Minimal Pairs
On the other hand, the distinctions between several Esperanto consonants carry very light functional loads, though they are not in complementary distribution and therefore not allophones. The practical effect of this is that people who do not control these distinctions are still able to communicate without difficulty. These minor distinctions are ĵ /ʒ/ vs. ĝ /d͡ʒ/, contrasted in aĵo "concrete thing" vs. aĝo "age"; k /k/ vs. ĥ /x/ vs. h /h/, contrasted in koro "heart" vs. ĥoro "chorus" vs. horo "hour", and in the prefix ek- (inchoative) vs. eĥo "echo"; dz /d͡z/ vs. z /z/, not contrasted in basic vocabulary; and c /t͡s/ vs. ĉ /t͡ʃ/, found in a few minimal pairs such as caro "tzar", ĉar "because"; ci "thou", ĉi (proximate particle used with deictics); celo "goal", ĉelo "cell"; -eco "-ness", eĉ "even"; etc.
Belarusian seems to have also provided the model for Esperanto's diphthongs, as well as the complementary distribution of v (restricted to the onset of a syllable), and ŭ (occurring only as a vocalic offglide), although this was modified slightly, with Belarusian oŭ corresponding to Esperanto ov (as in bovlo), and ŭ being restricted to the sequences aŭ, eŭ in Esperanto. While v and ŭ may both occur between vowels, as in naŭa "ninth" and nava "of naves", the diphthongal distinction holds: vs. . (However, Zamenhof did allow initial ŭ in onomatopoeic words such as ŭa "wah!".) The semivowel j likewise does not occur after the vowel i, but is also restricted from occurring before i in the same morpheme, whereas the Belarusian letter i represents /ji/. Later exceptions to these patterns, such as poŭpo "poop deck", ŭato "Watt", East Asian proper names beginning with Ŭ, and jida "Yiddish", are marginal.
The distinction between e and ej carries a light functional load, in the core vocabulary perhaps only distinctive before alveolar sonorants, such as kejlo "peg, spigot", kelo "cellar"; mejlo "mile", melo "badger"; Rejno "Rhine", reno "kidney". The recent borrowing gejo "gay, homosexual" could contrast with the ambisexual prefix ge- if used in compounds with a following consonant, creating possible confusion between geja paro "homosexual couple" and gea paro "heterosexual couple". Eŭ is also uncommon, and very seldom contrastive: eŭro "a Euro" vs ero "a bit, piece".
Read more about this topic: Esperanto Phonology
Famous quotes containing the word minimal:
“For those parents from lower-class and minority communities ... [who] have had minimal experience in negotiating dominant, external institutions or have had negative and hostile contact with social service agencies, their initial approaches to the school are often overwhelming and difficult. Not only does the school feel like an alien environment with incomprehensible norms and structures, but the families often do not feel entitled to make demands or force disagreements.”
—Sara Lawrence Lightfoot (20th century)