Phonemes[]
Consonants[]
Gela has the following consonant phonemes:
| Labial | Alveolar | Dorsal | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | |||
| Stop | p | b | t | d | k | g |
| Fricative | f | v | s | z | x | ɣ |
| Approximant | w | l | j | |||
| Trill | ʙ | r | ||||
NOTE: The Gela dominant Voiced is "h" not "z". "Z" is found in Savosavo language speakers (and Bugotu and part of Guadalcanal) who also speak Gela - primarily due to their use of the Church of Melanesia Common Prayer Books and Hymns (written in Gela in the 1940s).
Vowels[]
| Front | Central | Back | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | ɨ | u | ||
| Close-mid | ɪ | ||||
| Mid | e | ə | o | ||
| Open-mid | ɛ | ʌ | |||
| Open | æ | a | ɒ | ||
Stress[]
Stress generally occurs on each word's penultimate syllable.