Letter TH
Letter th is pronounced as in English 'thick' or 'thin, and never as in English 'the' or 'this'. It is pronounced with the tip of the tongue between the teeth, permitting air to flow between the tongue and teeth. It is a voiceless sound (made without the vocal cords vibrating).Click on a video below to see and hear Mrs. Irene Arnold pronouncing words with TH.
thaayh sand
ekt'éeth I am frying it
degkoth I am coughing
The th sound is similar to other sounds in Tanacross. Below are examples that contrast these similar sounds.
Click below to hear Mrs. Laura Sanford illustrating the difference between tth and th at the start of words.
Click below to hear Mrs. Irene Arnold illustrating the difference between tth and th at the end of words.
Click below to hear Mrs. Irene Arnold illustrating the difference between th and ł at the end of words.
Click below to hear Mrs. Laura Sanford illustrating the difference between th and th at the start of syllables.
Sentences with contrasting dental sounds.
Ddheł k'et taathéth déltthox naandeddh dídedháltth'ih. On the mountain you are all sitting in front of a brown tent.
Ttheetheł naadeddh dídzéltth'ih. We are sitting in front of the steambath.
Dihthâad tah ntthûuy ts'eeyithet. Your (man's) grandchild woke up at Mansfield.
Tanacross th and dh are voiceless and voiced dental fricatives [Ɵ] and [ð], respectively.
Letter th is a semi-voiced fricative. It can generally be described as beginning voiceless and transitioning to a fully voiced fricative.
similar sounds