Table Of ContentENGLISH TEACHING TAFI ALPHABET
<ETTA>
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Published by
FAHIMTA PUBLISHING COMPANY
Road L
Ƙofar Durɓi New Layout
P. O. Box 121
KATSINA, NIGERIA
First published, January 2020
ISBN 978 – 2869 – 01– 12
2020 Musa D. Abdullahi
[email protected]
All rights reserved
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ENGLISH TEACHING TAFI ALPHABET
<ETTA>
For School Children
Who have learned to read and write Tafi
In their Mother Tongues
CONTENT Page
1. Reform of English Orthography……………………………………………………………1
2. Initial Teaching Alphabet (ITA)…………………………………………………………….1
3. English Teaching Tafi Alphabet (ETTA)………………………………………………….2
3.1 Vowels and Consonants of the ETTA………………………………………………...2
3.2 Words in the ETTA……………………………………………………………………..3
4. Examples of Writings in the ETTA…………………………………………………………4
4.1 English Alphabet……………………..……………………………………………..4
4.2 Humpty Dumpty……………………………..……………………………………...5
4.3 A Bird Flying…………………………………..…………………………………….5
4.4 Going Together……………………..………………………………………………5
4.5 Determination……………………………………………………………………….5
4.6 Who is a Man?……………………………….……………………………………..5
4.7 Where is the Water?…………………………..……………………………………6
4.8 The Shame of Man!…………………………………………………………………6
4.9 Might and Right……………………………………………………………………..7
4.10 The Brain……………………………………………………………
4.11 Eagle, King of the Birds…………………………………………………………….7
4.12 Lion, King of the Beasts…………………………………………………………….8
4.13 Mango, King of the Trees…………………………………………………………..9
4.14 The Dolphin, Lord of the Sea……………………………………………………..10
4.15 Queen Bee…………………………………………………………………………10
4.16 The Nigerian National Anthem………………………………..…………………11
4.17 The Nigerian National Prayer……………………………………………………11
4.18 The Nigerian National Pledge……………………………………………………12
4.19 The Two Frogs…………………………………………………………………….12
4.20A A Recipe for Greatness (In the English/Latin Alphabet)……………………….13
4.20B A Recipe for Greatness (In Tafi Light)………………….………………………14
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TAFI WRITING AND ENGLISH ORTHOGRAPHY
1. REFORM OF ENGLISH ORTHOGRAPHY
Inconsistencies of English orthography are where a sound is spelt with
one, two, three or four letters, a sound is spelt in multiple ways and a spelling
may represent more than one sound. Some cases are: ‘bizarre’, ‘though’; ‘site’,
‘cite’, ‘sight’; ‘but’, ‘put’, ‘putt’; ‘irk’, ‘arc’, ‘archaic’; etc. They constitute avoidable
reading difficulties and obstacles to learning English as a foreign language.
Need for harmony, between pronunciation and spelling, is obvious. This is
achieved in a phonetic writing like Hausa, Swahili, Arabic, Turkish, Italian,
Spanish and Russian. Learning to read becomes easier from the letters of a
phonetic alphabet, to words and then to sentences. It would do a world of good
to have the beautiful and far-flung English language, with its rich repertoire of
scientific and technological terms, written phonetically. So, calls for spelling
reform of English orthography have been made. Ignoring this call in Nigeria
would make the half-educated people resort to a degraded speech worse than
Pidgin English and the uneducated masses to be disabled or lost.
The self-taught American scientist and inventor, philosopher, politician,
diplomat and Statesman, one of the founding fathers of the United States of
America, Benjamin Franklin (1706 – 1790), a truly great man, tried to promote
a spelling reform of English orthography. Among other things, he wrote:
“The difficulty of learning to spell well in the old way is so great, that few attain
it; thousands and thousands writing on to old age, without ever being able to
acquire it. 'Tis, besides a difficulty continually increasing; as the sound
gradually varies more and more from the spelling: and to foreigners…………..”
In 1779 Franklin presented a phonetic alphabet for a reformed English
orthography, adhering to one symbol (grapheme) for one sound (phoneme).
The laudable project failed to arouse official recognition or public acceptance
and he eventually abandoned it. However, calls for spelling reform remained.
2. INITIAL TEACHING ALPHABET (ITA)
The Initial Teaching Alphabet (ITA) is a phonetic writing devised by
English educationist, Sir Isaac James Pitman (1901 – 1985) in1960, to help
children learn to read English quickly and more effectively. It consists of 44
symbols, representing the common English sounds. The idea was that older
children, after they might have learned to read and write English in the ITA,
could revert to the traditional orthography, and continue with their education. It
was a great idea, but it did not appear to have been a success. Learning
something, which needs to be unlearned later, is counterproductive.
English writing, like French and unlike Spanish, is logo-alphabetic, where
words are mentally recognised more than letters of the alphabet. Many pupils
were reported to have got confused in making the transition from the ITA to the
accepted orthography. With a new alphabet, like Tafi, spelling reform is not an
issue as there is no traditional orthography to stick to, retain or sanctify.
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3. ENGLISH TEACHING TAFI ALPHABET (ETTA)
ETTA, derived from the ITA, is a phonetic alphabet of 5 short vowels, 5
long vowels and 20 consonants designed for children and illiterate adults to
learn to read and write English quickly and effectively after gaining literacy in
their respective mother tongues. It efficiently addresses the pronunciation and
spelling of long vowels and diphthongs, which learners find problematic. ETTA,
being phonetic, should result in a near perfect representation of English speech
as an international language. A word written in ETTA should be spelt and
pronounced with the same articulation by every reader, even a machine.
Phonetic ETTA is in the style of Tafi writing for Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.
It has provisions for short and long vowels. The project starts with instructions
and demonstrations on rational rules of pronunciation and orthography, from
qualified teachers. Then, with the requisite teaching aids and adequate
materials, a person, literate in Tafi writing, is made able to practice and teach
himself or herself to write and speak English very well, in continuing education.
The emphasis is on self-teaching. If a conscientious person could self-
teach and then teach others, the problem of mass literacy would be solved.
3.1 Vowels and Consonants of the ETTA
Short Vowels
1 2 3 4 5
a a e e i i o o u u
Long Vowels
aa ee ii oo uu
A AaA E AeE I AiI O AoO U AuU
Consonants
a b c d f g h j l m
A b c d f g h J l M
n p k r s t v w y z
N p k r s t v W y Z
The first consonant (a) A, occurring as long vowel or a consonant, is very
important. It takes each of the 5 short vowels to sound it intrinsically. Letters
are normally small, as short vowels (single digit) or long vowels or consonants
(double digit). A long vowel is twice the length (duration) of a short vowel. The
short vowels may be regarded as small letters and the consonants as capitals.
A consonant may be capitalised, if required, by enlarging or highlighting it.
A vowel follows a consonant to form an open syllable, which may be
followed by a consonant to form a close syllable. The syllable is the smallest
unit of sound of speech in a language. This may explain why most systems of
writing start as a collection of syllables. The full list of syllables used in a
language (which may more than one hundred) is called a syllabary. A phonetic
writing system should reproduce or represent the syllabary used in a language
without any ambiguity. Good representation of English is the aim of ETTA.
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3.2 Words in the English Teaching Tafi Alphabet (ETTA)
Some words, in the English Teaching Tafi Alphabet, are given below. The Latin
letters are black. The Tafi transcription is green and the transformation in red.
Words with short vowels
a e i o u
up, tap egg, sat in, English odd, alter book, put
AAAA e I O U
uuuup, taaaap eeeegg, saaaat iiiin, EEEEnnnngggglllliiiisssshhhh oooodd, aaaalter booooooook, puuuut
AAAAaaaa Ae Ai Ao Au
AAAAaaaap, taaaap AAAAeeeeg, seeeet AAAAiiiin, Aiiiinglish AAAAooood, AoltaA buuuuk, puuuut
aaaap, taaaap eeeeg, seeeet iiiin, Aiiiinglish ooood, oltaA buk, put
The consonant (a) A, may be dropped before a short vowel, if it is not the
beginning of a sentence or a proper name, as in AAAAaaaap = aaaap and AAAAeeeeg = eeeeg.
Words with long vowels
aa ee ii oo uu
father, irk acre, razor easy, tree all, snore ooze, souse
Aa ee Ii Oo Uu
father, ark acre, razor easy, tree all, snore ooze, souse
AaA AeE AiI AoO AuU
A E I O U
faAdhaA, AaAk AeEkaA, reEzaA AiIzeE, triI AoOl, snoO AuUz, suUs
fAdhA, Ak EkA, rEzA IzE, trI Ol, snO Uz, sUs
A long vowel takes a short vowel to become short. A short vowel, preceding
(a) A, is dropped to indicate the long vowel, as in faAdhaA = fAdhA and AaAk =
Ak. Two long vowels, after a consonant, have the length of four short vowels.
Words with diphthongs
Diphthongs are vowels carrying the letters (i,y) y and (u,w) w, shown here:
ai au ei eu iu oi ou ui
ice, might owl ape cute oil oak sluice
Ai au ei eu iu Oi ou ui
ice, might owl ape Cute Oil oak sluice
Ay aw ey ew iw Oy ow uy
AaYs, mayt Aawl Aeyp kiWt Aoyl AoWk sluys
Words with consonants
a b c d f g h j l m
alpha bib church dad five gag Hat judge lull mime
A B c d F G H j L m
alpha Bib church dad five Gag Hat judge lull mime
A B c d F G H j L m
alfa Bib cAc dad fAyv Gyag Hyat jaj lal mAym
n p k r s t v w y z
noon pipe kick roar sauce tot valve will yes zoo
N P k r S T V w Y z
Noon Pipe kick roar sauce Tot valve will yes zoo
N P k r S T V w Y z
nUn pAyp kik roOA sOs Tot valv wil yes ZU
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Syllables are composed to form words. Words make a phrase or a sentence of
speech. Sentences (after a full stop) and proper names begin with a consonant.
Words with joined consonants (digraphs)
dh th sh wh ng
then, that thin, thick shush, shy what, when sing, gong
Dh Th Sh Wh ng
then, that Thin, thick Shush, shy what, when sing, gong
Dh Th Sh Wh ng
dhen, dhet Thin,thik Shash, shAY what, when sing, gong
Words with compound consonants
Other consonants may take w or y to form compound consonants, such as:
hw (wh) kw ky gw gy
white, whale quark, quick cat, care guova, querrilla gang, gag
wH Kw Ky Gw gy
while, white quark, quick Cat, care guova, querrilla gang, gag
Wh Kw Ky Gw gy
whAyt, whEyl kwAk, khik kyat, kyayA gwava, gwerilla gyang, gyag
Words with joined vowels
The first vowel (a) a may be taken by (e) e, (i) i, (o) o and (u) u to form joined
vowels, or vocals, as shown below:
aa ea Ia oa ua
art at, air genius, India honor, onerous odour, dual
aa ea Ia Oa ua
art at, air Nigeria, India honor, onerous odour, dual
A Ea Ya Oa Wa
At Eat, Eaya gIniyas, IndiYA OanA, Oanerus oduwa, duwal
Numerals
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
one two three four five six seven eight nine ten
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
One two three Four five siX seven Eight nine Ten
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Wan tU thrI fO fAYv siks sevin Aeyt nAYn Ten
4. EXAMPLES OF WRITINGS IN THE ETTA
4.1A English Alphabet 4444....1111AAAA AAAAiiiinnnngggglllliiiisssshhhh AAAAaaaallllffffaaaabbbbeeeetttt
The quick brown fox dha kwik brAwn foks
jumps over a lazy dog. jamps OvA a lEzE dog.
4.1B English Alphabet
4444....1111BBBB AAAAiiiinnnngggglllliiiisssshhhh AAAAaaaallllffffaaaabbbbeeeetttt
I pack my box with five
Ay pak mAy boks widh fAyv
dozen liquor jugs. dozin likwa jugs.
4.1C English Alphabet 4444....1111CCCC AAAAiiiinnnngggglllliiiisssshhhh AAAAaaaallllffffaaaabbbbeeeetttt
Jackdaws love my big sphinx
JakdOs lav mAy big sfinks
of quartz. of kOz.
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