Sudest language
# Sudest language

Sudest, also known as Tagula, is an Oceanic language of Papua New Guinea.

## Name

The name Sudest is a word meaning 'southeast' in French or Italian.

## Phonology

### Consonants

| | | Labial | Labial | Dental/ Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Velar |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | | plain | lab. | Dental/ Alveolar | Palatal | plain | lab. |
| Plosive | voiceless | p | pʷ | t | | k | kʷ |
| Plosive | voiced | b | bʷ | d | ɟ | ɡ | ɡʷ |
| Plosive | prenasal | ᵐb | ᵐbʷ | ⁿd | ᶮɟ | ᵑɡ | ᵑɡʷ |
| Fricative | voiced | β | βʷ | ð | | ɣ | ɣʷ |
| Fricative | voiceless | | | s | | | |
| Nasal | Nasal | m | mʷ | n | ɲ | ŋ | ŋʷ |
| Rhotic | Rhotic | | | r | | | |
| Lateral | Lateral | | | l | | | |
| Approximant | Approximant | | | | j | | w |

* /ɣ/ is heard as a glottal [h] before /o/ or /u/.
* /ɣʷ/ is heard as [hʷ], in free variation within different dialects.
* /β, βʷ/ are originally bilabial, although many speakers under the influence of English pronounce them as labio-dental [v, vʷ].

### Vowels

| | Front | Central | Back |
| - | - | - | - |
| Close | i | | u |
| Mid | e | ə | o |
| Open | | a | |
