Editing Lao language (section)

==Phonology==

===Consonants===
Many consonants in Lao have a [[Labialization|labialized]] and plain form, thus creating a [[phonemic contrast]]. The complete inventory of Lao consonants is as shown in the table below:<ref name=Erickson>Blaine Erickson, 2001. [http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf4/erickson2001origins.pdf "On the Origins of Labialized Consonants in Lao"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011133024/http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf4/erickson2001origins.pdf |date=2017-10-11 }}. Analysis based on L.&nbsp;N. Morev, A.&nbsp;A. Moskalyov and Y.&nbsp;Y. Plam, (1979). ''The Lao Language''. Moscow: USSR Academy of Sciences, Institute of Oriental Studies. Accessed 2009-12-19.</ref><ref name=":0" />

==== Initial consonants ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |
! rowspan="2" | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! colspan="2" | [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! colspan="2" | [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! colspan="2" | [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! colspan="2" | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|- class=small
! plain
! [[Labialization|lab.]]
! plain
! lab.
! plain
! lab.
! plain
! lab.
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Nasal stop|Nasal]]
| {{IPA link|m}} || {{IPA link|n}} || || {{IPA link|ɲ}} || || {{IPA link|ŋ}} || {{IPA link|ŋʷ}} || ||
|-
! rowspan="3" | [[Stop consonant|Plosive]]
! <small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
| {{IPA link|b}} || {{IPA link|d}} || || || || || || ||
|-
! <small>[[voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
| {{IPA link|p}} || {{IPA link|t}} || || {{IPA link|tɕ}} || {{IPA link|tɕʷ}} || {{IPA link|k}} || {{IPA link|kʷ}} || {{IPA link|ʔ}} || {{IPA link|ʔʷ}}
|-
! <small>[[Aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]]</small>
| {{IPA link|pʰ}} || {{IPA link|tʰ}} || {{IPA link|tʷʰ}} || || || {{IPA link|kʰ}} || {{IPA link|kʷʰ}} || ||
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
| {{IPA link|f}} || {{IPA link|s}} || {{IPA link|sʷ}} || || || || || {{IPA link|h}} ||
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|{{IPA link|ʋ}}~{{IPA link|w}}
| {{IPA link|l}} || {{IPA link|lʷ}} || {{IPA link|j}} || || || || ||
|}

==== Final consonants ====
All [[plosive consonant|plosive sounds]] (besides the [[glottal stop]] {{IPA|/ʔ/}}) are [[Unreleased stop|unreleased]] in final position. Hence, final {{IPAslink|p}}, {{IPAslink|t}}, and {{IPAslink|k}} sounds are pronounced as {{IPA|[p̚]}}, {{IPA|[t̚]}}, and {{IPA|[k̚]}} respectively.
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!
![[Labial consonant|Labial]]
![[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
![[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
![[Velar consonant|Velar]]
![[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
![[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
|{{IPA link|m}}
|{{IPA link|n}}
|
|{{IPA link|ŋ}}
|
|-
![[Plosive consonant|Plosive]]
|{{IPA link|p}}
|{{IPA link|t}}
|
|{{IPA link|k}}
|{{IPA link|ʔ}}<sup>*</sup>
|-
![[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|{{IPA link|w}}
|
|{{IPA link|j}}
|
|
|}
:* The glottal stop appears at the end when no final follows a short vowel.

===Vowels===
All vowels make a phonemic [[vowel length|length]] distinction. Diphthongs are all [[centering diphthong]]s with [[falling diphthong|falling sonority]].<ref name=Erickson/> The monophthongs and diphthongs are as shown in the following table:<ref name=Erickson/><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Enfield |first=N. J.|title=A Grammar of Lao|publisher=Mouton de Gruyter|year=2007|location=Berlin and New York}}</ref>

{{Col-begin}}
{{Col-2}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+Short vowel phonemes
! colspan=2 rowspan=2 |
! rowspan=2 | [[Front vowel|Front]]
! rowspan=2 | [[Central vowel|Central]]
! colspan=2 | [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! [[Unrounded vowel|unr.]]
! [[Rounded vowel|rnd.]]
|-
! colspan=2 | [[Diphthong]]s
| {{IPA link|iaˀ}}
| colspan="2" | {{IPA link|ɯaˀ}}
| {{IPA link|uaˀ}}
|-
! rowspan=4 {{vert header|va=middle|[[Monophthong]]s}}
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPA link|i}}
| colspan="2" | {{IPA link|ɯ}}
| {{IPA link|u}}
|-
! [[Close-mid vowel|Close-mid]]
| {{IPA link|e}}
| colspan="2" | {{IPA link|ɤ}}
| {{IPA link|o}}
|-
! [[Open-mid vowel|Open-mid]]
| {{IPA link|ɛ}}
|
|
| {{IPA link|ɔ}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
|
| {{IPA link|ä|a}}
|
|
|}
{{Col-2}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+Long vowel phonemes
! colspan=2 rowspan=2 |
! rowspan=2 | [[Front vowel|Front]]
! rowspan=2 | [[Central vowel|Central]]
! colspan=2 | [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! [[Unrounded vowel|unr.]]
! [[Rounded vowel|rnd.]]
|-
! colspan=2 | [[Diphthong]]s
| {{IPA|ia}}
| colspan="2" | {{IPA|ɯa}}
| {{IPA|ua}}
|-
! rowspan=4 {{vert header|va=middle|[[Monophthong]]s}}
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPA link|iː}}
| colspan="2" | {{IPA link|ɯː}}
| {{IPA link|uː}}
|-
! [[Close-mid vowel|Close-mid]]
| {{IPA link|eː}}
| colspan="2" | {{IPA link|ɤː}}
| {{IPA link|oː}}
|-
! [[Open-mid vowel|Open-mid]]
| {{IPA link|ɛː}}
|
|
| {{IPA link|ɔː}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
|
| {{IPA link|ä|aː}}
|
|
|}
{{Col-end}}

===Tones===
Lao has six lexical tones.<ref>Blaine Erickson, 2001. [http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf4/erickson2001origins.pdf "On the Origins of Labialized Consonants in Lao"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011133024/http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf4/erickson2001origins.pdf |date=2017-10-11 }}. Analysis based on T. Hoshino and R. Marcus (1981). ''Lao for Beginners: An Introduction to the Spoken and Written Language of Laos''. Rutland/Tokyo: Tuttle. Accessed 2009-12-19.</ref> However, the Vientiane and the Luang Prabang dialects have five tones (see below) (Brown 1965; Osatananda, 1997, 2015).<ref>Brown, J. Marvin. 1965. ''From Ancient Thai to Modern Dialects.'' Bangkok: Social Science Association Press.</ref><ref name=Osatananda1997>{{cite thesis |id={{ProQuest|304347191}} |last1=Osatananda |first1=Varisa |title=Tone in Vientiane Lao |year=1997 }}</ref><ref name=Osatananda2015>{{cite journal |last1=Osatananda |first1=Varisa |date=August 2015 |title=Lao Khrang and Luang Phrabang Lao: A comparison of tonal systems and foreign-accent rating by Luang Phrabang judges |journal=The Journal of Lao Studies |volume=Special Issue 2 |pages=110–143 |url=https://www.laostudies.org/system/files/subscription/Varisa.pdf }}</ref>

==== Smooth syllables ====
There are six tones in smooth syllables, that is, in syllables ending in a vowel or other [[Sonorant|sonorant sound]] ({{IPA|[m], [n], [ŋ], [w],}} and {{IPAblink|j}}).

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! Name
! Lao
! Phonemic ([[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]])
! Phonetic ([[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]])
! Gloss
|-
| Rising
| ຂາ
| {{IPA|/kʰǎː/}}
| {{IPA|[kʰäː˨˦]}} or {{IPA|[kʰäː˨˩˦]}}
| leg
|-
| High
| ຄາ
| {{IPA|/kʰáː/}}
| {{IPA|[kʰäː˥]}} or {{IPA|[kʰäː˦˥]}}
| stuck
|-
| Falling
| ຄ້າ
| {{IPA|/kʰâː/}}
| {{IPA|[kʰäː˦˩]}} or {{IPA|[kʰäː˥˨]}}
| trade
|-
| Mid
| ຂ່າ, ຄ່າ
| {{IPA|/kʰāː/}}
| {{IPA|[kʰäː˧]}}
| [[galangal]], value resp.
|-
| Low
| ກາ
| {{IPA|/kàː/}}
| {{IPA|[käː˩]}} or {{IPA|[käː˨˩]}}
| crow
|-
| Mid-low
| ຂ້າ
| {{IPA|/kʰa᷆ː/}} or {{IPA|/kʰȁː/}}
| {{IPA|[kʰäː˧˩]}}
| kill, servant
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ The tones in the Vientiane and Luang Prabang dialects in smooth syllables
|-
! colspan="3" | Vientiane<br>(Osatananda, 1997, p.&nbsp;40)<ref name=Osatananda1997/> !! colspan="3" | Luang Prabang<br>(Osatananda, 2015, p.&nbsp;122)<ref name=Osatananda2015/>
|-
! Name !! Tone letters !! Example(s) !! Name !! Tone letters !! Example(s)
|-
| low || 1(3) or ˩(˧){{efn|The tone letters are 13 (˩˧) in citation form or before a pause and 11 (˩˩) elsewhere, e.g., /haː˩˧ paː˩˧/ ຫາປາ "look for fish" becomes [haː˩˩ paː˩˧] (Osatananda, 1997, p. 119).<ref name=Osatananda1997/>}} || /kʰaː˩(˧)/ ຂາ "leg"<br>/kaː˩(˧)/ ກາ "crow" || high-falling-to-mid-level || 533 or ˥˧˧ || /kʰaː˥˧˧/ ຂາ "leg"
|-
| high || 35 or ˧˥ || /kʰaː˧˥/ ຄາ "stuck" || low rising || 12 or ˩˨ || /kʰaː˩˨/ ຄາ "stuck"<br>/kaː˩˨/ ກາ "crow"
|-
| mid level || 33 or ˧˧ || /kʰaː˧˧/ ຂ່າ "galangal"<br>/kʰaː˧˧/ ຄ່າ "value" || mid-falling{{efn|This tone is realized as a low level tone (22 or ˨˨) in a checked syllable with a short vowel (e.g., [kʰap˨˨] ຄັບ "tight") (Osatananda, 2015, p. 122).<ref name=Osatananda2015/>}} || 32 or ˧˨ || /kʰaː˧˨/ ຂ່າ "galangal"<br>/kʰaː˧˨/ ຄ່າ "trade"
|-
| mid-fall || 31 or ˧˩ || /kʰaː˧˩/ ຂ້າ "kill" || high level-falling{{efn|This tone is realized as a mid level-falling tone (332 or ˧˧˨) in a checked syllable with a long vowel (e.g., [kʰaːp˧˧˨] ຂາບ "prostrate") (Osatananda, 2015, p. 122).<ref name=Osatananda2015/>}} || 552 or ˥˥˨ || /kʰaː˥˥˨/ ຂ້າ "kill"
|-
| high-fall || 52 or ˥˨ || /kʰaː˥˨/ ຄ້າ "trade" || mid-rising{{efn|This tone is realized as a low rising tone (23 or ˨˧) in a checked syllable with a long vowel (e.g., [kʰaːp˨˧] ຄາບ "dead skin of a reptile") (Osatananda, 2015, p. 122).<ref name=Osatananda2015/>}} || 34 or ˧˦ || /kʰaː˧˦/ ຄ້າ "trade"
|}
{{Notelist}}

==== Checked syllables ====
The number of contrastive tones is reduced to four in checked syllables, that is, in syllables ending in an [[Obstruent|obstruent sound]] ({{IPA|[p], [t], [k],}} or the 
[[glottal stop]] {{IPAblink|ʔ}}).

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Tone !! Lao !! Phonemic !! Phonetic !! Gloss
|-
| High || ຫັກ || {{IPA|/hák/}} || {{IPA|[häk̚˦˥]}} || break
|-
| Low || ຮັກ || {{IPA|/hàk/}} || {{IPA|[häk̚˨˩]}} || love
|-
| Mid-low || ຫາກ || {{IPA|/hȁːk/}} || {{IPA|[häːk̚˧˩]}} || if, inevitably
|-
| Falling || ຮາກ || {{IPA|/hâːk/}} || {{IPA|[häːk̚˦˩]}} || vomit, root
|}

===Syllables===
Lao syllables are of the form (C)V(C), i.e., they consist of a vowel in the [[syllable nucleus]], optionally preceded by a single consonant in the [[syllable onset]] and optionally followed by a single consonant in the [[syllable coda]]. The only consonant clusters allowed are syllable initial clusters {{IPA|/kw/ or /kʰw/}}. Any consonant may appear in the onset, but the labialized consonants do not occur before [[rounded vowel]]s.<ref name=Erickson/>

One difference between Thai and Lao is that in Lao initial clusters are simplified. For example, the official name of Laos is Romanized as ''Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao'' or ''Sathalanalat Pasathipatai Pasason Lao'', with the Thai analog being ''Satharanarat Prachathipatai Prachachon Lao'' ({{lang|th|สาธารณรัฐประชาธิปไตยประชาชนลาว}}), indicating the simplification of Thai ''pr'' to Lao ''p''.

Only {{IPA|/p t k ʔ m n ŋ w j/}} may appear in the coda. If the vowel in the nucleus is short, it must be followed by a consonant in the coda; {{IPAslink|ʔ}} in the coda can be preceded only by a short vowel. Open syllables (i.e., those with no coda consonant) and syllables ending in one of the [[sonorant]]s {{IPA|/m n ŋ w j/}} take one of the six tones, syllables ending in {{IPA|/p t k/}} take one of four tones, and syllables ending in {{IPAslink|ʔ}} take one of only two tones.<ref name=Erickson/>