Lesson Objective
- The role of consonants in the formation of a Hmong word.
- Learn about the ___ 1 Letter Consonants
- Learn about the ___ 2 Letter Consonants
- Learn about the ___ 3 Letter Consonants
- Learn about the ___ 4 Letter Consonants
Instructions
- The steps of using Consonants in forming a Hmong word (diagram):
- Consonants are sounds added to the beginning of a vowel sound.
- Because consonants are beginning sounds, they actually do not have a vowel sound to them. However, in Hmong, the consonants do not have a name. Their names are just their pronunciation. But since it’s very difficult to pronounce beginning sound without a vowel, it was decided somewhere in history that all Hmong consonants be pronounced with the Hmong vowel “o.”
- Example- Phonetically, the Hmong consonant “C” sounds like this. However, due to difficulty pronouncing it loudly without a vowel sound, it is pronounced like this.
- Consonants can be 1, 2, 3, or 4 Letters long. Consonants are as follows:
- 1 Letter Consonant:
- 2 Letter Consonant:
- 3 Letter Consonant:
- 4 Letter Consonant:
- The sounds of 2, 3, or 4 Letter consonants are often times the sounds of the 1 Letter Consonant.
- Ex: kh is k + h sounds
- Note that the letters for consonants are never the same as those used for vowels. So, you’ll never find a situation where you can not distinguish where a consonant ends and a vowel begins. See consonants above and realize that none of them are the same letters as the vowels as seen here.
***Goal: Use the flashcards to memorize the sounds of each consonant and its associated word.
- Pronunciation tips:
- Tongue position for the following consonants will help with pronunciation:
- n, d, etc
- Lip position for the following consonants will help with pronunciation:
- p, ph