This lesson goes over the differences among N, Ñ, Nw, and Ny  in the Igbo alphabet.

 

N, n

Igbo word example: nkịta (“dog”)

Sounds like:

Saying the letter nee  (or nuh)

Saying the letter in a word: English sound example no

 

Ñ, ñ

(Note: The ~ character is called a tilde in English. This letter may also be shown as Ṅ/ṅ (with a dot above the letter N) or ‘N/’n . Sometimes it’s not marked at all.)

Igbo word example: añụ (“bee”)

Sounds like:

Saying the letter: ng-uh (or ng-ee)

Saying it in a word: English sound example song

 

Nw, nw

Igbo word example: nwanyọ (“silence or slow”)

Sounds like:

Saying the letter: nw-ee (or nw-eh)

Saying it in a word: Similar to combining n+w sounds

 

Ny, ny

Igbo word example: nye (“give”)

Sounds like:

Saying the letterSimilar to combining n+y sounds or (ny-ee)

Saying the letter in a word: English sound example canyon

 

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