Labial–retroflex consonant

Labial–retroflex consonants are doubly articulated consonants that are co-articulated at the lips and with the front part or underside of the tongue against the palate. They are only attested in Yélî Dnye, an unclassified language of Rossel Island, Papua New Guinea.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Types

Several labial–retroflex consonants are attested in Yélî Dnye, an unclassified language of Rossel Island, Papua New Guinea. These include a voiceless plosive /ʈ͡p/, an allophonic voiced plosive /ɖ͡b/, a nasal /ɳ͡m/, prenasalized /ɳ͡mɖ͡b/ (also analyzed as /ɳ͡mʈ͡p/ but phonetically voiced), and postnasalized /ʈ͡pɳ͡m/, all or most of which may also occur palatalized: /ʈ͡pʲ/, /ɳ͡mʲ/, /ʈ͡pɳ͡mʲ/ and possibly /ɳ͡mɖ͡bʲ/ and /ɖ͡bʲ/. Yélî Dnye is unique in having this series of consonants.^[1]