Editing Language/Vietnamese/Pronunciation/Alphabet-and-Pronunciation

<div class="pg_page_title">Vietnamese Alphabet & Pronunciation</div>
[[File:Vietnamese-Language-PolyglotClub.png|thumb]]
Hello Vietnamese learners 😀

In today's lesson, you will learn how to write the different letters of the Vietnamese alphabet, how to pronounce these letters whether it is through the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), or through a video with the pronunciation of the letters by a native speaker. You will also find at the end of this lesson a virtual keyboard to be able to type each special character of this language. After mastering the Vietnamese alphabet and pronunciation, you can further enhance your language skills by exploring our lessons on [[Language/Vietnamese/Vocabulary/Colors|Vietnamese Vocabulary - Colors]], [[Language/Vietnamese/Vocabulary/Hello-and-Goodbye|Vietnamese Vocabulary → Greetings and Introductions → Hello and ...]], and [[Language/Vietnamese/Grammar/Future-Tense|Vietnamese Grammar - Future Tense]].

Enjoy your learning journey!
__TOC__

==Vietnamese Alphabet and Pronunciation==
=== Alphabet ===
The Vietnamese alphabet (chữ Quốc ngữ) is the modern Latin writing script for Vietnamese. It uses the Latin script based on Romance languages. The Vietnamese alphabet contains 29 letters.
{| class="wikitable"
!Letter
!Name
!IPA
|-
|A a
|a
|/aː˧/
|-
|Ă ă
|á
|/aː˧˥/
|-
|Â â
|ớ
|/əː˧˥/
|-
|B b
|bê; bờ
|/ɓe˧, ɓəː˧˩/
|-
|C c
|xê; cờ
|/se˧, kəː˧˩/
|-
|D d
|dê; dờ
|/ze˧, zəː˧˩/
|-
|Đ đ
|đê; đờ
|/ɗe˧, ɗəː˧˩/
|-
|E e
|e
|/ɛ˧/
|-
|Ê ê
|ê
|/e˧/
|-
|G g
|giê; gờ
|/ze˧, ɣəː˧˩/
|-
|H h
|hát; hờ
|/hat˥, həː˧˩/
|-
|I i
|i; i ngắn
|/i˧, i˧ ŋan˧˥/
|-
|K k
|ca
|/kaː˧/
|-
|L l
|e-lờ; lờ
|/(ɛ˧)ləː˧˩/
|-
|M m
|em-mờ; mờ
|/(ɛm˧)məː˧˩/
|-
|N n
|en-nờ; nờ
|/(ɛn˧)nəː˧˩/
|-
|O o
|o
|/ɔ˧/
|-
|Ô ô
|ô
|/o˧/
|-
|Ơ ơ
|ơ
|/əː˧/
|-
|P p
|pê; pờ; bê phở (colloq.)
|/pe˧, pəː˧˩/
|-
|Q q
|cu; quy; quờ
|/ku˧, kwi˧, kwəː˧˩/
|-
|R r
|e-rờ; rờ
|/ɛ˧ɹəː˧˩, ʐəː˧˩/
|-
|S s
|ét-xì; sờ; sờ sẻ
|/ɛt˦˥si˧˩, ʂəː˧˩/
|-
|T t
|tê; tờ
|/te˧, təː˧˩/
|-
|U u
|u
|/u˧/
|-
|Ư ư
|ư
|/ɨ˧/
|-
|V v
|vê, vờ
|/ve˧, vəː˧/
|-
|X x
|ích xì; xờ; xờ xe
|/ik˦˥si˧˩, səː˧˩/
|-
|Y y
|i dài; i-cờ-rét
|/i˧zaːj˧˩, i˧kəː˧ɹɛt˦˥/
|}

Of course, 4 Vietnamese inappropriate Letters are F, J, W and Z!

=== Consonants ===
<hr />
<youtube>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuQkSwJPiPA</youtube>
<hr />
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" |apheme
! colspan="2" |Word-Initial (IPA)
! colspan="2" |Word-Final
! rowspan="2" |Notes
|-
!Northern
!Southern
!Northern
!Southern
|-
!B b
| colspan="2" |/ɓ/
| colspan="2" |
|
|-
!C c
| colspan="2" |/k/
| colspan="2" |/k̚/
|⟨k⟩ is used instead when preceding ⟨i y e ê⟩. K is also used before U in the Vietnamese city Pleiku.
⟨qu⟩ is used instead of ⟨co cu⟩ if a /w/ on-glide exists.
Realized as [k͡p] in word-final position following rounded vowels ⟨u ô o⟩.
|-
!Ch ch
|/tɕ/
|/c/
|/ʲk/
|/t̚/
|Multiple phonemic analyses of final ⟨ch⟩ have been proposed (main article).
|-
!D d
|/z/
|/j/
| colspan="2" rowspan="9" |
|In Middle Vietnamese, ⟨d⟩ represented /ð/. The distinction between ⟨d⟩ and ⟨gi⟩ is now purely etymological in most modern dialects.
|-
!Đ đ
| colspan="2" |/ɗ/
|
|-
!G g
| colspan="2" rowspan="2" |/ɣ/
|
|-
!Gh gh
|Spelling used ⟨gh⟩ instead of ⟨g⟩ before ⟨i e ê⟩, seemingly to follow the Italian convention. ⟨g⟩ is not allowed in these environments.
|-
!Gi gi
|/z/
|/j/
|In Middle Vietnamese, ⟨gi⟩ represented /ʝ/. The distinction between ⟨d⟩ and ⟨gi⟩ is now purely etymological in most modern dialects. Realized as [ʒ] in Northern spelling pronunciation. Spelled ⟨g⟩ before another ⟨i⟩.
|-
!H h
| colspan="2" |/h/
|
|-
!K k
| colspan="2" |/k/
|Spelling used instead of ⟨c⟩ before ⟨i y e ê⟩ to follow the European tradition. ⟨c⟩ is not allowed in these environments.
|-
!Kh kh
| colspan="2" |/x/
|In Middle Vietnamese, ⟨kh⟩ was pronounced [kʰ]
|-
!L l
| colspan="2" |/l/
|
|-
!M m
| colspan="2" |/m/
| colspan="2" |/m/
|
|-
!N n
| colspan="2" |/n/
|/n/
|/ŋ/
|In Southern Vietnamese, word-final ⟨n⟩ is realized as [ŋ] if not following ⟨i ê⟩.
|-
!Ng ng
| colspan="2" rowspan="2" |/ŋ/
| colspan="2" |/ŋ/
|Realized as [ŋ͡m] in word-final position following rounded vowels ⟨u ô o⟩.
|-
!Ngh ngh
| colspan="2" |
|Spelling used instead of ⟨ng⟩ before ⟨i e ê⟩ in accordance with ⟨gh⟩.
|-
!Nh nh
| colspan="2" |/ɲ/
|/ʲŋ/
|/n/
|Multiple phonemic analyses of final ⟨nh⟩ have been proposed (main article).
|-
!P p
| colspan="2" |
| colspan="2" |/p/
|Only occurs initially in loanwords. Some Vietnamese pronounce it as a "b" sound instead (as in Arabic).
|-
!Ph ph
| colspan="2" |/f/
| colspan="2" rowspan="4" |
|In Middle Vietnamese, ⟨ph⟩ was pronounced [pʰ]
|-
!Qu qu
| colspan="2" |/kʷ/
|Spelling used in place of ⟨co cu⟩ if a /w/ on-glide exists.
|-
!R r
|/z/
|/r/
|Variably pronounced as a fricative [ʐ], approximant [ɹ], flap [ɾ] or trill [r] in Southern speech.
|-
!S s
|/s/
|/ʂ/
|Realized as [ʃ] in Northern spelling pronunciation.
|-
!T t
| colspan="2" |/t/
|/t̚/
|/k/
|In Southern Vietnamese, word-final ⟨t⟩ is realized as [k] if not following ⟨i ê⟩.
|-
!Th th
| colspan="2" |/tʰ/
| colspan="2" rowspan="4" |
|
|-
!Tr tr
|/tɕ/
|/ʈ/
|Realized as [tʃ] in Northern spelling pronunciation.
|-
!V v
| colspan="2" |/v/
|In Middle Vietnamese, it was represented by a b with flourish ⟨⟩ and was pronounced [β].
Can be realized as [v] in Southern speech through spelling pronunciation and in loanwords.
|-
!X x
| colspan="2" |/s/
|In Middle Vietnamese, ⟨x⟩ was pronounced [ɕ].
|}

=== Spelling and pronunciation in Vietnamese ===
<hr />
<youtube>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qBvuZTI1IM</youtube>
<hr />
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Spelling
!Sound
|-
!a
| /a/ ([æ] in some dialects) except as below
 /ă/ in ''au'' /ăw/ and ''ay'' /ăj/ (but /a/ in ''ao'' /aw/ and ''ai'' /aj/)
 /ăj/ before syllable-final ''nh'' /ŋ/ and ''ch'' /k/, see

 Vietnamese phonology#Analysis of final ''ch'', ''nh''
 /ə̯/ in ''ưa'' /ɨə̯/, ''ia'' /iə̯/ and ''ya'' /iə̯/

 /ə̯/ in ''ua'' except after ''q''
|-
!ă
| /ă/
|-
!â
| /ə̆/
|-
!e
| /ɛ/
|-
!ê
| /e/ except as below
 /ə̆j/ before syllable-final ''nh'' /ŋ/ and ''ch'' /k/, see
 Vietnamese phonology#Analysis of final ''ch'', ''nh''

 /ə̯/ in ''iê'' /iə̯/ and ''yê'' /iə̯/
|-
!i
| /i/ except as below
 /j/ after any vowel letter
|-
!o
| /ɔ/ except as below
 /ăw/ before ''ng'' and ''c''
 /w/ after any vowel letter (= after ''a'' or ''e'')

 /w/ before any vowel letter except ''i'' (= before ''ă'', ''a'' or ''e'')
|-
!ô
| /o/ except as below
 /ə̆w/ before ''ng'' and ''c'' except after a ''u'' that is not preceded by a ''q''
 /ə̯/ in ''uô'' except after ''q''
|-
!ơ
| /ə/ except as below
 /ə̯/ in ''ươ'' /ɨə̯/
|-
!u
| /u/ except as below
 /w/ after ''q'' or any vowel letter
 /w/ before any vowel letter except ''a'', ''ô'' and ''i''

 Before ''a'', ''ô'' and ''i'': /w/ if preceded by ''q'', /u/ otherwise
|-
!ư
| /ɨ/
|-
!y
| /i/ except as below
 /j/ after any vowel letter except ''u'' (= after ''â'' and ''a'')
|}

=== Tone marks ===
{| class="wikitable"
!'''Diacritic'''
!'''Symbol'''
!'''Name'''
!'''Contour'''
!'''Vowels with diacritic'''
|-
|unmarked
|N/A
|Ngang
|mid level, ˧
|A/a, Ă/ă, Â/â, E/e, Ê/ê, I/i, O/o, Ô/ô, Ơ/ơ, U/u, Ư/ư, Y/y
|-
|grave accent
|à
|Huyền
|low falling, ˨˩
|À/à, Ằ/ằ, Ầ/ầ, È/è, Ề/ề, Ì/ì, Ò/ò, Ồ/ồ, Ờ/ờ, Ù/ù, Ừ/ừ, Ỳ/ỳ
|-
|hook above
|ả
|Hỏi
|mid falling, ˧˩ (Northern); dipping, ˨˩˥ (Southern)
|Ả/ả, Ẳ/ẳ, Ẩ/ẩ, Ẻ/ẻ, Ể/ể, Ỉ/ỉ, Ỏ/ỏ, Ổ/ổ, Ở/ở, Ủ/ủ, Ử/ử, Ỷ/ỷ
|-
|tilde
|ã
|Ngã
|glottalized rising, ˧˥ˀ (Northern); slightly lengthened Dấu Hỏi tone (Southern)
|Ã/ã, Ẵ/ẵ, Ẫ/ẫ, Ẽ/ẽ, Ễ/ễ, Ĩ/ĩ, Õ/õ, Ỗ/ỗ, Ỡ/ỡ, Ũ/ũ, Ữ/ữ, Ỹ/ỹ
|-
|acute accent
|á
|Sắc
|high rising, ˧˥
|Á/á, Ắ/ắ, Ấ/ấ, É/é, Ế/ế, Í/í, Ó/ó, Ố/ố, Ớ/ớ, Ú/ú, Ứ/ứ, Ý/ý
|-
|dot below
|ạ
|Nặng
|glottalized falling, ˧˨ˀ (Northern); low rising, ˩˧ (Southern)
|Ạ/ạ, Ặ/ặ, Ậ/ậ, Ẹ/ẹ, Ệ/ệ, Ị/ị, Ọ/ọ, Ộ/ộ, Ợ/ợ, Ụ/ụ, Ự/ự, Ỵ/ỵ
|}

=== English Approximant ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Vietnamese Alphabet
!English Sound
!Pronunciation Example
|-
|a
|α:
|'a' as in father
|-
|â
|ɜ
|'u' as in but
|-
|ă
|α
|'a' as in hat
|-
|b
|ɓ
|'b' as in big
|-
|c
|k
|'c' as in cat
|-
|ch
|t∫, c
|'ch' as in church
|-
|d
|z, j
|'z' as in zoo (north), 'y' as in yes (south)
|-
|đ
|ɗ
|'d' as in done
|-
|e
|ε
|'e' as in get
|-
|ê
|e
|'a' as in mate
|-
|g
|ɣ
|'g' as in good
|-
|gh
|ɣ
|'g' as in good
|-
|gi
|z, j
|'z' as in zoo (north), 'y' as in yes (south)
|-
|h
|h
|'h' as in house
|-
|i
|i
|'i' as in machine (north), 'b' as in bit (south)
|-
|k
|k
|'c' as in cat
|-
|kh
|kh, x
|'ch' as in the German Bach
|-
|l
|l
|'l' as in life
|-
|m
|m
|'m' as in man
|-
|n
|n
|'n' as in nice
|-
|ng
|ŋ
|'ng' as in singer
|-
|ngh
|ŋ
|'ng' as in singer
|-
|nh
|ɲ
|'ny' as in cranyon
|-
|o
|ɔ
|'o' as in hot
|-
|ô
|o
|'oa' as in boat
|-
|ơ
|ɜ:
|'u' as in fur
|-
|p
|p
|watch video below
|-
|ph
|f
|'f' as in find
|-
|qu
|kw
|'qu' as in queue
|-
|r
|z, ɹ
|'z' as in zoo (north), 'r' as in ring (south)
|-
|s
|s, ∫
|'s' as in sore (north), 's' as in sure (south)
|-
|t
|t
|'t' as in stop
|-
|th
|th
|'t' as in top
|-
|tr
|t∫, ʈɽ
|'ch' as in church (north), 'tr' as in tree (south)
|-
|u
|ʊ
|'oo' as in boot
|-
|ư
|ɨ
|'oo' as in boot
|-
|v
|v, j
|'v' as in van (north), 'y' as in yes (south)
|-
|x
|s
|'s' as in sore
|-
|y
|i
|watch video below
|}

==Video - Vietnamese Alphabet Pronunciation by a Native Speaker==
<youtube>qUOq_qLZacc</youtube>



==Vietnamese Online Virtual Keyboard==
__NOCACHE__

<include iframe="" src="https://polyglotclub.com/keyboard.php?souscat_url=vietnamese" height="950px" frameborder="0" scrolling="yes" />

==Sources==
*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnamese_alphabet
*http://mylanguages.org/vietnamese_alphabet.php
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuQkSwJPiPA


[[Category:Alphabet-and-Pronunciation]]
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