Episode 59: The special sound rule, the katakana rule, and syllables (Read supplementary note!) (Patreon)

May 25, 2021 Supplementary note: At approximately 1:05 in this video, I say "the special sounds always shift the downstep back (to the left) one mora," and this is certainly the standard, mainstream rule, but it seems that there are at least some instances in which they may shift the downstep forward, rather than backwards.

For example, in this lesson I talk about how in スーパー the downstep is on the ス, because the third mora from the end of the word is a ー, so the downstep therefore shifts backwards (to the left), to the initial ス. However, in the word  野蛮人 (やばんじん), or barbarian, the downstep occurs on the じ, as in yaBANJIn, rather than on the BA, as in yaBAnjin. Note that this is true for the word 日本人, or Japanese people, as well, which is pronounced as niHONJIn, rather than niHOnjin.

Again, these words certainly seem to be exceptions to the rule. It's worth knowing that though limited in number, exceptions do exist.

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Good afternoon, Patrons!

In this lesson we look at the 'special sound rule' and the 'katakana loan word rule', as well as introduce syllables into our phonetic studies.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns with regards to this lesson, please don't hesitate to leave a comment below. Thank you very much for your continued support, and good luck with your Japanese studies!

Dōgen