ-llu tɔ-llu tɔ-llu ‘jumb down’ sːi ~ syɔ ma- cɔhi may-sy ɔk a ma- sːik ma- sːik ma- sːik ‘places’ a In Ngotira, ‘places’ can be either may-sihi or may-sy ɔk.

2.4 Dialect comparison of syllable structure