Traditional Armenian orthography - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Traditional Armenian orthography (also known as classical orthography and Mashdotsian orthography) is the orthography

Orthography

The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...

developed during the early 19th century for the two modern dialects of the Armenian language

Armenian language

The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...

- Eastern Armenian

Eastern Armenian language

Eastern Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian , the other being Western Armenian. The two standards form pluricentric language....

and Western Armenian

Western Armenian language

Western Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. The two standard forms form a pluricentric language. For historical reasons explained below, generally speaking, Western Armenian is used outside the Republic of Armenia, while Eastern...

. It is used primarily by the Armenian diaspora

Armenian diaspora

The Armenian diaspora refers to the Armenian communities outside the Republic of Armenia and self proclaimed de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic...

(including all Western Armenian speakers and Eastern Armenian speakers in Iran) which has rejected the Reformed Armenian Orthography created in Soviet Armenia in the 1920s. The Armenian diaspora alleges political motives behind the reform, citing the Soviet regime's intent on Russifying

Russification

Russification is an adoption of the Russian language or some other Russian attributes by non-Russian communities...

the Armenian language.

Writing System

The traditional Armenian orthography uses the 36 original letters of the Armenian alphabet

Armenian alphabet

The Armenian alphabet is an alphabet that has been used to write the Armenian language since the year 405 or 406. It was devised by Saint Mesrop Mashtots, an Armenian linguist and ecclesiastical leader, and contained originally 36 letters. Two more letters, օ and ֆ, were added in the Middle Ages...

Majuscule	Ա	Բ	Գ	Դ	Ե	Զ	Է	Ը	Թ	Ժ	Ի	Լ	Խ	Ծ	Կ	Հ	Ձ	Ղ	Ճ	Մ	Յ	Ն	Շ	Ո	Չ	Պ	Ջ	Ռ	Ս	Վ	Տ	Ր	Ց	Ւ	Փ	Ք
Minuscule	ա	բ	գ	դ	ե	զ	է	ը	թ	ժ	ի	լ	խ	ծ	կ	հ	ձ	ղ	ճ	մ	յ	ն	շ	ո	չ	պ	ջ	ռ	ս	վ	տ	ր	ց	ւ	փ	ք

...and the 2 letters added to the Armenian alphabet in the 13th century:

Majuscule	Օ	Ֆ
Minuscule	օ	ֆ

Monophthongs

The Armenian language has eight monophthong vowel sounds — ɑ, ɛ, i, o, u, ə, ʏ, œ — and ten symbols to represent them — ա, ե, է, ը, ի, ո, օ, ու, իւ, էօ.

	Front Front vowel A front vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a front vowel is that the tongue is positioned as far in front as possible in the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant. Front vowels are sometimes also...		Central Central vowel A central vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a central vowel is that the tongue is positioned halfway between a front vowel and a back vowel...	Back Back vowel A back vowel is a type of vowel sound used in spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a back vowel is that the tongue is positioned as far back as possible in the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant. Back vowels are sometimes also called dark...
	Unrounded	Rounded		Unrounded	Rounded
Close Close vowel A close vowel is a type of vowel sound used in many spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a close vowel is that the tongue is positioned as close as possible to the roof of the mouth without creating a constriction that would be classified as a consonant.This term is prescribed by the...	i (ի)	ʏ (իւ)			u (ու)
Mid Mid vowel A mid vowel is a vowel sound used in some spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a mid vowel is that the tongue is positioned mid-way between an open vowel and a close vowel...	ɛ (է, ե)	œ (էօ)	ə (ը)		o (ո, օ)
Open Open vowel An open vowel is defined as a vowel sound in which the tongue is positioned as far as possible from the roof of the mouth. Open vowels are sometimes also called low vowels in reference to the low position of the tongue...				ɑ (ա)

/ɑ/ — ա, այ

The vowel ɑ is written using the letter <ա>. For example, [ɑɾɛv] ("sun") is written արեւ.

Polysyllabic words ending in /ɑ/ are written with <այ>. For example, [dzɑɾɑ] ("slave") is written ծառայ; [ɡətoʁɑ] ("s/he shivers") is written կը դողայ. Exceptions to this rule are:
1. Certain words, for example, հիմա, ահա, հապա, ապա, ասիկա, սա, ատիկա, անիկա, մամա, պապա.
2. Proper nouns are also exceptions. For example, Արա, Էլենա, Ասիա.
3. The singular imperative form of type III verbs. For example, կարդալ → կարդա՛; լուալ — լուա՛.
4. Foreign words ending in /ɑ/. For example, Նորա (Nora), սոտա (soda), աղա (/ɑʁɑ/ in Turkish), etc.

/ɛ/ — է, ե

At the end of a word, /ɛ/ is always written <է> (and never <ե>). For example, Մարգարէ, Վահէ, կը վազէ.
At the beginning of a word, /ɛ/ is written <է>. For example, էջ, էակ.
In the middle of a word when followed by a vowel, /ɛ/ is written <է>. For example, գիտէիր, գործունէութիւն.
When followed by two consonants within a root word, /ɛ/ is written <ե>. For example, ներկ, ուղերձ, խենդ, փեղկ.
When making a noun plural, <եր> or <ներ> is added to the end of the noun. For example, տուփ → տուփեր, դրամ → դրամներ.
When followed by an <լ>, <հ>, <ղ>, <մ>, or <ռ>, /ɛ/ is written <ե> (and not <է>). The following are exceptions: դէմ, վէմ, and also foreign proper nouns (e.g. Երուսաղէմ, Դանիէլ).

/i/ — ի

/i/ is always written <ի>. For example, [iɾ] ("his"/"her") is written իր.

/o/ — օ, ո, ոյ

At the start of a word, /o/ is written , except when the second sound is [v], in which case <ո>. For example, [oɾɛnk] ("rule") is written օրէնք, and [ovɑsis] ("oasis") is written ովասիս.
In the middle of a root word, when followed by two consonants, /o/ is written <ո> (and not <օ>). For example, [koɾk] ("rug") is written գորգ, [hoɾt] ("calf") is written հորթ, and [poʁɡ] ("radish") is written բողկ.
/o/ at the end of a word is written <ոյ>. For example, [jɛɾɛɡo] ("evening") is written երեկոյ, [hɛdo] ("later") is written յետոյ. The following are exceptions to this rule:
1. The words այո' ("yes"), pronounced [ɑjo]; and ծօ' ("you" in slang), pronounced [dzo].
2. Proper nouns. For example, Պետօ ("Bedo"), Քոնկօ ("Congo").
3. Foreign words. For example, օթօ ("auto" from German), սոլօ ("solo"), զերօ ("zero"), մեթրօ ("metro").

When a vowel is added to a word ending in <օ>, the is changed to <ոյ>. For example, Պետօ ([bɛdo]) → Պետոյին ([bɛdojin]) ("Bedo" in genitive-dative case), Քոնկօ ([konɡo]) → Քոնկոյէն ([konɡojɛn]) ("Congo" in ablative case).

/u/ — ու

/u/ is always written ու. For example, [dun] ("house") is written տուն.

/ə/ — ը, epenthetical

The [ə] vowel is usually not written. For example, we say [məˈdɑdzum] ("thought"), but write մտածում (not մըտածում); we say [əskɑntʃɛli] ("marvelous") but write սքանչելի (not ըսքանչելի).

<ը> is written in the following situations:

At the start of a word, when the second sound is a [n] (<ն>) or [m] (<մ>). For example, [əndɾɛl] ("to choose") is written ընտրել, [ənɡɛɾ] ("friend") is written ընկեր, [əmposd] ("defiant") is written ըմբոստ, [əmpəɾnɛl] ("to comprehend") is written ըմբռնել.
At the start of a word, when the [ə] vowel stems from the [i] or [u] sound. For example, [əʁtsʰɑl] ("to desire") is written ըղձալ, because it stems from the noun [iʁtsʰ] ("desire," իղձ): իղձ–ալ. And [əmbɛl] ("to drink") is written ըմպել, because it stems from the noun [umb] ("mouthful," ումպ): ումպ–ել.
At the start or middle of a monosyllabic word whose only vowel is [ə]. For example, [əsd] ("according to") is written ըստ, and [mən] ("a" or "an," indefinite article) is written մըն.
Within derivative and compound words when the word's second part starts with [ə]. For example, [ɑnəntunɛli] ("inadmissible") is written անընդունելի, because it is a derivative word formed from the prefix [ɑn] ("un-," ան-) and the root [ənɡɛɾ] ("friend," ընկեր): ան–ընկեր. And [ɑɾɑkəntɑtsʰ] ("swift") is written արագընթաց, because it is a compound word formed from the root words արագ ("quick") and ընթացք ("gait"): արագ–ընթաց.
Within a word after the letters <ու>, when <ու> is not followed by a vowel and we want the <ու> to represent [v]. For example, պահուըտիլ ([bɑhvədil], "to hide") and վաղուընէ ([vɑʁvənɛ], "from tomorrow").
During line breaking. For example, վնաս ([vənɑs], "harm") becomes վը–նաս, and զգալ (əzkɑl, "to feel") becomes ըզ–գալ.
At the end of words (to specify the article "the"). For example, լոյսը ([lujsə], "the light") is formed by adding ը to the end of լոյս; And արձանները ([ɑɾtsʰɑnˈnɛɾə], "the statues").

/ʏ/ — իւ

/ʏ/ is always written <իւ>. For example, [kʏʁ] ("village") is written գիւղ.

/œ/ — էօ

/œ/ is a rare sound in Armenian that's used to write foreign words. It is always written <էօ>. For example, the female name [œ.ʒɛ.ni] is written Էօժենի.

Diphthongs

The Armenian language has nine diphthong

Diphthong

A diphthong , also known as a gliding vowel, refers to two adjacent vowel sounds occurring within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: That is, the tongue moves during the pronunciation of the vowel...

sounds: /jɑ/, /jɛ/, /ji/, /jo/, /ju/, /ɑj/, /ej/, /ij/, /uj/.

/jɑ/ — եա, եայ, յա; occurs in էա, իա

/jɑ/ is written differently depending on its context.

[jɑ] at the start of a word is written <եա>. For example, [jɑnikjɑn] ("Yanikian," a family name) is written Եանիքեան.
When [jɑ] is preceded by a consonant it is written <եա>. For example, [sɛnjɑɡ] ("room") is written սենեակ. However, at the end of a word, <եա> is written <եայ>. For example, [ɑɾoɾja] ("daily) is written առօրեայ.
When [jɑ] is preceded by a vowel other than [i] or [ɛ] it is written <յա>. For example, ɡɑ.jɑn ("station") is written կայան.
A disyllabic sequence of a monophthong ([i]) and a diphthong ([jɑ]) is written <իա> (or <իայ> when at the end of a word). For example, [mijɑsin] ("together") is written միասին.
A disyllabic sequence of a monophthong ([ɛ]) and a diphthong ([jɑ]) is written <էա> (or <էայ> when at the end of a word). For example, [ɛjɑɡ] ("being," the noun) is written էակ.

/jɛ/ — ե, յե, յէ

/jɛ/ is written differently depending on its context.

At the start of a word, /jɛ/ is written <ե>. For example, [jɛɾɑz] ("dream") is written երազ. Note that <ե> between two consonants represents /ɛ/ (see the Monophthongs section above for details).
In the middle of a word, /jɛ/ is written <յե>. For example, [hɑjɛli] ("mirror") is written հայելի. Note that <յե> at the start of a word represent [hɛ] (see the Consonants section below for details).
At the end of a word, /jɛ/ is written <յէ> (and never <յե>). For example, [nɑjɛ] ("look!") is written նայէ՛.

/ji/ — յի; occurs in էի

/ji/ only occurs in the middle or at the end of a word in Armenian. It is written differently depending on its context:

A disyllabic sequence of a monophthong ([ɛ]) and a diphthong ([ji]) is written <էի>. For example, [ɛji] ("I was") is written <էի>, and [ɡuzɛjin] ("they wanted") is written կ'ուզէին.
Otherwise, /ji/ is written <յի>. For example, [mɑjis] ("May") is written Մայիս. Note that <յի> at the start of a word represents [hi] (see the Consonants section below for details).

/jo/ — եօ

/jo/ is written <եօ>. For example, [jo.tə] ("seven") is written եօթը.

/ju/ — յու, իւ; occurs in իու, էու

/ju/ is written differently depending on its context:

At the start of a word, /ju/ is written <իւ>. For example, [juʁ] ("oil") is written իւղ.
When preceded by a vowel other than [i] or [ɛ], it is written <յու>. For example, [ɡɑjun] ("firm") is written կայուն. Note that <յու> at the start of a word denotes [hu] (see the Consonants section below for an example.)
The disyllabic sequence of the monophthong [i] and the diphthong [ju] is written <իու>. For example, [mijutjun] ("union") is written միութիւն.
The disyllabic sequence of the monophthong [ɛ] and the diphthong [ju] is written <էու>. For example, [ɛjutjun] ("essence") is written էութիւն.
To write the suffix [tjun]: թիւն. For example, [kidutjun] ("knowledge") is written գիտութիւն.

/ɑj/ — այ

In Armenian, /ɑj/ occurs at the start and middle of a word; it can occur at the end of a word only for monosyllabic words. It is written <այ>. For example, [ɑjki] ("field") is written այգի; [mɑjɾ] ("mother") is written մայր; and [pʰɑj] ("verb") is written բայ. Note that a polysyllabic word ending in <այ> is pronounced /ɑ/ (the <յ> becomes silent) (see the Monophthongs section above for an example).

/ej/ — էյ

/ej/ is written <էյ>. For example, [tej] ("tea") is written թէյ.

/ij/ — իյ

/ij/ is written <իյ>. For example, [ijnɑl] ("to fall") is written իյնալ.

/uj/ — ոյ

In Armenian, /uj/ usually occurs in the middle of a word, and is written <ոյ>. For example, [kujr] ("sister") is written քոյր.

Consonants

This is the Armenian Consonantal System using symbols from the International Phonetic Alphabet

International Phonetic Alphabet

The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic...

(IPA), followed by the corresponding Armenian letter in parentheses. Compare the three way distinction of stops and affricates in Classical Armenian and Eastern Armenian to the two way distinction in Western Armenian. Note the presence of ejective stops and affricates in Eastern Armenian. Also, note the sound shifts of stops and affricates in Western Armenian.

			Bilabial Bilabial consonant In phonetics, a bilabial consonant is a consonant articulated with both lips. The bilabial consonants identified by the International Phonetic Alphabet are:...			Labio- dental Labiodental consonant In phonetics, labiodentals are consonants articulated with the lower lip and the upper teeth.-Labiodental consonant in IPA:The labiodental consonants identified by the International Phonetic Alphabet are:...	Alveolar Alveolar consonant Alveolar consonants are articulated with the tongue against or close to the superior alveolar ridge, which is called that because it contains the alveoli of the superior teeth...			Post- alveolar Palato-alveolar consonant In phonetics, palato-alveolar consonants are postalveolar consonants, nearly always sibilants, that are weakly palatalized with a domed tongue...			Palatal Palatal consonant Palatal consonants are consonants articulated with the body of the tongue raised against the hard palate...	Velar Velar consonant Velars are consonants articulated with the back part of the tongue against the soft palate, the back part of the roof of the mouth, known also as the velum)....			Uvular Velar consonant Velars are consonants articulated with the back part of the tongue against the soft palate, the back part of the roof of the mouth, known also as the velum)....	Glottal Glottal consonant Glottal consonants, also called laryngeal consonants, are consonants articulated with the glottis. Many phoneticians consider them, or at least the so-called fricative, to be transitional states of the glottis without a point of articulation as other consonants have; in fact, some do not consider...
			CA	EA Eastern Armenian language Eastern Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian , the other being Western Armenian. The two standards form pluricentric language....	WA Western Armenian language Western Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. The two standard forms form a pluricentric language. For historical reasons explained below, generally speaking, Western Armenian is used outside the Republic of Armenia, while Eastern...		CA	EA Eastern Armenian language Eastern Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian , the other being Western Armenian. The two standards form pluricentric language....	WA Western Armenian language Western Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. The two standard forms form a pluricentric language. For historical reasons explained below, generally speaking, Western Armenian is used outside the Republic of Armenia, while Eastern...	CA	EA Eastern Armenian language Eastern Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian , the other being Western Armenian. The two standards form pluricentric language....	WA Western Armenian language Western Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. The two standard forms form a pluricentric language. For historical reasons explained below, generally speaking, Western Armenian is used outside the Republic of Armenia, while Eastern...		CA	EA Eastern Armenian language Eastern Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian , the other being Western Armenian. The two standards form pluricentric language....	WA Western Armenian language Western Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. The two standard forms form a pluricentric language. For historical reasons explained below, generally speaking, Western Armenian is used outside the Republic of Armenia, while Eastern...
Nasal Nasal consonant A nasal consonant is a type of consonant produced with a lowered velum in the mouth, allowing air to escape freely through the nose. Examples of nasal consonants in English are and , in words such as nose and mouth.- Definition :...			m (մ)				n (ն)
Plosive	VL Voiceless In linguistics, voicelessness is the property of sounds being pronounced without the larynx vibrating. Phonologically, this is a type of phonation, which contrasts with other states of the larynx, but some object that the word "phonation" implies voicing, and that voicelessness is the lack of...	plain	p (պ)				t (տ)							k (կ)
		EJ Ejective consonant In phonetics, ejective consonants are voiceless consonants that are pronounced with simultaneous closure of the glottis. In the phonology of a particular language, ejectives may contrast with aspirated or tenuis consonants...		pʼ (պ)				tʼ (տ)							kʼ (կ)
		AS Aspiration (phonetics) In phonetics, aspiration is the strong burst of air that accompanies either the release or, in the case of preaspiration, the closure of some obstruents. To feel or see the difference between aspirated and unaspirated sounds, one can put a hand or a lit candle in front of one's mouth, and say pin ...	pʰ (փ)		pʰ (բ, փ)		tʰ (թ)		tʰ (դ, թ)					kʰ (ք)		kʰ (գ, ք)
	VD		b (բ)		b (պ)		d (դ)		d (տ)					ɡ (գ)		ɡ (կ)
Fricative Fricative consonant Fricatives are consonants produced by forcing air through a narrow channel made by placing two articulators close together. These may be the lower lip against the upper teeth, in the case of ; the back of the tongue against the soft palate, in the case of German , the final consonant of Bach; or...	VL Voiceless In linguistics, voicelessness is the property of sounds being pronounced without the larynx vibrating. Phonologically, this is a type of phonation, which contrasts with other states of the larynx, but some object that the word "phonation" implies voicing, and that voicelessness is the lack of...					f (ֆ)	s (ս)			ʃ (շ)							χ (խ)	h (հ, յ)
	VD					v (վ , ւ , ու , ո )	z (զ)			ʒ (ժ)							ʁ (ղ)
Approximant							ɹ (ր)						j (յ, ե, ի)
Flap Flap consonant In phonetics, a flap or tap is a type of consonantal sound, which is produced with a single contraction of the muscles so that one articulator is thrown against another.-Contrast with stops and trills:...							ɾ (ռ)		ɾ (ռ, ր)
Lateral approximant Lateral consonant A lateral is an el-like consonant, in which airstream proceeds along the sides of the tongue, but is blocked by the tongue from going through the middle of the mouth....							l (լ)
Affricate Affricate consonant Affricates are consonants that begin as stops but release as a fricative rather than directly into the following vowel.- Samples :...	VL Voiceless In linguistics, voicelessness is the property of sounds being pronounced without the larynx vibrating. Phonologically, this is a type of phonation, which contrasts with other states of the larynx, but some object that the word "phonation" implies voicing, and that voicelessness is the lack of...	plain					ts (ծ)			tʃ (ճ)
		EJ Ejective consonant In phonetics, ejective consonants are voiceless consonants that are pronounced with simultaneous closure of the glottis. In the phonology of a particular language, ejectives may contrast with aspirated or tenuis consonants...						tsʼ (ծ)			tʃʼ (ճ)
		AS Aspiration (phonetics) In phonetics, aspiration is the strong burst of air that accompanies either the release or, in the case of preaspiration, the closure of some obstruents. To feel or see the difference between aspirated and unaspirated sounds, one can put a hand or a lit candle in front of one's mouth, and say pin ...					tsʰ (ց)		tsʰ (ձ, ց)	tʃʰ (չ)		tʃʰ (չ, ջ)
	VD						dz (ձ)		dz (ծ)	d͡ʒ (ջ)		d͡ʒ (ճ)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.