Phonotactics and Orthographic Rules

Basic Rules

• Two vowels
      long
• o and u, and i and e
  •     u becomes o if followed by q or r
  •     i becomes e if followed by q or r Orthographic combinations ur, uq, ir, iq do not exist.
    • ulloq-innaq -> ulluinnaq
    • kingullilik -> kingulleq-lik
• loan and foreign words append i when adding a suffix (repair strategy):
  • 56-inik
  • Thor+mik -> Thorimik
• When adding a suffix starting with t, t becomes s if the stem ends with a vowel:
  • taa + tar + vaat -> taasarpaat
  • suli + toq -> sulisoq

Assimilation Rules

• when a+[vowel] => aa

  This does not apply if the “a” is the final letter of a word: ataata +i -> ataatai

• If there are two consonants, the second one assimilates the first one: [c1][c2] -> [c2][c2]

  For example: Ilisimatusarfik + mi -> IlisimatusarfiMMi

• Two v, l, g, and r characters become unvoiced (for example illit); vv -> pp/kk; gg -> kk

  • vv -> pp
  • rg and qg -> rr and qg -> r; for example: nuliaq + ga => nuliara, -riar + gakku => -riarakku (note that rp remains)
  • rv -> rp???
  • pg -> pp -> kk; for example: ilinniartip+galuar+vaa -> ilinniartikkaluarpaa
  • tv and tp become l:

• sammisari + niar=nngit +viuk -> sammisarinianngiLiuk

• …uva… -> ua (taku +vara -> takuara)

• …uvi… -> ui

  • Nuummiu+u+vit -> Nuummiuuit; Maniitsoq+miu+u+vit -> Maniitsormiuuit

• t, k, q between two vowel at an morpheme end???:

  • t between two vowels becomes n:
    • _kungi+mut+una_ -> kungimuNuna: king singular + terminalis/allative + here is
  • k between two vowels becomes ng:
    • Kangerlussuaq+miu-u+niar+contemporative 3 pl +una -> Kangerlussuarmiuuniarlutinguna
  • q between two vowel becomes j????:
    • qalunaajuvoq