soft pronunciation of consonants versus simplicity

Eastern (partly also western) Slavic languages ​​are known for their softness and jotization. However this soft pronunciation can be a problem especially for southern Slavs and many non-Slavic people. Therefore, the Neoslavonic phonology design principle keeps following simplistic principle:

1. Soft consonants should continue by a consecutive vowel in order to facilitate easier pronunciation.
   (e.g. nedielja = Sunday, ponedieljek = Monday, burja = storm, večerja = evening meal)
   
   
2. If a word terminates with a consonant without any consecutive vowel, we prefer to write and pronounce this word hardly.
   (e.g. kost = a bone, radost = joy, učitel = a teacher)
   
   Of course, we acknowledge that the soft pronunciation (e.g. Eastern-Slavic accent) is also acceptable. These words have the same level of understandability regardless of whether they are written and pronounced softly or hardly.
   (e.g. kost = a bone, [kɔst / kɔsc]; on jest = he is, [ɔn jɛst / ɔn jɛsc])
   
   
3. Only in specific instances, if hardening could lead to loss of clarity or could create a wrong homonym with another word, we need to keep soft pronunciation and write soft consonants.
   (e.g. konj = a horse  ⟷  kon = ending, termination; miedj = cooper  ⟷  med = honey)
   

palatalization and euphony

Slavic languages ​​are known by the consonant softening in some situations. This process is called palatalization. Neoslavonic it has also included, but in a very limited way of only three regular rules related with the soft consonants  č, š, ž  as

1. k→č,
2. h→š,
   
3. g→ž.

Example: človiek (a man N), človieče! (man! V); prah (a dust, noun), prašny (dust, adj.)

In order to sound almost like an ordinary natural Slavic language, we need to improve some artificially generated sound combinations caused by application of some grammatical endings. There are only three euphony rules related with the same soft consonants  č, š, ž  as

1. cju→ču, cie→če,
2. sju→šu, sie→še,
3. zju→žu, zie→že.

Example: prositi (to please, inf.), prosju→prošu (I please), prosienije→prošenije (pleasing, verbal noun).


Please remember that for this euphony reason the characters ie and ju are newer written and pronounced after  c, s, z, č, š, ž. The only possible way is to put  ce, se, ze, če, še, že and cu, su, zu, ču, šu, žu  instead of them.


example 1

(You can hear these words in attached file example-1.wav)

voda   [vɔda]   water
hlieb   [xljɛb]   a bread
auto   [aʊtɔ]   a car, an automobile
s'lnce   [sɜ̆lncɛ]   a sun
človiek   [tʃlɔvjɛk]   a man (human being)
muž   [mʊʒ]   a man (masculine)
žena   [ʒɛna]   a woman
dietko   [ɟɛtkɔ]   a child
imaju   [imajʊ]   I have
imaješ   [imajɛʃ]   you have
imajeme   [imajɛmɛ]   we have
veliky   [vɛliki]   big (sg. m. adj.)
maly   [mali]   small (sg. m. adj.)
doma   [dɔma]   at home (adv.)
jedin   [jɛdin]   one (m.)
dva   [dva]   two (m.)
tri   [tri]   three
četyri  [tʃɛtiri]   four
pet   [pɛt]   five
deset   [dɛsɛt]   ten
sto   [stɔ]   hundred 


example 2

(You can hear these words in attached file example-2.wav)

Vsi ljudi rodjut se svobodni i rovni v svojem dostojenstviji i pravah.
[vsi  ʎʊdi  rɔɟʊt  sɛ  svɔbɔdni  i  rɔvni  v  svɔjɛm  dɔstɔjɛnstviji  i  pravax]
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

Oni sut obdarieni razumom i sviestju, 
[ɔni  sʊt  ɔbdarjɛni  razʊmɔm  i  svjɛscʊ]
They are endowed with reason and conscience,

i treba jim jest postupati drug s drugom v duhu bratstva.
[i  trɛba  jim  jɛst  pɔstʊpati  drʊg  s  drʊgɔm  v  dʊxʊ  bratstva]
and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

(article 1. of preamble of the universal declaration of human rights by the United Nations)