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Pronunciation Basics
Core sounds of Biblical Aramaic with IPA notation. Aramaic phonology is closely related to Biblical Hebrew — most consonants are identical, with a few key differences in emphatic and pharyngeal sounds.
🔊 Key principle: Aramaic has 22 consonant phonemes in its Biblical form. Six letters (BeGaDKePhaT: ב ג ד כ פ ת) historically had two pronunciations each — a “hard” stop and a “soft” fricative — depending on position in the word. Only some of these distinctions survive in modern pronunciation traditions.
Stops (Plosives)
Pure stop consonants — air is completely blocked then released. Common in all Semitic languages.
Fricatives
Sounds produced by turbulent airflow through a narrow channel. Aramaic has several fricatives without English equivalents.
Emphatic Consonants
Pharyngealized consonants — pronounced with the back of the throat constricted. A key Semitic feature with no English equivalent.
Laryngeals & Pharyngeals
Sounds produced deep in the throat — characteristic of Semitic languages. The ʿAyin and Het are the most distinctive.
Nasals & Liquids
Resonant consonants produced with continuous non-turbulent airflow through the vocal tract.
Semivowels (Glides)
Consonants that function as vowels in certain positions — Waw and Yodh are also used as vowel letters (matres lectionis).