PRONUNCIATION
In all the dialects of the Bantu language, consonants are pronounced, as in English; except that g is always hard.
The vowels are pronounced as in the following English equivalent:—
| a | as in father | e.g., Kabala |
| â | as in awe | e.g., Njâ. |
| e | as in they | e.g., Ekaga. |
| ĕ | as in met | e.g., Njĕgâ. |
| i | as in machine | e.g., Njina. |
| o | as in note | e.g., Kombe. |
| u | as in rule | e.g., Kuba. |
A before y is pronounced ai as a diphthong, e.g., Asaya. Close every syllable with a vowel, e.g., Ko-ngo. Where two or more consonants begin a syllable, a slight vowel sound may be presupposed, e.g., Ngweya, as if iNgweya.
Ng has the nasal sound of ng in “finger,” as if fing-nger, (not as in “singer,”) e.g., Mpo-ngwe.