A fourth nasal phoneme is postulated for the phones[ɲ,ŋ] and the nasalization of a preceding vowel [Ṽ].[7] Before velar and palatal stops, there is variation between these; e.g. [mɑ̃ɡʋũ]~[mɑŋɡʋũ] ('ask for'), [ɦĩtʃko]~[ɦĩɲtʃko] ('swing').[8]
Stops occurring at first members of clusters followed by consonants other than /ɾ,j,ʋ/ are unreleased; they are optionally unreleased in final position. The absence of release entails deaspiration of voiceless stops.[8]
Intervocalically and with murmuring of vowels, the voiced aspirated stops /ɡʱ,dʱ,bʱ/ have voiced spirantallophones[ɣ,ð,β]. Spirantization of non-palatal voiceless aspirates has been reported as well,[8] including /pʰ/ being usually realized as [f] in the standard dialect.[8]
The two voiced retroflex plosives /ɖʱ, ɖ/ and the retroflex nasal /ɳ/ have flapped allophones [ɽʱ, ɽ, ɽ̃]. The plosives /ɖʱ, ɖ/ are unflapped initially, geminated, and after nasal vowels; and flapped intervocalically, finally, and before or after other consonants.[6] The nasal /ɳ/ is unflapped before retroflex plosives and intervocalically, and in final position varies freely between flapped and unflapped.[7]
The distribution of sibilants varies over dialects and registers.
Some dialects only have [s], others prefer [ʃ], while another system has them non-contrasting, with [ʃ] occurring contiguous to palatal segments. Retroflex [ʂ] still appears in clusters in which it precedes another retroflex: [spəʂʈ] ('clear').[10]
Some speakers maintain [z] as well for Persian and English borrowings. Persian's /z/'s have by and large been transposed to /dʒ/ and /dʒʱ/: /dʒindɡi/ ('life') and /tʃidʒʱ/ ('thing'). The same cannot be so easily said for English: /tʃiz/ ('cheese').
Lastly, a colloquial register has [s], or both [s] and [ʃ], replaced by voiceless [h]. For educated speakers speaking this register, this replacement does not extend to Sanskrit borrowings.[8]
Clusters occur initially, medially, and finally. Geminates occur only medially.[2]
Biconsonantal initial clusters beginning with stops have /ɾ/, /j/, /ʋ/, and /l/ as second members.[11] In addition to these, in loans from Sanskrit the clusters /ɡn/ and /kʃ/ may occur. The occurrence of /ɾ/ as a second member in consonantal clusters is one of Gujarati's conservative features as a modern Indo-Aryan language. For example, languages used in Asokan inscriptions (3rd century BC) display contemporary regional variations, with words found in Gujarat's Girnar inscriptions containing clusters with /ɾ/ as the second member not having /ɾ/ in their occurrence in inscriptions elsewhere. This is maintained even to today, with Gujarati /tɾ/ corresponding to Hindi/t/ and /tt/.[12]
Initially, s clusters biconsonantally with /ɾ,j,ʋ,n,m/, and non-palatal voiceless stops.[11]
Triconsonantal initial clusters include /stɾ,spɾ,smɾ/ - most of which occur in borrowings.[11]
Geminates were previously treated as long consonants, but they are better analyzed as clusters of two identical segments. Two proofs for this:[7]
The u in geminated uccār "pronunciation" sounds more like the one in clusteredudgār ('utterance') than the one in shorteneducāṭ ('anxiety').
Geminates behave towards (that is, disallow) [ə]-deletion like clusters do.
Gemination can serve as intensification. In some adjectives and adverbs, a singular consonant before the agreement vowel can be doubled for intensification.[13] #VCũ → #VCCũ.
Stress typically falls on the penultimate syllable of a word, however, if the penultimate vowel in a word with more than two syllables is schwa, stress falls on the preceding syllable.[16]
Schwa-deletion, along with a-reduction and [ʋ]-insertion, is a phonological process at work in the combination of morphemes. It is a common feature among Indo-Aryan languages, referring to the deletion of a stem's final syllable's /ə/ before a suffix starting with a vowel.[14]
A stem's final syllable's /ɑ/ will reduce to /ə/ before a suffix starting with /ɑ/. #ɑC(C) + ɑ# → #əC(C)ɑ#. This can be seen in the derivation of nouns from adjective stems, and in the formation of passive and causative forms of verb stems.[18]
Between a stem ending in a vowel and its suffix starting with a vowel, a [ʋ] is inserted.[19] #V + V# → #VʋV#. This can be seen in the formation of passive and causative forms of verb stems.
The table below compares declensions of the verbs [kəɾʋũ] ('to do') and [kɛ̤ʋũ] ('to say'). The former follows the regular pattern of the stable root /kəɾ/ serving as a point for characteristic suffixations. The latter, on the other hand, is deviant and irregular in this respect.
Infinitive
Perfective
Imperative
1sg. Future
[kəɾʋũ]
[kəɾjũ]
[kəɾo]
[kəɾiʃ]
[kɛ̤ʋũ]
[kəɦjũ]
[kɔ̤]
[kə̤jʃ]
The [kɛ̤ʋũ] situation can be explained through murmur. If to a formal or historical root of /kəɦe/ these rules are considered then predicted, explained, and made regular is the irregularity that is [kɛ̤ʋũ] (romanizedaskahevũ).
Thus below are the declensions of [kɛ̤ʋũ]/ɦ/-possessing, murmur-eliciting root /kəɦe/, this time with the application of the murmur rules on the root shown, also to which a preceding rule must be taken into account:
0. A final root vowel gets deleted before a suffix starting with a non-consonant.
Rule
Infinitive
Perfective
Imperative
1sg. Future
[kəɦe-ʋũ]
[kəɦe-jũ]
[kəɦe-o]
[kəɦe-iʃ]
0
[kəɦ-jũ]
[kəɦ-o]
[kəɦ-iʃ]
2
[kɛ̤-ʋũ]
[kɔ̤]
3
[kə̤-jʃ]
→
[kɛ̤ʋũ]
[kəɦjũ]
[kɔ̤]
[kə̤jʃ]
However, in the end not all instances of /ɦ/ become murmured and not all murmur comes from instances of /ɦ/.
One other predictable source for murmur is voiced aspirated stops. A clear vowel followed by a voiced aspirated stop can vary with a pair gaining murmur and losing aspiration: #VCʱ←→#V̤C.
Mistry, P.J. (1996), "Gujarati Writing", in Daniels; Bright (eds.), The World's Writing Systems, Oxford University Press
Mistry, P.J. (1997), "Gujarati Phonology", in Kaye, A.S (ed.), Phonologies of Asia and Africa, Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns
Mistry, P.J. (2001), "Gujarati", in Garry, Jane; Rubino, Carl (eds.), An encyclopedia of the world's major languages, past and present, New England Publishing Associates
Mistry, P.J. (2003), "Gujarati", in Frawley, William (ed.), International Encyclopedia of Linguistics, vol. 2 (2nd ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press
Pandit, P.B. (1961), "Historical Phonology of Gujarati Vowels", Language, 37 (1), Linguistic Society of America: 54–66, doi:10.2307/411249, JSTOR411249
Turner, Ralph Lilley (1921), "Gujarati Phonology", Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 53 (4): 505–544, doi:10.1017/S0035869X00149287
Turner, Ralph Lilley (1915), "Indo-Aryan Nasals in Gujarati", Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society: 1033–1038
