Language with its miraculous grace,
Phonology weaves its intricate embrace,
A symphony of sounds in patterns we find,
In this poetic ode, let’s explore the mind.
Phonemes, the building blocks, so pure,
Distinctive units that language does endure,
Consonants and vowels in harmonious blend,
Their rules and changes, our journey will attend.
In initial position, voiceless and voiced,
Consonants resonate, by choice, rejoiced,
The plosives and fricatives, a lively duet,
As at the start, their voices we’ll never forget.
Sonorants sing sweetly, nasals in repose,
Liquids and glides with a lyrical pose,
In codas, they linger, their melodies clear,
A finale that echoes, both far and near.
Vowels, the heartbeats of words, they reside,
In open syllables, their presence can’t hide,
Short and long, tense and lax they enthrall,
In diphthongs and triphthongs, they enchant us all.
But rules, like a conductor, guide this grand scheme,
Assimilation, dissimilation, it’s not a dream,
When sounds collide, they morph and adapt,
In harmony or contrast, their course is mapped.
Consonant clusters, in clusters they thrive,
Through elision or epenthesis, they strive,
Simplification or strengthening, they transcend,
Their phonotactic constraints, until they amend.
Metathesis, a dance of sounds that twirl,
A flip-flopping act in this phonological world,
Transpositions and swaps, they pirouette and sway,
A linguistic ballet where they find their way.
Syllable structure, a rhythmic embrace,
Onsets, nuclei, codas interlace,
Vowel reduction, schwa’s subtle caress,
In prosodic domains, they softly impress.
Stress patterns emerge, a metered design,
With primary and secondary beats that align,
Trochees and iambs, in poetic verse they play,
Creating rhythms that carry our words away.
So, in this phonological symphony’s lore,
We uncover the rules that language outpours,
A tapestry of sounds, intricate and grand,
In the world of phonology, we understand.
From phonemes to rules, in rhyme, we entwine,
The poetry of language, divine and benign,
In this ode to phonology, may you find delight,
As sounds and their rules, in harmony, take flight.
Maina Wahome is a Kenyan-born linguist, educator, author, playwright, and poet. He wields a Bachelor
of Education (B.Ed. Arts) (English and Literature) from Laikipia University (Kenya) and is currently
pursuing his M.A. in Applied Linguistics at Universitas Diponegoro, Indonesia. His publications in
linguistics have been in Phonology, Morpho-Syntax, Cognitive linguistics, and Natural Semantic
Metalanguage. He has authored a play, ‘Trouble for Sale, published by Ukiyoto publishers-canada’ three
novels, ‘Trials and Tribulations,’ ‘The Double-Edged Princess,’ (published by Academy Press-California),
and a writing academic book, ‘The Illuminator.’ He has also co-authored anthologies of poems: one with
a Zimbabwean writer Ndaba Sibanda, ‘Of Poets, Passions, Places and Paradoxes- Thou Shall Not Judge,’
and another one with a Kenyan poetess and a Nigerian poet (Musings: Values, Virtues, and Vices of
Africa and Beyond: An Anthology of African Poetry) published by Ukiyoto Publishers-India among other
publications.
