A Finnish-style orthography for the English language
Introduction
I have designed a new orthography for British English (RP), based on how I imagine a monolingual Finnish speaker might hear it. Thus, the orthography lacks some important distinctions, especially since I’ve chosen to omit sounds that aren’t present in some Finnish dialects.
For practicality, the orthography deviates from the phonemic principle in these cases:
- Words are always written in their stressed form. E.g. the always becomes tii, from the pronunciation /ðiː/.
- Even if the final /r/ sound of a word is only sometimes pronounced (as a “linking r”), it is always written. E.g. star becomes sitaar because the /r/ is still pronounced if the next word begins with a vowel sound. However, stars becomes sitaas because there is never an /r/ sound.
Consonants
| IPA | How to write | Examples | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| /m/ | m | mat → mät | |
| /n/ | n | no → nou | |
| /ŋk/, /ŋg/, /ŋ/ | nk | sink, finger, sing → sinki, vinkör, sinki | |
| /p/, /b/ | p | pit, bit → pit, pit | |
| /t/, /d/, /θ/, /ð/ | t | tin, deck, thin, this → tin, tek, tin, tis | |
| /k/, /ɡ/ | k | cut, kick, get → kat, kik, ket | |
| /tʃ/, /dʒ/ | ts | check, match, judge → tsek, mätsi, tsatsi | |
| /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/ | s | sit, zap, ship, vision → sit, säp, sip, visön | |
| /h/, /x/ | h | hit, loch → hit, loh | |
| /f/, /v/ | h | life, give, lift, stiffness, fifth → laih, kih, lihti, sitihnes, vihti | before a stop or an affricate, or word-finally |
| v | fight, very, fly, fume, wives → vait, veri, vlai, vjuum, vaivsi | before a vowel, an approximant or a fricative | |
| /w/ | v | warm, when → voom, ven | |
| /r/ | r | ride, carry → rait, käri | |
| -/(r)/ | r | star, near, cure → sitaar, nier, kjuor | “linking r” written regardless of following word |
| /l/ | l | love → lav | |
| /j/ | j | yes, use → jes, juus | either meaning of “use” |
Vowels
| IPA | How to write | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| /æ/ | ä | trap → träp |
| /ʌ/ | a | strut → sitrat |
| /ɒ/ | o | lot, cloth → lot, klot |
| /e/ | e | dress, bread → tres, pret |
| /ɪ/ | i | kit, happy → kit, häpi |
| /i/ | ||
| /ʊ/ | u | foot, put → vut, put |
| /ə/ | ö | comma, letter, letters → komö, letör, letös |
| /iː/ | ii | fleece, eat → vliis, iit |
| /uː/ | uu | goose, lose, use → kuus, luus, juus (either meaning of “use”) |
| /aɪ/ | ai | price, tie, eye → prais, tai, ai |
| /eɪ/ | ei | face, say → veis, sei |
| /ɔɪ/ | oi | choice, soy → tsois, soi |
| /aʊ/ | au | mouth, now → maut, nau |
| /əʊ/ | ou | goat, no, note, owe → kout, nou, nout, ou |
| /ɑː/ | aa | bath, palm, spa, star, stars, start → paat, paam, sipaa, sitaar, sitaas, sitaat |
| /ɔː/ | oo | thought, broad, awe, north, force, or → toot, proot, oo, noot, voos, oor |
| /ɜː/ | öö | nurse, terse, blur, blurs → nöös, töös, plöör, plöös |
| /ɪə/ | ie | near, nears → nier, nies |
| /ɛə/ | ee | square, squares → sikveer, sikvees |
| /ʊə/ | uo | cure, cures → kjuor, kjuos |
Hiatus is marked with an apostrophe if the vowel letters would otherwise form a long vowel or a valid diphthong, or if there are more than two consecutive vowel letters: reenact, reentrant, Lithuania → rii’inäkti, rii’entrönti, Litju’einiö.
Phonological constraints
This step happens after the individual phonemes have been converted.
If a word starts with “s” followed by a stop (p/t/k/m/n), an “i” is inserted after the first consonant: score, stress, snap, sleet, shrink → sikoor, sitres, sinäp, sliit, srinki.
If a word ends with more than one consonant (including “ts”), a final “i” is inserted: match, just → mätsi, tsasti.
The alphabet
A, E, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, R, S, T, U, V, Ä, Ö
The names of the letters are pronounced as if they were written as follows: aa, ei, hoo, ii, jii, koo, äl, äm, än, oo, pei, eer, äs, tei, uu, vei, vinis aa, vinis oo.
Names and acronyms are also respelled according to the new orthography: Winston Churchill, UK, GBP, LGBTQIA+, … → Vinstön Tsöötsil, JK, KPP, LKPTKIE+, …
Examples
Numbers 0–20
sierou, van, tuu, trii, voor, vaih, siksi, sevön, eit, nain, ten, ilevön, tvelhi, töötiin, vootiin, vihtiin, sikstiin, sevöntiin, eitiin, naintiin, tventi
The (old) alphabet song
ei, pii, sii, tii, ii, eh, tsii, eits’, ai, tsei, kei, el, em, en, ou, pii, kjuu, aar, es, tii, juu, vii, tapöljuu, eks’, vai, set
Countries of Europe
Aislönti, Ai’ölönti, Estouniö, Hanköri, Itöli, Juukrein, Juunaitit Kinktöm, Kriis, Krou’eisö, Laksömpöök, Liktönstain, Litju’einiö, Lätviö, Moltouvö, Montinekrou, Monökou, Mooltö, Netölöntsi, Noot Mäsötouniö, Noovei, Ostriö, Palkeeriö, Peltsöm, Pelöruus, Pootsököl, Posniö änt Höötsökouviinö, Poulönti, Rasö, Roumeiniö, Saiprös, Sipein, Slouviiniö, Slouväkiö, Sviitön, Svitsölönti, Sän Möriinou, Sööpiö, Tenmaak, Tsek Ripaplik, Tsöömöni, Tööki, Vinlänti, Vraansi, Vätikön Siti, Älpeiniö, Äntoorö
The North Wind and the Sun
Tii Noot Vinti änti tii San veer tispjuutinki vitsi vos sitronkör, ven ei trävölör keim ölonki räpti in ei voom klouk. Tei ökriit tät tii van huu vöösti söksiitöt in meikinki tii trävölör teik his klouk oh sut pii könsitööt sitronkör tän tii atör. Ten tii Noot Vinti pluu äs haat äs hii kut, pat tii moor hii pluu tii moor klousli tit tii trävölör voulti his klouk öraunti him. Änt ät laasti tii Noot Vinti keiv ap tii ötempti. Ten tii San sainti aut voomli, änt imiitiötli tii trävölör tuk oh his klouk. Änt sou tii Noot Vinti vos öplaitsti tuu könves tät tii San vos sitronkör oh tii tuu.