Dinka Vowels

In Dinka, there are thirteen vowels, which are subdivided into two groups: non-breathy and breathy. The later vowels are characterized by placing two dots above their heads.


Here follows the non-breathy vowels:


(1) A--pronounced like a in art ------------e.g: Akɔ̈ɔ̈n (an elephant)

(2) E--pronounced like a in say or mail ----- -e.g: Weŋ (a cow) 

(3) I --pronounced like e in me or people-----e.g: Liεεt (sand) – pronounced lee-at

(4) O--pronounced like o in own or old or e in sew--e. g: Pol (play) – pronounced poll

(5) U --pronounced as in too, move, fruit-----e.g: nyuc (sitting/to sit) –pronounced nooch with n =ñ as in Spanish’s mañana

(6) Ɛ – pronounced like a in man, end, let or any --e.g: Ɣεn (me/I) – pronounced an

(7) Ɔ – pronounced as in John, all, caught, toy ----e.g: Tɔŋ (war) – pronounced T’ong



Here follows the breathy vowels:


(1) Ä – pronounced like a in father------e.g: Thudän (Sudan)

(2) Ë as in hen, hate-----------------e.g: wëu (money) 

(3) Ï as in team---------------------e.g: yïn (you)

(4) Ö as in hook--------------------e.g:ɣöt (house/apartment) – pronounced hood

(5) ɛ̈ as in term---------------------e.g: wɛ̈t (word) - pronounced what

(6) ɔ̈ as in long---------------------e.g: ŋɔ̈ɔ̈r (leadership)

Note: Be very careful with the non-breathy ‘ɔ’ and the breathy ‘ɔ̈’ since they
are the most commonly mispronounced of the Dinka’s vowels. The first must
be pronounced exactly as o in ‘John’ and the second is exactly as o in ‘long.’

The following examples contrast the usage of the two kinds of vowels:

Non-breathy----------------Meaning----------------------- Breathy--------------------Meaning

Man--------------her/his mother--------Män---------hatred

Weŋ--------------a cow---------------Wëŋ---------to deceive

Tiŋ---------------to score-------------Tïŋ----------to see/seeing

Thook-------------languages-----------Thöök-------to become unconsciousness

Pεi----------------month---------- ----Pɛ̈i---------months 

Jɔk----------------satan---------------Jɔ̈k--------beginning


This is it for the vowels, in the next entry we will look at the consonants.