Nh (digraph)
Encyclopedia
Nh is a digraph
of the Latin alphabet
, a combination of N
and H
. Together with lh and the interpunct
, it was a typical feature of Old Occitan, the language used by medieval
troubadour
s.
, nh is used to represent a dental n̪.
In the pre-1985 orthography of Guinea
for its languages, nh represented a velar ŋ, which is currently written ŋ.
romanization of Mandarin Chinese, initial nh- indicates an even tone on a syllable beginning in [n], which is otherwise spelled n-.
s of Japanese
sometimes used nh to represent a prepalatal ɲ̟. Today, this is usually written ny.
, nh represents a palatal ɲ word-initially. It was formerly considered a distinct letter, but is no longer. When this digraph occurs word-finally, its phonetic value varies between dialects:
The Vietnamese alphabet
inherited this digraph from the Portuguese orthography
.
, nh represents a dental n̪. Due to allophony, it may also represent a palatal ɲ.
For n·h, see Interpunct#Occitan.
, nh represents a palatal ɲ. It is not considered a distinct letter. Portuguese borrowed this digraph from Occitan.
, there are two diverging norms which give nh diverging values.
In both norms, nh is not considered a distinct letter.
Digraph (orthography)
A digraph or digram is a pair of characters used to write one phoneme or a sequence of phonemes that does not correspond to the normal values of the two characters combined...
of the Latin alphabet
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
, a combination of N
N
N is the fourteenth letter in the basic modern Latin alphabet.- History of the forms :One of the most common hieroglyphs, snake, was used in Egyptian writing to stand for a sound like English ⟨J⟩, because the Egyptian word for "snake" was djet...
and H
H
H .) is the eighth letter in the basic modern Latin alphabet.-History:The Semitic letter ⟨ח⟩ most likely represented the voiceless pharyngeal fricative . The form of the letter probably stood for a fence or posts....
. Together with lh and the interpunct
Interpunct
An interpunct —also called an interpoint—is a small dot used for interword separation in ancient Latin script, which also appears in some modern languages as a stand-alone sign inside a word. It is present in Unicode as code point ....
, it was a typical feature of Old Occitan, the language used by medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
troubadour
Troubadour
A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
s.
African languages
In some African languagesAfrican languages
There are over 2100 and by some counts over 3000 languages spoken natively in Africa in several major language families:*Afro-Asiatic spread throughout the Middle East, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of the Sahel...
, nh is used to represent a dental n̪.
In the pre-1985 orthography of Guinea
Orthography for languages of Guinea (pre-1985)
Following independence, the government of Guinea adopted rules of transcription for the languages of Guinea based on the 26-letter basic Latin alphabet...
for its languages, nh represented a velar ŋ, which is currently written ŋ.
Asian languages
In the Gwoyeu RomatzyhGwoyeu Romatzyh
Gwoyeu Romatzyh , abbreviated GR, is a system for writing Mandarin Chinese in the Latin alphabet. The system was conceived by Y.R. Chao and developed by a group of linguists including Chao and Lin Yutang from 1925 to 1926. Chao himself later published influential works in linguistics using GR...
romanization of Mandarin Chinese, initial nh- indicates an even tone on a syllable beginning in [n], which is otherwise spelled n-.
Japanese
Early romanizationRomanization
In linguistics, romanization or latinization is the representation of a written word or spoken speech with the Roman script, or a system for doing so, where the original word or language uses a different writing system . Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written...
s of Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
sometimes used nh to represent a prepalatal ɲ̟. Today, this is usually written ny.
Vietnamese
In VietnameseVietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
, nh represents a palatal ɲ word-initially. It was formerly considered a distinct letter, but is no longer. When this digraph occurs word-finally, its phonetic value varies between dialects:
- In the northern dialect, it represents a velar nasalVelar nasalThe velar nasal is the sound of ng in English sing. It is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is , and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is N....
(ŋ), just as ng does; however, its presence may alter the pronunciation of the preceding vowel. For example, banh is pronounced /baɪŋ/, as opposed to /baŋ/ (bang). - In the southern dialect, it represents an alveolar nasalAlveolar nasalThe alveolar nasal is a type of consonantal sound used in numerous spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental, alveolar, and postalveolar nasals is , and the equivalent X-SAMPA symbol is n....
(n) and shortens the preceding vowel.
The Vietnamese alphabet
Vietnamese alphabet
The Vietnamese alphabet, called Chữ Quốc Ngữ , usually shortened to Quốc Ngữ , is the modern writing system for the Vietnamese language...
inherited this digraph from the Portuguese orthography
Portuguese orthography
The Portuguese orthography is based on the Latin alphabet, and makes use of the acute accent, the circumflex accent, the grave accent, the tilde, and the cedilla, to denote stress, vowel height, nasalization, and other sound changes...
.
Australian languages
In the transcription of Australian Aboriginal languagesTranscription of Australian Aboriginal languages
Prior to the arrival of Europeans, Australian Aboriginal languages had been purely spoken languages, and had no writing system. The Latin alphabet of the colonizers was inevitably used for the transcription of Australian Aboriginal languages, but the details of how the sounds were represented has...
, nh represents a dental n̪. Due to allophony, it may also represent a palatal ɲ.
Occitan
In Occitan, nh represents a palatal ɲ.For n·h, see Interpunct#Occitan.
Portuguese
In PortuguesePortuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, nh represents a palatal ɲ. It is not considered a distinct letter. Portuguese borrowed this digraph from Occitan.
Galician
In GalicianGalician language
Galician is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community located in northwestern Spain, where it is co-official with Castilian Spanish, as well as in border zones of the neighbouring territories of Asturias and Castile and León.Modern Galician and...
, there are two diverging norms which give nh diverging values.
- According to the Real Academia GalegaReal Academia GalegaThe Royal Galician Academy is an institution dedicated to the study of Galician culture and especially the Galician language; it promulgates norms of grammar, spelling, and vocabulary and works to promote the language. The Academy is based in A Coruña, Galicia, Spain. The current president is...
norm, nh represents a velar ŋ, while ñ represents a palatal ɲ. - According to the reintegrationist norm, mh represents a velar nasal ŋ, while nh represents a palatal ɲ.
In both norms, nh is not considered a distinct letter.