Spelling & Pronunciation

The Alphabet

Becoming literate in Yaqui presents a unique challenge as the language has traditionally been passed down orally rather than in writing. Because of this, there is no single, standardized way to write Yaqui even today. Instead, multiple spelling systems have developed, each with its own approach to representing sounds. This guide organizes these variations into three main systems: the Mexican system, which is based on Spanish spelling, the United States’ system, which is based on English spelling, and the academic system, used in linguistic studies, which tends to mostly follow either the Mexican or United States’ standard depending on the location of the scholar while introducing unique symbols for certain sounds, such as č for ch and ʔ or ? for the glottal stop (a brief pause in speech).

Since spelling conventions and ideas about what counts as a “letter” differ between English and Spanish, there isn’t a universal Yaqui alphabet. Here, I focus on the letters most commonly used in Yaqui writing and explain their pronunciations to make them easier to learn. This guide primarily uses the United States’ system because the project focuses on preserving Yaqui in the United States. However, the Mexican system is included to support international literacy among Yaqui speakers, and the academic system is provided for those interested in reading more technical or scholarly texts. To the left of these systems, you’ll see how each sound is written using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), a tool linguists use to represent speech sounds accurately. If you’re unfamiliar with IPA, don’t worry; I’ve included approximate English equivalents for each sound that differs from English further down the page to help you.

It’s important to note that these spelling systems weren’t formally created by specific individuals or organizations. Instead, they reflect the various methods of recording a language that was historically spoken far more than written. One of the earliest recorded attempts to write Yaqui occurred in the early 18th century, using Spanish orthography. These early transcriptions were often imprecise when it came to accurately and consistently capturing Yaqui sounds on paper. For example, the word wikichim, “birds”, was once written as uikitzim, and itom, “us, our”, sometimes appeared as ytom. Because these early spellings were irregular and experimental, this guide won’t focus on them. Instead, it is meant to provide a straightforward introduction to the Yaqui writing systems while honoring the different ways the language has been represented by both Yaqui-speaking communities and scholars.

Consonants

Most Yaqui consonants are pronounced similarly to their English counterparts. For convenience, we will split the consonants used in Yaqui into three impromptu groupings, being hard, soft, and complex and go over their pronunciation.

Hard consonants are also called “stops” because they momentarily block airflow when pronounced. These include ’, k, p, and t. The Glottal stop, represented by an apostrophe, is called so because it is made by quickly closing the “glottis” (an area of the throat). It is the same sound as the pause in English filler words like uh-oh, uh-uh or mm-mm. Unlike in English, where the glottal stop’s presence is incidental and secondary, it’s presence is important in Yaqui, because its absence could change the meaning of a word. While this consonant is always explicitly written in academic transcriptions, in everyday Yaqui writing (in both Mexican and United States’ standards), it is implied at the start of words that begin with a vowel. For example, aso’ola, “baby”, begins with a glottal stop but is not written as ‘aso’ola, except in academic texts where it may appear as ʔasoʔola.

k, p and t in Yaqui also make sounds similar to the sounds they make in English. However, in English, when these letters come at the beginning of a word or at the beginning of a stressed syllable (as king or attack), they are pronounced with a puff of air. While it may not change the meaning of a word, one should avoid this puff of air for a more natural pronunciation. Additionally, t is pronounced using the blade, or flat surface, of the tongue against the roof of the mouth like the English t does, rather than using the tip of tongue as in Spanish.

The majority of Yaqui consonants fall into the grouping of soft consonants. These include h, l, m, n, r, s, v, w, and y. All of the above are pronounced as they are in Engish except for r and v to some extent. The Yaqui r does not resemble the English r. Instead, it sounds like the soft d in English words where t or d appears between two vowels, such as the in butter or in ladder. v is pronounced in a spectrum between b and v, similar to the spanish b/v. Although its exact pronunciation can vary depending on the speaker and context, using the English v (with the upper teeth pressing lightly on the lower lip) is generally acceptable.

The last grouping, complex consonants, consists of bw and ch. While English does not have a direct equivalent to the Yaqui bw, something similar can occur across word boundaries, such as in crab water. In Yaqui, bw is a b pronounced with rounded lips, but the average English speaker may approximate this sound as a b followed by a w. This is sufficient to be understood, as b is not a sound that tends to occur alone in Yaqui, if at all, as it is not a sound native to Yaqui pronunciation. ch, on the other hand, is pronounced just like the ch in English words such as chair.

In Yaqui, consonants can be lengthened or doubled. This is shown in spelling by writing the consonant twice. For example, when reduplicated, ténku, “a dream, to dream”, becomes téttenku “be dreaming, often dreams”. There are three exceptions to this rule, however. When lengthened, bw becomes -bbw- instead of -bwbw-. For example, bweeka “wide, broad” becomes bwebbweka “very wide, very broad”. When lengthened, ch becomes -tch- instead of -chch-. For example, cháe (to call, to yell) becomes chátchae (be calling, calls often). Finally, there does not seem to be a long form of r, at least not attested in writing. For example, the Spanish word burro, “donkey”, is borrowed into Yaqui as vúro, not vúrro.

Yaqui generally does not use the letters b, d, f and g except in loanwords. Otherwise they are assimilated to the sounds v, l, p and w respectively. Compare Bethlehem with Veleem, David with Lavii, alféres, “flag-bearer”, with álpes, angel de la guarda, “guardian angel”, with ánkelwáata. In the modern day, however, it is more common to incorporate these sounds into the language. For example, Lios, “God”, is often now merely the Spanish Dios, and even angel de la guarda can be rendered ánhelwárda.

Vowels

Vowel Glides