ABSTRACT
The quality of a vowel, when distinct from the normal or principal vowel, and its intonation, is indicated by signs above the symbol. All vowels may be short, semi-long, or long. The length of a vowel is expressed by doubling it. Of the ordinary type of rising diphthongs, or union of vowels forming a syllable, consisting of semi-vowel plus vowel, the common forms with w and y all exist. The semi-vowel character of w and y is not very strongly pronounced in Acooli, except when beginning a word. The two palato-alveolar explosives, c and j, are two very soft and delicate sounds if compared with the English ch in 'church', or j in 'jump'. It may be said that sound-change is not actually a very important linguistic feature in Acooli. The tendency to develop has been at work, and is still, in this particular field; and this tendency is, on the whole, towards simplicity, uniformity.
