Pronunciation of Rihannsu Words
As Rihannsu is a made language, it has very few inconsistent rules of pronunciation. The few that do exist were carried over from Old high Vulcan, When the language was built. Therefore, there are no silent letters and no 'empty' sounds in the language, save for the few words of Old High Vulcan that remained a part of the Rihannsu vocabulary.
I have attempted to translate the normal sounds of the language as closely to the original as I can, But there a some sounds that the Human vocal structure simply cannot reproduce, like the rolled 'k' or guttural 'm' sounds that are fairly common in Rihannsu words. I have come as closely as I can to copying the sounds into something close to the original, but a Rihannsu or Vulcan could easily tell the difference.
A note on translating the Rihannsu written word is deemed necessary. The written word of the Rihannsu people is in the form of symbols unlike anything seen on any Federation planet save Vulcan. Therefore, I have translated the spoken language rather than the written, to ease the minds of the students learning this language. I seriously doubt a written translation guide will be necessary until some later date, due to the Rihannsu people's ability to learn Federation Standard, and their immense xenophobic reactions to secrets being given away.
One last caution, please try to use the correct sound, as Rihannsu are extremely picky about words, considering them precious gifts to be shared and enjoyed. Also, it is considered bad form to mispronounce a Rihannsu's name more than once, as names are especially important, describing the person as a whole.
Vowels
The vowels represented here are translated into Federation Standard sounds.
a | a as in apple
e | e as in end
i | e as in eat
o | o as in open
u | u as in use or unicorn
y | e as in eh
ll | y as in yes
All combinations of these letters mean a separate pronunciation of each vowel, with a slight bit more emphasis on the first of the series.
Consonants
These consonant sounds are as closely translated as possible to Federation Standard. Hints for the most proper pronunciation of the sounds are given at the side.
Note: With most double consonants, pronounce each sound, running the two sounds together. All exceptions are noted below.
b | b as in boy
bl | bl as in blue
c | very rare, k as in kit when it does appear (mostly from 'borrowed' words from other cultures)
ch | ch as in church
d | d as in dog
f | f as in fight
g | g as in good
h | h as in hat
j | j as in judge
k | k as in kit
l | l as in limit
ll | y as in yes
m | m as in more
n | n as in now
ns | nz as in enzyme
p | p as in part
q | kw as in quick
r | r as in read
s | s as in sit
ss | as in the German ß. Both letters are pronounced, but the first gets the most emphasis.
sn | sn as in sneeze
st | st as in start
t | t as in tell
th | th as in the
thn| thn as in then, but without the e (do this quickly to get the idea)
thr| thr as in threw, see thn for details
tr | tr as in train
v | v as in view
vr | like fr in fry, but with a v sound for the 'f'
w | w as in water
wh | wh as in where
y | y as in yes
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