Vowels[]
| Front | Central | Back | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| unrounded | rounded | unrounded | rounded | ||
| Close | i, y /i/ |
ÿ /y/ |
o /u/ | ||
| Close-mid | e /e/ |
ɵ /ɵ/ |
ô, ao, oa /o/ | ||
| Open-mid | ɛ /ɛ/ |
ʌ /ʌ/ |
ɔ /ɔ/ | ||
| Open | æ /æ/ |
œ /œ̞/ |
a /a/ |
û /ɑ/ |
u /ɒ/ |
After a stressed syllable, as at the end of most words and in the final two syllables of some, /a, u, i/ are reduced to [ə, ʷ, ʲ]. (/i/ is spelled ⟨y⟩ in such cases, though in monosyllabic words like ny and vy, ⟨y⟩ is pronounced as a full [i].) Final /a/, and sometimes final syllables, are devoiced at the end of an utterance. /e/ and /o/ are never reduced or devoiced. The large amounts of reduction vowels and their effect on neighbouring consonants give Malagasy a phonological quality not unlike that of Portuguese.
/o/ is marginal in Merina dialect, found in interjections and loan words, though it is also found in place names from other dialectical areas. /ai, au/ are diphthongs [ai̯, au̯] in careful speech, [e, o] or [ɛ, ɔ] in more casual speech. /ai/, whichever way it is pronounced, affects following /k, ɡ/ as /i/ does.
Consonants[]
| Bilabial | Labio- dental |
Dental | Alveolar | Retroflex | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m ⟨m⟩ |
n ⟨n⟩ |
ŋ ⟨n̈⟩ |
|||||
| Plosive or affricate |
voiceless | p ⟨p⟩ |
t ⟨t⟩ |
ts ⟨ts⟩ |
ʈʳ ⟨tr⟩ |
k ⟨k⟩ |
||
| voiceless prenasalized | mp ⟨mp⟩ |
nt ⟨nt⟩ |
nts ⟨nts⟩ |
ɳʈʳ ⟨ntr⟩ |
ŋk ⟨nk⟩ |
|||
| voiced | b ⟨b⟩ |
d ⟨d⟩ |
dz ⟨j⟩ |
ɖʳ ⟨dr⟩ |
ɡ ⟨g⟩ |
|||
| voiced prenasalized | mb ⟨mb⟩ |
nd ⟨nd⟩ |
ndz ⟨nj⟩ |
ɳɖʳ ⟨ndr⟩ |
ŋɡ ⟨ng⟩ |
|||
| Fricative | voiceless | f ⟨f⟩ |
θ ⟨c⟩ |
s ⟨s⟩ |
x ⟨x⟩ |
h ⟨h⟩ | ||
| voiced | v ⟨v⟩ |
ð ⟨đ⟩ |
z ⟨z⟩ |
ɣ ⟨ɣ⟩ |
||||
| Lateral | l ⟨l⟩ |
ʟ ⟨ł⟩ |
||||||
| Trill | ʙ ⟨w⟩ |
r ⟨r⟩ |
||||||
The alveolars /s ts z dz l/ are slightly palatalized. /ts, dz, s, z/ vary between [ts, dz, s, z] and [tʃ, dʒ, ʃ, ʒ], and are especially likely to be the latter when followed by unstressed /i/: Thus French malgache 'Malagasy'. The velars /k ɡ ŋk ŋɡ h/ are palatalized after /i/ (e.g. alika /alikʲa/ 'dog'). /h/ is frequently elided in casual speech.
The reported postalveolar trilled affricates /ʈʳ ɳʈʳ ɖʳ ɳɖʳ/ are sometimes simple stops, [ʈ ɳʈ ɖ ɳɖ], but they often have a rhotic release, [ʈɽ̊˔ ɳʈɽ̊˔ ɖɽ˔ ɳɖɽ˔]. It is not clear if they are actually trilled, or are simply non-sibilant affricates [ʈɻ̊˔ ɳʈɻ̊˔ ɖɻ˔ ɳɖɻ˔]. However, in another Austronesian language with a claimed trilled affricate, Fijian, trilling occurs but is rare, and the primary distinguishing feature is that it is postalveolar. The Malagasy sounds are frequently transcribed [ʈʂ ɳʈʂ ɖʐ ɳɖʐ], and that is the convention used in this article.
In reduplication, compounding, possessive and verbal constructions, and after nasals, fricatives and liquids ('spirants') become stops, as follows:
| voiced | voiceless | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| spirant | stop | spirant | stop |
| v | b | f | p |
| l | d | ||
| z | dz | s | ts |
| r | ɖʳ (ɖʐ) | ||
| h | k | ||
Stress[]
Words are generally accented on the penultimate syllable, unless the word ends in ka, tra and often na, in which case they are stressed on the antepenultimate syllable. In many dialects, unstressed vowels (except /e/) are devoiced, and in some cases almost completely elided; thus fanorona is pronounced [fə̥ˈnurnə̥].