Editing Okinawan language (section)

====Palatalization====
The plosive consonants {{IPA|/t/}} and {{IPA|/k/}} historically palatalized and affricated into {{IPA|/t͡ɕ/}} before and occasionally following the glide {{IPA|/j/}} and the high vowel {{IPA|/i/}}: {{IPA|*/kiri/}} → {{IPA|/t͡ɕiɾi/}} ''chiri'' "fog", and  {{IPA|*/k(i)jora/}} → {{IPA|/t͡ɕuɾa/}} ''chura-'' "beautiful". This change preceded vowel raising, so that instances where {{IPA|/i/}} arose from {{IPA|*/e/}} did not trigger palatalization: {{IPA|*/ke/}} → {{IPA|/kiː/}} ''kī'' "hair".  Their voiced counterparts {{IPA|/d/}} and {{IPA|/ɡ/}} underwent the same effect, becoming {{IPA|/d͡ʑ/}} under such conditions: {{IPA|*/unaɡi/}} → {{IPA|/ʔɴnad͡ʑi/}} ''{{sc|q}}nnaji'' "eel", and {{IPA|*/nokoɡiri/}} → {{IPA|/nukud͡ʑiɾi/}} ''nukujiri'' "saw"; but {{IPA|*/kaɡeɴ/}} → {{IPA|/kaɡiɴ/}} ''kagin'' "seasoning".

Both {{IPA|/t/}} and {{IPA|/d/}} may or may not also allophonically affricate before the mid vowel {{IPA|/e/}}, though this pronunciation is increasingly rare. Similarly, the fricative consonant {{IPA|/s/}} palatalizes into {{IPA|[ɕ]}} before the glide {{IPA|/j/}} and the vowel {{IPA|/i/}}, including when {{IPA|/i/}} historically derives from {{IPA|/e/}}: {{IPA|*/sekai/}} → {{IPA|[ɕikeː]}} ''shikē'' "world". It may also palatalize before the vowel {{IPA|/e/}}, especially so in the context of [[Topic marker|topicalization]]: {{IPA|[duɕi]}} ''dushi'' → {{IPA|[duɕeː]}} ''dusē'' or ''dushē'' "(''topic'') friend".

In general, sequences containing the palatal consonant {{IPA|/j/}} are relatively rare and tend to exhibit depalatalization. For example, {{IPA|/mj/}} tends to merge with {{IPA|/n/}} ({{IPA|[mjaːku]}} ''myāku'' → {{IPA|[naːku]}} ''nāku'' "[[Miyako Islands|Miyako]]"); {{IPA|*/rj/}} has merged into {{IPA|/ɾ/}} and {{IPA|/d/}} ({{IPA|*/rjuː/}} → {{IPA|/ɾuː/}} ''rū'' ~ {{IPA|/duː/}} ''dū'' "dragon"); and {{IPA|/sj/}} has mostly become {{IPA|/s/}} ({{IPA|/sjui/}} ''shui'' → {{IPA|/sui/}} ''sui'' "[[Shuri, Okinawa|Shuri]]").