Navajo pronunciation?

Question

I am trying to find the correct pronunciation for táni-l’ái (dragonfly) in the Navajo language

Answer 1

From these websites, I think the pronunciation would be:

Tah-neh-lah-ee

Navajo is a tonal language, meaning that the way you say it can change its meaning, so:

The "ta" has an accent over it that indicates you need to say it with a high tone. The "ai" also has this, so you also need to say this in a high tone.


Tonal languages, like Navajo, Chinese, Thai, etc. are very difficult to DESCRIBE how to pronounce. To truly get it, you need to listen to a native speaker and imitate it. This is the best I can do. I hope it helped!

Answer 2

Are you Navajo?

Please remember that this is not a language for your pleasure, it is a language of a people who, I think, would prefer not to see their language bantied about by someone who will want to be called something else next week.

Sorry, can't get behind your disrespect.