Editing Navajo language (section)

==Orthography==
Early attempts at a Navajo orthography were made in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. One such attempt was based on the [[Latin alphabet]], particularly the [[English alphabet|English variety]], with some additional letters and diacritics. Anthropologists were frustrated by Navajo's having several sounds that are not found in English and lack of other sounds that are.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bahr|2004|pp=33–34}}</ref> Finally, the current Navajo orthography was developed between 1935 and 1940<ref name="Minahan 2013 262"/> by Young and Morgan.

{|border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" class="Unicode" style="vertical-align:top; border-collapse:collapse; border:1px solid #808080; text-align:center; clear:both;"
|-
! colspan=16 style="background-color:#fff7e9; font-family:inherit; font-weight:normal;" | '''Navajo Orthography'''
|-style="vertical-align:top; background:#ffffff; font-size:larger;"
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ʼ</big><br /><small>ʔ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>a</big><br /><small>ɑ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>á</big><br /><small>ɑ́</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ą</big><br /><small>ɑ̃</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ą́</big><br /><small>ɑ̃́</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>aa</big><br /><small>ɑː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>áá</big><br /><small>ɑ́ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ąą</big><br /><small>ɑ̃ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ą́ą́</big><br /><small>ɑ̃́ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>b</big><br /><small>p</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ch</big><br /><small>tʃʰ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>chʼ</big><br /><small>tʃʼ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>d</big><br /><small>t</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>dl</big><br /><small>tˡ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>dz</big><br /><small>ts</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>e</big><br /><small>e</small>
|-style="vertical-align:top; background:#f0f0f0; font-size:larger;"
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>é</big><br /><small>é</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ę</big><br /><small>ẽ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ę́</big><br /><small>ẽ́</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ee</big><br /><small>eː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>éé</big><br /><small>éː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ęę</big><br /><small>ẽː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ę́ę́</big><br /><small>ẽ́ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>g</big><br /><small>k</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>gh</big><br /><small>ɣ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>h</big><br /><small>h/x</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>hw</big><br /><small>hʷ/xʷ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>i</big><br /><small>ɪ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>í</big><br /><small>ɪ́</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>į</big><br /><small>ɪ̃</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>į́</big><br /><small>ɪ̃́</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ii</big><br /><small>ɪː</small>
|-style="vertical-align:top; background:#ffffff; font-size:larger;"
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>íí</big><br /><small>ɪ́ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>įį</big><br /><small>ɪ̃ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>į́į́</big><br /><small>ɪ̃́ː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>j</big><br /><small>tʃ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>k</big><br /><small>kʰ/kx</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>kʼ</big><br /><small>kʼ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>kw</big><br /><small> kʰʷ/kxʷ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>l</big><br /><small>l</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ł</big><br /><small>ɬ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>m</big><br /><small>m</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>n</big><br /><small>n</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>o</big><br /><small>o</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ó</big><br /><small>ó</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ǫ</big><br /><small>õ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ǫ́</big><br /><small>ṍ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>oo</big><br /><small>oː</small>
|-style="vertical-align:top; background:#f0f0f0; font-size:larger;"
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>óó</big><br /><small>óː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ǫǫ</big><br /><small>õː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ǫ́ǫ́</big><br /><small>ṍː</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>s</big><br /><small>s</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>sh</big><br /><small>ʃ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>t</big><br /><small> tʰ/tx</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>tʼ</big><br /><small>tʼ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>tł</big><br /><small>tɬʰ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>tłʼ</big><br /><small>tɬʼ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>ts</big><br /><small>tsʰ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>tsʼ</big><br /><small>tsʼ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>w</big><br /><small>w/ɣʷ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>x</big><br /><small>h/x</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>y</big><br /><small>j/ʝ</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>z</big><br /><small>z</small>
  | style="width:6.25%;" | <big>zh</big><br /><small>ʒ</small>
|}

An apostrophe (ʼ) is used to mark ejective consonants (e.g. ''chʼ'', ''tłʼ'')<ref name="Faltz 1998 5">{{Harvnb|Faltz|1998|p=5}}</ref> as well as mid-word or final glottal stops. However, initial glottal stops are usually not marked.<ref name="Faltz 1998 3"/>

The [[voiceless glottal fricative]] ({{IPA|/h/}}) is normally written as ''h'', but appears as ''x'' after the consonant ''s'' (optionally after ''sh'') at syllable boundary (ex: {{lang|nv|yiyiis-<u>x</u>ı̨́}}), and when it represents the depreciative augment found after stem initial (ex: {{lang|nv|ts<u>x</u>ı̨́įł-go}}, {{lang|nv|yi-ch<u>x</u>a}}).<ref name="Faltz 1998 5"/><ref>{{Harvnb|McDonough|2003|p=85}}</ref> The [[voiced velar fricative]] is written as ''y'' before ''i'' and ''e'' (where it is palatalized {{IPA|/ʝ/}}), as ''w'' before ''o'' (where it is labialized {{IPA|/ɣʷ/}}), and as ''gh'' before ''a''.<ref>{{Harvnb|McDonough|2003|p=160}}</ref>

Navajo represents nasalized vowels with an [[ogonek]] ( ˛ ), sometimes described as a reverse [[cedilla]]; and represents the [[voiceless alveolar lateral fricative]] ({{IPA|/ɬ/}}) with a barred ''L'' (capital ''Ł'', lowercase ''ł'').<ref name="Spolsky 2009 86">{{Harvnb|Spolsky|2009|p=86}}</ref> The ogonek is most often placed centrally under a vowel{{citation needed|date=November 2020}}, but it was imported from [[Polish orthography|Polish]] and [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]], which do not usually center it nor use it under certain vowels such as ''o'' or any vowels with accent marks. For example, in Navajo works, the ogonek below lowercase ''a'' is most often shown centered below the letter, whereas fonts with ''a'' with ogonek intended for Polish and Lithuanian have its ogonek connected to the bottom right of the letter. Very few [[Unicode font]]s display the ogonek differently in Navajo with language tagging than in Polish or Lithuanian.

[[File:KB USA-Navajo.svg|thumb|right|Navajo Standard keyboard layouts, Navajo font (top) and [[Unicode]] (bottom)]]

The first Navajo-capable [[typewriter]] was developed in preparation for a Navajo newspaper and dictionary created in the 1940s. The advent of early computers in the 1960s necessitated special fonts to input Navajo text, and the first Navajo font was created in the 1970s.<ref name="Spolsky 2009 86"/> Navajo [[virtual keyboard]]s were made available for [[iOS]] devices in November 2012 and [[Android (operating system)|Android]] devices in August 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/09/12/navajo-keyboard-available-android-devices-151252|publisher=Indian Country (Today Media Network)|date=September 12, 2013|title=Navajo Keyboard Now Available on Android Devices!|access-date=August 13, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140525195238/http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/09/12/navajo-keyboard-available-android-devices-151252|archive-date=May 25, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>