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The single consonants of Frisian
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Frisian has the following consonants: m, b, v, p, f, n, l, r, d, t, z, s, ŋ, ɡ, ɣ, k, x, ʔ, h.

The consonants can be classified along the following traditional dimensions:

  1. Manner features
    • Sonority: sonorant (specified as +son) vs. obstruent (specified as -son);
    • Voice: voiced (specified as +voice) vs. voiceless (specified as -voice);
    • Degree of closure/obstruction: plosive (specified as -cont) vs. fricative (specified as +cont);
  2. Place features Place of closure/obstruction:
    1. labial (including labiodental)
    2. coronal (dental-alveolar)
    3. dorsal (velar)
    4. glottal (laryngeal)

This leads to the following classification:

  1. Along the dimension of Sonority:
    Table 1
    1. Sonorants: i. liquids: l,r

    ii. nasals: m, n, ŋ

    2. Obstruents: h, ʔ, b, p, d, t, ɡ, k, v, f, z, s, ɣ, x

  2. Along the dimension of Voice:
    Table 2
    1. Voiced: b, v, d, z, ɡ, ɣ

    2. Voiceless: p, f, t, s, k, x

  3. Along the dimension of the Degree of closure:
    Table 3

    1. Plosives: i. oral: b, p, d, t, ɡ, k

    ii. nasal: m, n, ŋ

    2. Fricatives: v, f, z, s, ɣ, x

  4. Along the dimension of the Place of closure/obstruction:
    Table 4

    1. labial consonants: m, b, v, p, f

    2. coronal consonants: n, l, r, d, t, z, s

    3. dorsal consonants: ŋ, ɡ, ɣ, k, x

    4. glottal consonants: ʔ, h

The subsets which result from the classification all play a role, either in (morpho)phonological patterns and processes, language change or dialectal divisions.

References
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