2
L. V. RAMASWAMI AIYAR
for [ʌ] whenever it occurs finally, as in [tʌra] raised platform, [c͡ʃi:tta] bad.
[ə]: a common sound in Malayalam: [kɑ:ṭə] forest, [kʌṇṭə] having seen.
Back Vowels.
[u] and [u:] as in [kuṭṭi] child, [mu:ṭi] closed.
[ɯ] occurs dialectally in Malayalam: it is a common sound in Tamil.
[o] and [oː] as in [koṭi] flag, [o:ṭi] ran.
[ɔ] not a common sound, but exists in some dialects, e.g., [nɔm] we.
[ɑː]: only the long and the half-long sounds are common in Malayalam; the so-called short [ɑ] in Malayalam really is [ʌ] or [a], or [ə], as shown above. [rɑ:mən, rɑːmʌn] the name Rāma.
Consonants.
[k] as in [kʌḷḷən] thief.
[kh] as in [nəkhəm] nail.
[ɡ] as in [ɡɑːnəm] song.
[ɡɦ] as in [ɡɦʌnəm] heaviness.
[x] dialectal, as in [ʌdɦixəm] much; or colloquial [pʌxʌjən] rogue.
[ǥ] as in [muruǥe] tightly, [kɑːṇǥa] see.
[ŋ] as in [mɑːŋŋa] mangoe.
[c͡ʃ] as in [c͡ʃiri] laughter, [c͡ʃʌkrʌm] wheel.
[c͡ʃh] as in [c͡ʃhaˑja] image.
[ɟ͡ʒ] as in [puːɟ͡ʒa] worship.
[ɟ͡ʒɦ] as in [ɟ͡ʒɦʌṭiti] haste.
[ɲ] as in [ɲæˑn] I.
[ṭ] as in [kuṭa] umbrella.
[ṭh] as in [pɑ:ṭhəm] lesson.
[ḍ] as in [ḍʌmbɦəm] pride.
[ḍɦ] only in a few rare Sanskrit words borrowed into Malayalam.
[ṇ] as in [kʌṇṇə] eye.
[t] as in [kɑ:ttə] wind.
[n] as in [nʌnnə] good; the same Malayalam symbol stands for [n] and [n], while in Tamil, which has two separate symbols, the same value [n] is given to both.
[t] as in [tɑˑmʌra] lotus.
[th] as in [ʃʌphəthəm] oath.
[d] as in [deja] kindness.
