4
Sasson Alphabet
Instead of a regulated orthography, East Angria uses a Latin-based script including letters for all the phonemes spread across the five most common languages. Most writing depicts spoken language perfectly, while the regulated pronunciation of the standard language results in regular spelling for official documents and signs. The alphabet is based on the International Phonetic Alphabet, but also includes letters of Runic descent and some that are also used in the Africa Alphabet. Here is a list of the letters with links to their corresponding sound values and audio files.A, a (used for all A sounds unless fronted or rounded)
Æ, æ (used for fronted A sounds)
Å, å (used for rounded A sounds)
B, b
C, c
D, d
Ð, ð
E, e
F, f
G, g
Ɣ, ɣ
H, h
I, i
J, j
K, k
L, l
M, m
N, n
Ŋ, ŋ
O, o
Ø, ø
P, p
R, r (This phoneme varies widely across dialects. Other common realizations include /ʁ//, /r/, /ɾ/, and, in the syllable coda, a non-syllabic /ɑ/)
S, s
Ʃ, ʃ
T, t
Þ, þ
U, u
Ʉ, ʉ
V, v
W, w (also used for labiodental approximants)
X, x
Y, y
Z, z
Ʒ, ʒ
The macron diacritic, a horizontal line above a letter, is used to indicate a long vowel. Long vowels are usually tense, while short vowels are lax. That means that long vowels are more clearly articulated. Written symbols for long vowels include:
ā, å̄, ǣ, ē, ī, ō, ø̄, ū, ʉ̄, ȳ
Syllabic consonants are sometimes marked with a macron, dot above, or understroke. This marking is not mandatory, but it can help to avoid confusion and make reading easier. The following consonants can be syllabic:
l̩, m̩, n̩, ŋ̍