Tones
Tones are written with standard punctuation. Lisu punctuation therefore differs from international norms: the comma is ⟨꓾⟩ (hyphen period), and the full stop is ⟨꓿⟩ (equal sign).
| ꓝ | ꓝꓸ | ꓝꓹ |
| ꓝꓻ * | ꓝꓺ | ꓝʼ |
| ꓝꓼ | ꓝꓽ | ꓝˍ |
- *It is not clear how the ⟨ꓻ⟩ mid tone differs from the unmarked mid tone.
The tones ⟨ꓸ⟩, ⟨ꓹ⟩, ⟨ꓺ⟩, ⟨ꓻ⟩ may be combined with ⟨ꓼ⟩ and ⟨ꓽ⟩ as compound tones. However, the only one still in common use is ⟨ꓹꓼ⟩.
The apostrophe indicates nasalization. It is combined with tone marks.
The understrike (optionally a low macron) indicates the Lisu "A glide", a contraction of without an intervening glottal stop. The tone is not always falling, depending on the environment, but is written ⟨ˍ⟩ regardless.
Read more about this topic: Fraser Alphabet
Famous quotes containing the word tones:
“‘Tis not that thy mien is stately,
‘Tis not that thy tones are soft;”
—Charles Stuart Calverley (1831–1884)
“And this mighty master of the organ of language, who knew its every stop and pipe, who could awaken at will the thin silver tones of its slenderest reeds or the solemn cadence of its deepest thunder, who could make it sing like a flute or roar like a cataract, he was born into a country without literature.”
—Willa Cather (1873–1947)
“There sighs, lamentations and loud wailings resounded through the starless air, so that at first it made me weep; strange tongues, horrible language, words of pain, tones of anger, voices loud and hoarse, and with these the sound of hands, made a tumult which is whirling through that air forever dark, as sand eddies in a whirlwind.”
—Dante Alighieri (1265–1321)