Leo ‘o Vaueli
Sounds of Vowels
Leo (Fa‘aleoga) ‘o vaueli
Sounds/Pronunciation of vowels
‘E lima vaueli ‘i le Gagana Sāmoa: a, e, i, o, u. ‘E fā leo ‘ese‘ese ‘o vaueli ta‘itasi. ‘E iloa le ‘ese‘esega ‘o ia leo, mai le fa‘aaogaga ‘o ni fa‘ailoga ‘ua ta‘ua ‘o le gaugāleo po‘o le komaliliu ma le fa‘amamafa. ‘E fesoasoani tele ia fa‘ailoga ‘i tagata ‘e faigatā ‘ona tautatala ‘i le Gagana Sāmoa, ‘i le fa‘aleoga ‘o mata‘itusi ma ‘upu.
The Sāmoan language has five vowels: a, e, i, o, u. Each vowel has four distinct sounds. These various sounds are denoted by the use of diacritical marks known as the glottal stop and the macron. These markings aid non-Sāmoans speakers in pronunciation of letters and words.
Leo/Fa‘aleoga ‘o vaueli ‘e aunoa ma se fa‘amamafa ma se gaugāleo (komaliliu)
Vowel Sounds without a macron and a glottal stop.
A a
E e
I i
O o
U U
alu – go
esi – pawpaw; papaya
ili – fan
ono – six
uati – watch
Leo/Fa‘aleoga ‘o vaueli pe ‘ā iai se fa‘amamafa. ‘E ‘umī le leo ‘o le vaueli pe ‘ā iai se fa‘amamafa.
Vowel Sounds with a macron. If there is a macron, the sound of a vowel is long.
Ā ā
Ē ē
Ī ī
.
Ō ō
.
Ū ū
āfea – when
tōē – laugh (pl. only)
ī – feel empty (stomach)
iputī – teacup
ō – go (pl. of alu)
ōfaga – nest (of a bird)
ūū – make a hollow sound; coconut crab
mūmū – red
Leo/Fa‘aleoga ‘o vaueli pe ‘ā iai se komaliliu.
Vowel sounds with a glottal stop.
‘A ‘a
.
.
‘E ‘e
.
‘I ‘i
.
‘O ‘o
.
‘U ‘u
a‘a – fibres of a root; (v) to kick
‘ai – eat
e‘e – be raised; propped up;
pa‘e‘e – thin
si‘i – hold in one’s arms
‘ili – saw (tool)
o‘o – arrive; germinating coconut
u‘u – oil; rub with oil;
Leo/Fa‘aleoga ‘o vaueli pe ‘ā iai se komaliliu ma se fa‘amamafa.
Vowel sounds with a glottal stop and a macron.
‘O fa‘aleoga māsani ia ‘o igoa ‘o vaueli ‘o le Pi tautau.
These are the usual sounds of the names of vowels in the Sāmoan Alphabet.
‘Ā ‘ā
‘Ē ‘ē
‘Ī ‘ī
.
‘Ō ‘ō
.
‘Ū ‘ū
‘ātonu – perhaps/maybe
‘e‘ē – shout
‘i‘ī – to give a prolonged scream or squeak
‘ō‘ō – central portion of pig; loose
‘u‘ū – smelly
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A’oa’o le Gagana Sāmoa
Place for some interesting facts.