The 5 oral vowels
Lesson 1 of 8≈ 12 min
5 vowels, not 6
Shikomori has 5 oral vowels (a, e, i, o, u) — exactly like Spanish or Italian. No "eu", no French "u", no "é" / "è" distinction in writing.
Two gotchas for French speakers: e is always /é/ (never /uh/), and u is always /oo/ (as in "moon"). No silent vowels: everything written is pronounced.
The 5 vowels at a glance
| Letter | Pronunciation | Shikomori word | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| a | as in « papa » | mwana | child |
| e | always /é/ as in « bébé » | jeje | hello (Ma) |
| i | as in « mini » | fi | fish (Ma, Nz) |
| o | as in « moto » | ko ! | come! (Ma) |
| u | always /oo/ as in « moon » | ubu | porridge |
Listening to the 5 vowels
Listen to each vowel pronounced by a native speaker. Each vowel is repeated 3 times.
- a
- e (/é/)
- i
- o
- u (/ou/)
Golden rule: every vowel is pronounced separately
The word faida (« profit ») is read in three syllables: fa-i-da. No French-style diphthongs.
A few motivated examples:
- a : mama (mum), ɓaɓa (dad), bahari (sea)
- e : ewa (yes), leo (today), meso (tomorrow)
- i : titi (small), ziri (chairs), kofia (cap)
- o : moro (fire), ngozi (skin), roho (heart, soul)
- u : uso (face), uhuru (freedom), jua (sun)
- mama
- ewa
- uso
Dialect note — long vowels
ShiNgazidja preserves long vowels, written as doubled letters, where the other dialects have contracted. Examples: soo (path) in Ngazidja, so or ndzia elsewhere; nvuu (strength) only in Ngazidja.
You'll revisit this correspondence in Module 5 — for now, just know that if you read aa, ee, oo, it's very likely shiNgazidja.
Guided practice
Which vowel do you hear?
No recording available yetSplit into syllables: faida (« profit »).
faida → fa-___-da
Mini-quiz
How is e pronounced in shikomori?
e is pronounced ___.
Nicely done!
You've mastered the 5 oral vowels. The next lesson introduces the nasal vowels: â, ê, î, ô, û — common in Arabic loanwords like âda (custom) or îdî (festival).