Hokkien phonology

Hokkien is a Southern Min language spoken in southern Fujian and Taiwan. It has one of the most diverse phoneme inventories among Sinitic languages.

Along with other Min languages, which are not directly descended from Middle Chinese, Hokkien is of considerable interest to historical linguists for reconstructing Old Chinese.

This article uses Pe̍h-ōe-jī and IPA for transcription.

Syllables

A syllable in Hokkien consists of an initial, a final, and a tone.

In total, Hokkien uses around 800 toneless combinations of initials and finals, and around 2250~2450 total syllables with tones (counting only attested meaningful syllables, not all theoretically possible combinations).

The number of syllables in Hokkien is far greater than in any other Sinitic language. For comparison, Cantonese and Hokchew use around 1800 toned syllables, Beijing Mandarin has 1350 syllables, and Suzhou Wu has only 1100 syllables.

Initials

Hokkien has aspirated, unaspirated as well as voiced consonant initials.

A total of 15 initials (or 14, in dialects with /dz/ merged with /l/) are used in Hokkien. This number does not include the three nasal consonants ([m], [n], [ŋ]), which are usually considered allophones of the non-nasal voiced initials (e.g. 命; miā; 'life' is analyzed as /bĩã꜅/, but pronounced as [mĩã²²]). This allophony also leads to a notable feature of the Hokkien accent in other languages, such as Japanese or Mandarin, when the nasal sounds like [m] are denasalized into non-nasal voiced consonants like [b].

		Labial	Alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Stop	plain	p	t		k	ʔ
	aspirated	pʰ	tʰ		kʰ
	voiced	b (m)	l~d~ɾ (n)		ɡ (ŋ)
	(nasalized)
Affricate	plain		ts
	aspirated		tsʰ
	voiced		dz~z
Fricative			s			h
Semi-vowels		w		j

Syllables starting with vowels or approximants (/w/, /j/) are considered to have the zero initial /∅/ (which can be articulated as a glottal stop [ʔ]).

Affricates and fricatives (ts, tsʰ, dz~z, s) are palatalized before i, becoming tɕ, tɕʰ, dʑ~ʑ, ɕ.

Allophones of the consonants in urban Zhangzhou Hokkien

Phoneme	Phonetic realisation
	_/[i; j]	_/[u; w]	_/[Ṽ; ŋ̍]	elsewhere
/p/	[p]	[pʷ]	[p]	[p]
/pʰ/	[pʰ]	[pʰʷ]	[pʰ]	[pʰ]
/b/	[ɓ]	[βʷ]	[m]	[ɓ]
/tʰ/	[t̪ʰ]	[t̻ʰʷ]	[tʰ]	[tʰ]
/l/	[ɗ̪]	[lʷ]	[n]	[ɗ]
/k/	[kʲ]	[kʷ]	[k]	[k]
/kʰ/	[kʰʲ]	[kʰʷ]	[kʰ]	[kʰ]
/g/	[ɠʲ]	[ɣʷ]	[ŋ]	[ɠ]
/∅/	[ʔʲ]/∅	[ʔʷ]/∅	[ʔ]/∅	[ʔ]/∅
/s/	[ɕ]	[ʃ]	[s]	[s]
/z/	[ʝ]	[ʒ]	[z]	[z]
/h/	[ħʲ]	[hʷ]	[ɦ]	[ħ]
/ts/	[tɕ]	[tʃ]	[ts]	[ts]
/tsʰ/	[tɕʰ]	[tʃʰ]	[tsʰ]	[tsʰ]

The phoneme /l/ in Hokkien has many possible articulations. It ranges between [d], [ɗ], [l] and [ɾ]. Its nasal allophone is uniformly described as [n]. In directly-borrowed loanwords (i.e. those not borrowed orthographically via Mandarin or Japanese), foreign /d/ may be represented with Hokkien /l/: 鐳; lui; 'coin' (from Dutch duit via Malay), 羅辛; lô-sin; 'dozen' (from English), 老君; ló-kun; 'doctor' (from Malay dukun), 棉蘭; Mî-lân; 'Medan'.

As a phoneme, /dz/ (also realized as [z]) is found predominantly in southern dialects of Hokkien. In many northern dialects, such as urban Quanzhou and Amoy, it has merged with /l/. This merger is still incomplete in some peripheral northern dialects, such as those of Tong'an or Yongchun, where /dz/ is reported to be present in some localities, in the speech of older speakers, or in a limited set of words (usually the more common ones, such as 日; ji̍t; 'day' or 二; jī; 'two'). Some Southern and Western Hokkien dialects merge /dz/ with /g/ (among the Southern Hokkien dialects, such merger is found in the north of Zhangpu, in Taichung, or, under Western Hokkien influence, in Hua'an).

Finals

A final in Hokkien consists of a nucleus (a vowel, a diphtong, or a syllabic nasal /m̩/ or /ŋ̍/), with an optional medial (/i/ or /u/, some dialects also allow /ɯ/) and coda (/m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /p/, /t/, /k/, /ʔ/).

There are around 80 to 90 finals in Hokkien. The exact number can vary depending on the specific dialect, as well as the inclusion of marginal finals from onomatopoeia and contractions. Western branch of Hokkien (the Lengna dialect) has around 60 finals, due to the loss of the /-ʔ/ coda.

In the tables below, rare rimes used in a small number of words are shaded. Finals used only in the northern or southern dialects of Hokkien are marked with _N and _S respectively.

Open-vowel finals

Finals with the coda /-ʔ/ are considered to be the checked tone counterparts for the open-vowel finals.

Non-nasalized finals

non-entering tones	zero medial	-a /a/ 亞巴	-er /ə/N 果皮	-o͘ /ɔ/ 土兔	-o /o/ 刀無	-e /e/ 系西	-ee /ɛ/S 茶馬	-ir /ɯ/N 去事		-ai /ai/ 才台	-au /au/ 包草
	/-i-/	-ia /ia/ 者野	-i /i/ 伊比		-io /io/ 叫小				-iu /iu/ 友首		-iau /iau/ 條肖
	/-u-/	-oa /ua/ 我歌	-u /u/ 主富			-oe /ue/ 悔貝			-ui /ui/ 水季	-oai /uai/ 快怪
entering tones	zero medial	-ah /aʔ/ 甲拍	-erh /əʔ/N 雪月	-o͘h /ɔʔ/ 膜噁	-oh /oʔ/ 學索	-eh /eʔ/ 客N雪S	-eeh /ɛʔ/S 白客	-irh /ɯʔ/N 䟙漬			-auh /auʔ/ 雹暴
	/-i-/	-iah /iaʔ/ 食壁	-ih /iʔ/ 鐵篾	-io͘h /iɔʔ/S	-ioh /ioʔ/ 箬藥				-iuh /iuʔ/		-iauh /iauʔ/
	/-u-/	-oah /uaʔ/ 煞末	-uh /uʔ/ 厾托			-oeh /ueʔ/ 八N卜S			-uih /uiʔ/N 血

The vowel -a /a/ is usually [ɐ].

The vowel ee /ɛ/ is only found in Southern dialects of Hokkien.

The final -o͘ /ɔ/ is realized as a diphtong -ou [ou] in many rural Zhangzhou dialects (in Pinghe, Zhangpu, Yunxiao, Chawan, etc), similarly to Teochew. Likewise, many of those dialects diphtongize -e /e/ into -ei [ei]. Some dialects, such as Zhangpu, realize them as triphtongs [uou] and [iei]. Changtai dialect uniquely pronounces general Hokkien -o͘ /ɔ/ as [eu]. However, it still uses the vowel /ɔ/, mainly in place of general Hokkien /o/.

-er /ə/ and -ir /ɯ/ are found in many Northern Hokkien dialects, including Quanzhou and Tong'an. In Amoy, Jinjiang and among some younger urban Quanzhou speakers, -er /ə/ is merged with /e/. Similarly, the final -ir /ɯ/ may be merged with /i/ or /u/ in those dialects. These two finals are not found in Southern dialects of Hokkien.

Chawan dialect in Zhangzhou also has -er /ə/ and -ir /ɯ/. Thus, Chawan distinguishes the following finals: -ee /ɛ/, -er /ə/, and -ei [ei] (latter corresponding to urban Zhangzhou -e /e/). The dialects of Yunxiao and rural Dongshan are notable for having -ee /ɛ/, -e /e/ (in place of Chawan -er /ə/) and -ei /ei/ (in place of urban Zhangzhou -e /e/) as distinct finals.

In Northern Hokkien dialects where the final -er /ə/ is present, it is generally realized as [ɤ̟], and -o /o/ is realized as [o̜]. In dialects where -er /ə/ is absent, [ɤ̹] is a possible realization of -o /o/.

Nasalized finals

non-entering tones	zero medial	-aⁿ /ã/ 三衫		-o͘ⁿ /ɔ̃/ 毛誤	-eⁿ /ẽ/N 泥嬰	-eeⁿ /ɛ̃/S 生病		-aiⁿ /ãi/ 乃耐	-auⁿ /ãu/ 貌鬧	-m /m̩/ 毋莓	-ng /ŋ̍/ 方堂
	/-i-/	-iaⁿ /iã/ 兄名	-iⁿ /ĩ/ 年天	-io͘ⁿ /iɔ̃/S 想羊			-iuⁿ /iũ/ 想N牛S		-iauⁿ /iãu/ 貓鳥
	/-u-/	-oaⁿ /uã/ 看線			-oeⁿ /uẽ/S 妹糜		-uiⁿ /uĩ/ 每N光S	-oaiⁿ /uãi/ 檨彎
entering tones	zero medial	-ahⁿ /ãʔ/		-ohⁿ /ɔ̃ʔ/ 膜瘼	-ehⁿ /ẽʔ/N 脈	-eehⁿ /ɛ̃ʔ/S 脈雀		-aihⁿ /ãiʔ/N	-auhⁿ /ãuʔ/	-mh /m̩ʔ/	-ngh /ŋ̍ʔ/
	/-i-/	-iahⁿ /iãʔ/ 嚇愕	-ihⁿ /ĩʔ/ 物𥍉		-oehⁿ /uẽʔ/S		-iuhⁿ /iũʔ/N		-iauhⁿ /iãuʔ/
	/-u-/						-uihⁿ /uĩʔ/N 蜢	-oaihⁿ /uãiʔ/

Finals with codas

Finals with codas

		-m/-p			-ng/-k			-n/-t
non-entering tones	zero medial	-am /am/ 南甘	-erm /əm/N 森針	-om /ɔm/S 森掩	-ang /aŋ/ 江儂	-erng /əŋ/N 生等	-ong /ɔŋ/ 王東	-an /an/ 安難	-ern /ən/N 銀恩
	/-i-/	-iam /iam/ 忝劍	-im /im/ 心金		-iang /iaŋ/ 涼亮	-eng /iŋ/ 令頂	-iong /iɔŋ/ 中弓	-ian /ian/ 建電	-in /in/ 人引
	/-u-/	-oam /uam/ 犯凡			-oang /uaŋ/N 風			-oan /uan/ 川全	-un /un/ 春本
entering tones	zero medial	-ap /ap/ 答雜		-op /ɔp/S	-ak /ak/ 角北	-erk /ək/N 德特	-ok /ɔk/ 服國	-at /at/ 殺達	-ert /ət/N 迄核
	/-i-/	-iap /iap/ 接粒	-ip /ip/ 立及		-iak /iak/ 逼	-ek /ik/ 昔逆	-iok /iɔk/ 足俗	-iat /iat/ 穴烈	-it /it/ 日失
	/-u-/	-oap /uap/ 法						-oat /uat/ 越決	-ut /ut/ 骨術

The exact realization of /iŋ/ and /ik/ varies throughout the dialects. For most of them, they are described as [iɪŋ]/[iɪk] or [iəŋ]/[iək]. Many Hokkien dialects in rural Zhangzhou and SEA have them as [eŋ] and [ek]. In urban Quanzhou and Jinjiang, /ik/ is merged with /iak/, but /iŋ/ is preserved.

In dialects with -erng /əŋ/ and -ng /ŋ̍/, the two finals are often confounded. Likewise, -m /m̩/ and -erm /əm/ may be used intechangeably. -m /m̩/ is assigned mainly to the syllables with zero initial, e.g. in 毋 m̄ "not", 媒 m̂, hm̂ "matchmaker", 梅 m̂ "plum", 莓 m̂ "berry", etc.

Hui'an dialect merges -im /im/ and -iam /iam/ into [em], or -ip /ip/ and -iap /iap/ into [ep], etc, and thus it has the following rhymes not found in other dialects: [em], [ep], [en], [et], [eŋ].

While -er /ə/ and -ir /ɯ/ are phonemically distinct as standalone finals, they are not distinct in compound finals, and /əm/, /əŋ/, /ən/, /ək/, /ət/ may be described as /ɯm/, /ɯŋ/, /ɯn/, /ɯk/, /ɯt/ as well (and they are usually described as such for Teochew). In Quanzhou operatic pronunciation, this sound is pronounced as [-ɯə-] in compound finals (except for the final /ək/, which is realized as [-ɯak], influenced by the urban Quanzhou -erk/-ek/-iak merger). These rimes also share some phonological constraints with /ɯ/ rather than /ə/, e.g. they do not cooccur with labial initials (so */pɯ/, */pʰək/~/pʰɯk/ or */mət/~/mɯt/ are not valid syllables in Hokkien, while /pə/ or /pʰə/ are possible).

Rimes used in minor dialects

Rimes with medial /-ɯ-/

Finals with the medial -ir- /-ɯ-/ are mentioned in Lūi-im Biāu-gō͘ (彙音妙悟), an early 19th century Northern Hokkien rimebook, but now they are obsolete in most dialects of Hokkien. They are found only in a few exceptionally conservative dialects, such as Quanzhou operatic, or, per Ang Ui-jin's survey, in the Taiwanese "Old Anxi accent", spoken among older generations in some areas of New Taipei (namely Sanxia, Linkou, Pinglin, Xizhi, Qidu, Pingxi, and Taishan), in Baozhong Township, and in a few villages in Xihu and Puyan. For these dialects, Ang Ui-jin describes this medial as -er- /-ə-/ rather than -ir- /-ɯ-/, except in the final -iriⁿ /ɯĩ/.

Finals with /-ɯ-/

-ira /ɯa/N 徛騎	-iro /ɯo/N 鉤偶	-ire /ɯe/N 街初
-irah /ɯaʔ/N 揭		-ireh /ɯeʔ/N 節狹
-iraⁿ /ɯã/N 囝			-iriⁿ /ɯĩ/N 先前

/uɛ/ and related rimes

Some southern dialects (Yunxiao, Chawan, Lengna) have /ue/ and /uɛ/ as distinct finals. The latter is used in a small number of vernacular readings: in 瓜, 花, 華, 化, 怪, 畫, 話 in all of these dialects, and 果, 過, 課, 火, 貨 additionally in the Chawan dialect, and 瓦, 蓋, 芥, 寡 in the Lengna dialect.

Similarly, those dialects differentiate between /ueʔ/ and /uɛʔ/, but the latter is used exclusively in 劃.

Furthermore, in Chawan dialect, /uẽ/ is used in 妹, 糜, and 昧, while /uɛ̃/ is used in 關, 橫, 寬, 寡, 杆, and 莖. Other rural Zhangzhou dialects (Nanjing, Pinghe, Changtai, Yunxiao, etc) have /uẽ/ in both groups of characters.

Zhangpu dialect uses /uɛ/, /uɛʔ/ and /uɛ̃/ consistently in place of /ue/, /ueʔ/ and /uẽ/.

Marginal finals

Some marginal finals (not mentioned in the above charts) may occur in specific contexts, such as contractions. For example, in Dongshan dialect there is a final -iohⁿ /iɔ̃ʔ/, used in 即樣 chiohⁿ "like this" and 迄樣 hiohⁿ "like that". In Tong'an dialect, there is a final -iai /iai/, used in contractions (遐兮 hiâ--ê > hiâi "those") or in words with the final -ia suffixed with 仔 á (e.g. 車仔 chhia-á > chhiai-á).

Tones

Quanzhou Hokkien tone contours

Amoy Hokkien tone contours

Zhangzhou Hokkien tone contours

"Dark tones" 陰 im on the left, "light tones" 陽 iông on the right. "Entering tones" 入 ji̍p are in pale color.
  Tone ①陰平   Tone ⑤陽平
  Tone ②陰上   Tone ⑥陽上 (only Quanzhou)
  Tone ③陰去   Tone ⑦陽去 (only Amoy, Zhangzhou)

Traditionally, four Middle Chinese tones are called "level" 平 piâⁿ, "rising" 上 chiǔⁿ, "departing" 去 khìr and "entering" 入 ji̍p. These names are mnemonics illustrating the corresponding tone, e.g. the word "level" 平 piâⁿ has the level tone, the word "to enter" 入 ji̍p has the entering tone, etc. In modern languages, these four tones are further divided into two categories: the "dark" (陰 im) or "upper" (上 chiǔⁿ) tones and the "light" (陽 iông) or "lower" (下 ě) tones, giving a total of 8 tones in traditional system.

The tones can be counted in two patterns: the "dark—light" order (the checked tones are 7 and 8) is more common in works published in China, and the "level—rising—departing—entering" order (the checked tones are 4 and 8) is more popular in Taiwan. This article follows the latter numbering system.

陰 "dark tones"
tone name		陰平 "dark level"	陰上 "dark rising"	陰去 "dark departing"	陰入 "dark entering"
Pe̍h-ōe-jī diacritic		a	á	à	ah (-p, -t, -k)
tone number		①	②	③	④
examples		詩 si	死 sí	四 sì	薛 sih
		君 kun	滾 kún	棍 kùn	骨 kut
		東 tong	董 tóng	棟 tòng	督 tok
		耽 tam	膽 tám	擔 tàm	答 tap
陽 "light tones"
tone name		陽平 "light level"	陽上 "light rising"	陽去 "light departing"	陽入 "light entering"
Pe̍h-ōe-jī diacritic		â	ǎ	ā	a̍h (-p, -t, -k)
tone number		⑤	⑥	⑦	⑧
examples		時 sî	是 sǐ	示 sī	蝕 si̍h
		群 kûn	窘 kǔn	郡 kūn	滑 ku̍t
		同 tông	動 tǒng	洞 tōng	獨 to̍k
		談 tâm	湛 tǎm	淡 tām	踏 ta̍p

In most dialects of Hokkien, there are only 7 distinct citation tones, as some of the 8 traditional tones merge into a single tone. Certain dialects (the Lengna dialect or the Changkeng-Yidu dialect in Anxi and Yongchun) distinguish all eight tones, and some (Jinjiang) have only 6 citation tones due to additional mergers. Many Northern dialects merge certain tones in the citation form, but not in the sandhi form.

Taiwanese and Amoy Hokkien citation tones

	平	上	去	入
陰	①君 kun [kun˦]	②滾 kún [kun˥˧]	③棍 kùn [kun˧˩]	④骨 kut [kut˧˨]
陽	⑤群 kûn [kun˨˩˦]	⑦郡 kūn [kun˧]		⑧滑 ku̍t [kut˦]

Tone contours across
the Hokkien dialects

	citation tones					post-sandhi tones
	平	上	去	入		平	上	去	入
									-h	-p, -t, -k
Dehua
陰	13	42	21	42		22	44	42
陽	44	35		35		21
urban Quanzhou, Nan'an, Hui'an, Lukang
陰	33	554	31	5		33	214	554		24
陽	214	22		24		22
Jinjiang, Shishi
陰	33	55	31	54		33	214	55		24
陽	214	33		24		22
Tong'an, Xiang'an
陰	44	31	11	32		33	214/22	53		54
陽	214	22		4		11
Taipei
陰	44	53	21	32		22	44	53		54
陽	214	22		4		21				32
Amoy, Yongchun, Changtai, Kaohsiung
陰	44	53	21	32		22	44	53		54
陽	214	22		4			21			32
urban Zhangzhou, Longhai, Pinghe, Nanjing
陰	34	53	31	32		22	34	53		54
陽	213	22		121			31			32
Zhangpu, Yunxiao, Dongshan, Hua'an
陰	44	53	21	32		22	44	53		54
陽	212	22		213			21			32
Chawan
陰	55	53	21	3		33	35	53		54
陽	213	33		213		21	31			3

Tone contours vary across the Hokkien dialects. Some individual dialects, especially those of the Western branch of Hokkien, have more complex tone sandhi systems, with the post-sandhi tone dependent on the following tone.

"Dark level" tone ①陰平

High level 44 ˦ ~ 55 ˥ in most dialects.

May be slightly lower in Quanzhou dialects (33 ˧ ~ 44 ˦).

In urban Zhangzhou dialect it shifts towards high rising 34 ˧˦.

"Dark rising" tone ②陰上

High falling 53 ˥˧ ~ 51 ˥˩ in most dialects.

Coastal Quanzhou dialects (urban Quanzhou, Nan'an, Jinjiang, etc) have it as high level with a small drop at the end (55 ˥ ~ 554 ˥˥˦).

"Dark departing" tone ③陰去

Low falling 31 ˧˩ in most dialects.

May have higher onset (41 ˦˩) in Northern Hokkien and lower onset (21 ˨˩ or even 11 ˩) in Southern dialects.

"Dark entering" tone ④陰入

Mid-falling 32 ˧˨ in Southern dialects, as well as in Amoy, Yongchun, Tong'an, etc.

High falling 54 ˥˦ in Quanzhou dialects.

"Light level" tone ⑤陽平

Mid or high dipping tone 214 ˨˩˦ in Northern Hokkien, including Amoy.

Lower dipping 212 ˨˩˨ ~ 213 ˨˩˧ in Southern Hokkien, although sometimes it may become more level 22 ˨ or lose its rising part (in this case, however, it does not merge with the low-falling tone, but has a longer low segment with an overall contour 211 ˨˩˩).

Since the initial falling part is natural for rising tones in tonal languages, many works ignore it and describe this tone as 13 ˩˧ for Southern dialects of Hokkien or 24 ˨˦ for Northern dialects.

"Light rising" tone ⑥陽上

Mid-level with a slight drop 22 ˨ ~ 221 ˨˨˩ in some Northern dialects (urban Quanzhou, Nan'an, Hui'an, etc).

Merged with tone ⑦陽去 in Southern dialects and some peripheral Northern dialects (Amoy, Tong'an, Yongchun, etc).

"Light departing" tone ⑦陽去

Mid-level 22 ˨ ~ 33 ˧ in Southern dialects, as well as Amoy Hokkien.

Merged with tone ③陰去 in many Quanzhou dialects (but still distinguished in sandhi).

"Light entering" tone ⑧陽入

In greater Quanzhou and Zhangzhou Hokkien, its contour is similar to that of tone ⑤陽平 (mid- or low-rising).

In Amoy and Taiwanese Hokkien, it is a high level tone 4 ˦.

Tone sandhi

A phrase in Hokkien is divided into "tone groups", where each syllable except the last one undergoes the tone sandhi.

The suffix 仔 -á

The suffix 仔 -á is related to some special phonetic changes.

Syllables before 仔 -á may induce its change due to assimilation.

word	nominal form	assimilated form		meaning
賊仔	chha̍t-á	> chha̍t-lá	> chha̍l-lá	«thief»
盒仔	a̍p-á	> a̍p-bá	> a̍b-bá	«small box»
竹仔	tek-á	> tek-gá	> teg-gá	«bamboo»
柑仔	kam-á	> kam-má		«tangerine»
囡仔	gín-á	> gín-ná		«child»
翁仔	ang-á	> ang-ngá		«doll»
圓仔	îⁿ-á	> îⁿ-áⁿ		«meatball»
美仔	bí-á	> bí-ah		«Bi-a (a girl's name)»
箬仔	hio̍h-á	> hio̍h-ah		«leaf»

Some assimilations are dialect-specific. E.g. in Tong'an dialect, a syllable ending in -a changes it to -ai before 仔 -á: 車仔 chhia-á > chhiai-á.

The tone sandhi before 仔 -á is different from general Hokkien tone sandhi.

Historical phonology and internal differences

The territory of the Chheng-goân (Qingyuan) Circuit in 10th c. coincides with modern Hokkien-speaking area

The earliest sources on the Hokkien phonology are the rhyme dictionaries Lūi-im Biāu-ngō͘ (彙音妙悟) and Lūi-chi̍p Ngé-sio̍k-thong Si̍p-ngó͘-im (彙集雅俗通十五音). The former describes the Quanzhou Hokkien, while the latter describes the Zhangzhou Hokkien.

Current Hokkien-speaking area mostly coincides with the 10th century Chheng-goân Circuit, a de facto independent polity that emerged after the fall of the Min Empire. The polity was divided into two prefectures, Quanzhou (which also included modern Putian, Changtai and most of Xiamen) and Zhangzhou (which also included the Hokkien-speaking areas of modern Longyan), and the border between these medieval prefectures roughly coincides with certain modern Hokkien isoglosses. The Chiang-bú Circuit (彰武軍), which was under the rule of Wuyue, covers the Hokchew-speaking area, and Tiong-gī Circuit (忠義軍) ruled by Southern Tang lies in Inland Min- and Hakka-speaking area in Fujian.

Changtai dialect contains features of both Northern (Quanzhou) and Southern (Zhangzhou) dialect areas, atop of having some of its own unique characteristics. Changtai was a part of Quanzhou prefecture in 6—10 centuries, until being transferred under Zhangzhou's jurisdiction in 980.

Chawan dialect is a distinct variety of Hokkien. It may have received some influence from Teochew, but its amount is contestable.

The Eastern Namoa dialect shows some traits of Zhangzhou Hokkien, as this half of the Namoa island was previously included in the Zhangzhou prefecture, yet in most aspects it still clusters more with Teochew.

Hai Lok Hong dialect has even more features typical for southern dialects of Hokkien, and may be classified as a distinct dialect of either Teochew or Hokkien, or a variety of Southern Min separate from both of them. The charts below follow the classification of The Language Atlas of China, where Hai Lok Hong is included in Teochew.

The Lengna and Zhangping dialects are very different from mainstream Hokkien. At the same time, they form a continuum with Zhangzhou dialects. They are usually classified as the Western branch of Hokkien.

Datian Min is usually included in Southern Min as a distinct variety, apart from Hokkien and Teochew. It is divided into two dialects, Qianlu (the 'Frontlect') and Houlu, the former lying closer to Hokkien, and the latter having more Central Min influence. An undescribed variety of Southern Min in the north of Dehua is reported to be quite different from other Hokkien dialects and may belong to the same Hokkien—Central Min transitionary area as Datian Min.

Hinghwa is a language closely affiliated with Hokkien, yet it has received heavy Hokchew influence and is not usually considered a part of Hokkien itself.

Initial correspondences

Denasalization

One large difference between Hokkien and Teochew is the degree of denasalization. Teochew /n/, /m/ and /ŋ/ are usually considered phonemes rather than allophones of the voiced plosives /d/, /b/, /g/.

In Teochew, most syllables with codas preserve the nasal initial, with a few exceptions: denasalization frequently occurs in some specific syllables, like buang (亡, 忘, 望, 萬), bak (木, 墨, but mak: 目), leng (能, 寧, 獰), long (農, 膿, 濃), lang (濃, 難, 囊, but nang: 儂), lung (嫩, 媆), bung (悶, 聞, 文, 紋, but mung: 門, 晚, 問). It may also sporadically occur in some individual characters: 勿, 蜜, 玉, 獄, etc. In Hokkien on the other hand, syllables with codas (excluding -h) can never have nasal initials.

In Hinghwa, Hokkien voiced consonants /b/, /dz/, /g/, including cases when they are derived from nasal initials, are further devoiced into /p/, /ts/, /k/.

Final correspondences

The charts below illustrate the common correspondences in rimes between various dialects of Hokkien, as well as related Southern Min languages. Middle Chinese finals are transcribed using Baxter's transcription, and Proto-Southern-Min reconstructions are per Kwok Bit-chee.

In the example characters, literary and vernacular readings are marked by different types of underlines. Note that the examples are given primarily for Hokkien correspondences, and other languages may lack corresponding readings for some of the example characters.

Open-vowel finals

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien							Teochew				Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			gQZ TA	JJ	AM TP	AM KH	gZZ	CA		ST	TY	HLH EN		LN	ZP	FL
	*ɯ	豬魚語箸舉	ɯ	i	u	i	i	ɯ		ɯ	u	i		i	i	i	y
	*ɿ	自事思史師				u	u					u		ɯ	u	o	o
	—	遇區樹取雨	u	u			i			u		i		i	i	i	y
	*u	府武主浮舊					u	u				u		u	u	u	u
	*i	米知眉李時	i	i	i	i	i	i		i	i	i		i	i	i	i
	*ui	非貴爲衣氣	ui	ui	ui	ui	ui	ui		ui	ui	ui		ui	ui	ui	ui
	*iu	久友守手首	iu	iu	iu	iu	iu	iu		iu	iu	iu		iu	iu	iu	iu

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien											Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			LK	SX	gQZ TA	JJ AM TP	CT	KH	ZZ	ZP	YX	CA		ST TY	HLH		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
	*e	茶蝦馬牙	e	e	e	e	e	e	ɛ	ɛ	ɛ	ɛ		e	e		iɛ	ɛ	a	ɒ	ɒ
	*ø	坐袋退短螺胎	ə	ə	ə				e		e	ə		o			ie	ie	e	ø	ø
	*uø	皮吹被垂					ue	ue	ue	uɛ	ue	ue		ue	ue		ue	ue	ue	uoi	ue
		果過課火貨										uɛ
	*ue	配背回退罪	ue	ue	ue	ue						ue
		瓜花華化話							ua	ua	uɛ	uɛ					uɛ		ua	ua	ua
	—	瓦蓋芥寡	ua	ua	ua	ua	ua	ua			ua	ua		ua	ua
	*ua	大紙沙破蛇															ua	ua
	*oi	買賣批稗	ue	ue	ue	ue	ue	e	e	iei	ei	ei		oi	ei		ie	ie	e	e	e
		雞街初細	ɯe	əe
	—	低系西迷	e	e	e	e								i	i

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien								Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			LK	gQZ	YC	ZZ AM TA	CT	ZP	YX CA		ST TY HLH	TC		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
	*a	巴霸亞家夏	a	a	a	a	a	a	a		a	a		a	a	a	a	a
	*ia	寫謝邪也舍	ia	ia	ia	ia	ia	ia	ia		ia	ia		ia	ia	ia	ia	ia
	*ai	才台代在大	ai	ai	ai	ai	ai	ai	ai		ai	ai		ai	ai	ɛ	ai	ai
	*o	報寶道保抱	o, ɔ	o, ɔ	o, ɔ	o	ɔ	o	o		o	o		o	uo	o, ɔ	ɒ, o	ɒ, o
		左多波朵破
	—	所初助楚阻	ɔ	ɔ	ɔ	ɔ	eu	uou	ou							u	ø	ø
	*ou	土布路烏古									ou	ou		u	ɔ		ou	ou
	—	搜鄹鄒瘦驟	ɯo	io										au	au	ɔ	ieu	iau
		偶侯樓鉤厚
		貿牟懋茂謀	io
	*au	包草孝走狗	au	au	au	au	au	au	au		au	au					au	au
	*iau	了小照條肖	iau	iau	iau	iau	iau	iau	iau		iau	iou		iau	iau	iɔ	ieu	iau
	*uai	快怪	uai	uai	uai	uai	uai	uai	uai		uai	uai		uai	uai	uɛ	uoi	ue

Finals with -n/-t

Teochew has mostly merged -n/-t with -ŋ/-k, except for some peripheral dialects. The dialect of Fenghuang County in Chaozhou preserves the most -n/-t finals (a total of six: -un, -in, -uan, -ien, -an, -ɯn). The Eastern Namoa dialect preserves only -in and -un. In Hai Lok Hong, while some dialects also preserve -in and -un, most Western Hai Lok Hong dialects only preserve -un, and most Eastern Hai Lok Hong dialects merge all -n/-t finals with -ŋ/-k, like in Teochew.

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien							Teochew						Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			LK	SX	HA	NA YC	QZ TA JJ AM	gZZ		TC	ST	KY	TY	HLH EN		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
	*an (*at)	單難安山等 （八辣殺渴葛）	an (at)	an (at)	an (at)	an (at)	an (at)	an (at)		aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)		an (at)	an (at)	aŋ (aʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)
	*un (*ut)	分本門問船 （不出突骨弗）	un (ut)	un (ut)	un (ut)	un (ut)	un (ut)	un (ut)		uŋ (uk)	uŋ (uk)	uŋ (uk)	uŋ (uk)	un (ut)		un (ut)	un (ut)	ueŋ (oʔ)	uoŋ (uoʔ)	ɔŋ (ɔʔ)
	*ɯn (—)	恩銀近根筋 （迄屹屼）	ɯən (ɯət)	ɯn (ɯt)	ən (ət)	ən (ət)		in (it)		ɯŋ (ɯk)	ɯŋ (ɯk)	eng (ek)	iŋ (ik)	in (it)		in (it)	in (it)	eŋ (eʔ)	yŋ (yʔ)	yŋ (yʔ)
	*in (*it)	陳神面品民 （一必日質失）	in (it)	in (it)	en (et)	in (it)	in (it)			iŋ (ik)	iŋ (ik)								iŋ (iʔ)	iŋ (iʔ)
	*ian (*iat)	善戰天見建 （列別舌烈血）	iɛn (iɛt)	iɛn (iɛt)		iɛn (iɛt)	iɛn (iɛt)	iɛn (iɛt)		ieŋ (iek)	iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iak)		iɛn (iɛt)	en (et)	iaŋ (iaʔ)	ɛŋ (ɛʔ)	ɛŋ (ɛʔ)
	*uan (*uat)	傳權村元全 （說絕決越雪）	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)		ueŋ (uek)	uaŋ (uak)	uaŋ (uak)	uaŋ (uak)	uaŋ (uak)			uan (uat)	uaŋ (uaʔ)	yøŋ (yøʔ)	œŋ (œʔ)
		官關亂判歡 （活伐奪末發）														uan (uat)			uoŋ (uoʔ)	uaŋ (uaʔ)

The choose of -ian/-iat or -uan/-uat for a given character derived from MC rhymes 仙三合 -jw(i)en and 先四合 -wen is not consistent among different languages. For 仙三合 -jw(i)en, the generally used reflex is -uan/-uat for most Southern Min languages, except Hinghwa and Lengna, where it is -ian/-iat. However, there is a tendency in Hokkien to have -ian/-iat here when the MC initial was 以 y-, either as the only reading or a non-standard popular variant. For 先四合 -wen, the general reflex is -ian/-iat.

The shape of a character may influence the choose of -ian/-iat or -uan/-uat. Characters with 肙 as the phonetic element (涓, 罥, 鵑, 鞙) tend to have -uan in Hokkien, but -ian in other languages. Characters derived from 矞, 血 and 穴 tend to have -iat in Hokkien, but -uat in Teochew. Characters derived from 夬 and 癸 tend to have -uat in mainstream Hokkien and Teochew, but -iat in Hinghwa, Lengna, Hai Lok Hong, etc.

Finals with -m/-p

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien								Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			LK	gQZ	HA	TA SX TP	AM	gZZ	CA		ST TY	HLH EN		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
	*am (*ap)	南甘男三談 （合盒答雜壓）	am (ap)	am (ap)	am (ap)	am (ap)	am (ap)	am (ap)	am (ap)		am (ap)	am (ap)		am (ap)	am (ap)	aŋ (aʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)
	*uam (*uap)	犯泛範 （法）	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uan (uat)	uam (uap)		uam (uap)	uam (uap)		uan (uat)	uan (uat)	aŋ (uaʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)
	*im (*ip)	今心深金音 （入及立習集）	im (ip)	im (ip)	em (ep)	im (ip)	im (ip)	im (ip)	im (ip)		im (ip)	im (ip)		iom (iop)	im, in (ip, it)	eŋ (eʔ)	iŋ (iʔ)	iŋ (iʔ)
	*iam (*iap)	念忝漸鹽劍 （業粒接疊涉）	iam (iap)	iam (iap)		iam (iap)	iam (iap)	iam (iap)	iam (iap)		iam (iap)	iam (iap)		iam (iap)	iam (iap)	iaŋ (iaʔ)	ieŋ (ieʔ)	iaŋ (iaʔ)
—	*øm	蔘	ɯəm	əm		im	ong	om	om			om		iom	am	aŋ
		森					im							am

Finals with -ŋ/-k

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien								Teochew				Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			LK	NA	QZ JJ	HA	YC TA SX AM ZZ CT CA	ZP	YX		ST	TY	HLH		LN	ZP	FL
	*aŋ (*ak)	巷江空同東 （角覺六木北）	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)		aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)		aŋ (ak)	aŋ (ak)	aŋ (aʔ)	aŋ (aʔ)
	—	等生能僧肯 （德得刻克特）	ɯəng (ɯak)	əng (ək)	əng (iak)	eŋ (iak)	iŋ (ik)	ioŋ (iok)	iɛn (iɛt)		eŋ (ek)	eŋ (ek)	eŋ (ek)		in (it)	in (et)	eŋ (aʔ)	ɛŋ (ɛʔ)
	*iŋ (*ik)	定零朋幸戥 （白的色笛魄）	iŋ (iak)	iŋ (ik)	iŋ (iak)
		形正星京命 （食赤力飾職）																iŋ (iʔ)
	—	永泳螢詠榮 （或惑域）									ioŋ (ok)	ueŋ (uek)						yŋ (ɛʔ)
	—	炯熲 （獲穫砉）									uang (uak)

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien							Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			QZ JJ LK	HA	NA YC TA SX AM	ZZ CT	ZP YX	CA		ST TY	HLH		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
	*ɯŋ (*ɯk)	龍頌湧舂弓 （綠粟玉浴竹）	iŋ (iak)	eŋ (iak)	iŋ (ik)	iŋ (ik)	ioŋ (iok)	iŋ (ik)		eŋ (ek)	eŋ (ek)		ioŋ (iok)	ioŋ (iok)	oŋ (oʔ)	yøŋ (yøʔ)	øŋ (œʔ)
	*ioŋ (*iok)	恐弓恭雄庸 （玉肉蓄辱欲）	ioŋ (iok)	ioŋ (iok)	ioŋ (iok)	ioŋ (iok)		ioŋ (iok)		ioŋ (iok)	ioŋ (iok)				ioŋ (oʔ)
		充中種終腫 （俗陸足祝築）								oŋ (ok)			oŋ (ok)		oŋ (oʔ)
	—	向想章像樣 （爵弱略藥雀）				iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iɛt)		iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iak)		iaŋ (iak)	iaŋ (iak)	iŋ (ioʔ)	yøŋ (iʔ)	yɒŋ (eʔ)

MC	PSM	examples	Hokkien			Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
			gQZ	gZZ AM		ST TY	HLH		LN	ZP	FL
	*oŋ	公同宋通東 （族福服僕北）	oŋ (ok)	oŋ (ok)		oŋ (ok)	oŋ (ok)		oŋ (ok)	oŋ (ok)	oŋ (oʔ)	ɒŋ (ɒʔ)
	*uoŋ	方況逛礦亡荒 （廓朔溯擴濁）				uaŋ (uak)	uaŋ (ok)		uaŋ (uak)	uaŋ (uak)	uaŋ (uaʔ)
—		風	uaŋ	oŋ		uaŋ	uaŋ		oŋ	oŋ	oŋ	ɒŋ
—	*iaŋ	雙	aŋ	iaŋ		aŋ	aŋ		aŋ	iaŋ	aŋ	aŋ

Finals with -ʔ

Finals with the coda -ʔ are all used in vernacular readings. Their literary counterparts almost always have -p, -t, -k as a coda in Hokkien.

PSM	examples	Hokkien									Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
		LK	SX	QZ TA NA YC HA	JJ AM	CT	ZZ NJ YX	ZP	CA		ST TY	HLH		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
*aʔ	甲鴨答較	aʔ	aʔ	aʔ	aʔ	aʔ	aʔ	aʔ	aʔ		aʔ	aʔ		a	a	a	ɒ	ɒ
*uʔ	托拓	uʔ	uʔ	uʔ	uʔ	uʔ	uʔ	uʔ	uʔ		oʔ	oʔ		—	—	—
*oʔ	索惡學落	oʔ	oʔ	oʔ	oʔ	oʔ	oʔ	oʔ	oʔ					o	uo	o	o	o
*iʔ	鐵舌裂篾	iʔ	iʔ	iʔ	iʔ	iʔ	iʔ	iʔ	iʔ		iʔ	iʔ		i	i	i	i	i
*eʔ	白百客密	eʔ	eʔ	eʔ	eʔ	eʔ	ɛʔ	ɛʔ	ɛʔ		eʔ	eʔ		iɛ	ɛ	a	a	a
*øʔ	雪絕	əʔ	əʔ	əʔ			eʔ		əʔ		oʔ	oʔ, eʔ		ie	ie	ue	ø	ø
*uøʔ	月說缺卜					ueʔ	ueʔ	uɛʔ	ueʔ		ueʔ	ueʔ		ue	ue		uoi	oe
*ueʔ	血	uiʔ	uiʔ	uiʔ	uiʔ												e	e
*oiʔ	八	ueʔ	ueʔ	ueʔ	ueʔ		eʔ	ɛʔ	eʔ		oiʔ	eʔ		ie	ie	e
	節夾截切	ɯeʔ	əeʔ
*iaʔ	削勺食壁	iaʔ	iaʔ	iaʔ	iaʔ	iaʔ	iaʔ	iaʔ	iaʔ		iaʔ	iaʔ		a	ia	ia	ia	ia
*ioʔ	着腳約藥	ioʔ	ioʔ	ioʔ	ioʔ	ioʔ	ioʔ	ioʔ	ioʔ		ioʔ	ioʔ		io	io	io	ieu	ieu
*uaʔ	辣活末熱	uaʔ	uaʔ	uaʔ	uaʔ	uaʔ	uaʔ	uaʔ	uaʔ		uaʔ	uaʔ		ua	ua	ua	ua	ua

Nasalized finals

Nasalized finals in Hokkien have two principal etymological sources.

First category includes the nasalized finals that are cognate to finals with a full nasal coda. They are used only in vernacular readings.

PSM	examples	Hokkien							Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
		gQZ TA AM	CT	ZZ	PH NJ ZP	YX	CA		ST KY EN TY HLH	TC		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
*ã	三林藍衫	ã	ã	ã	ã	ã	ã		ã	ã		ã	ã	ã	ɒ̃	ɒ
*ẽ	姓病硬青生	ĩ	ẽ	ɛ̃	ɛ̃	ĩ	ɛ̃		ẽ	ẽ		iɛ̃	ɛ̃		ã	a
*ĩ	天偏丸見箭		ĩ	ĩ	ĩ		ĩ		ĩ	ĩ		ĩ	ĩ	iŋ	iŋ	iŋ
*iã	行命聲名京	iã	iã	iã	iã	iã	iã		iã	iã		iã	iã	iã	iã	ia
	健營件贏燃														yã	yɒ
*iõ	丈場張章香	iũ	iɔ̃	iɔ̃	iũ	iũ	iõ		iõ	iẽ		iõ	iõ	ŋ	iũ	iau
*uã	單半山傘旦	uã	uã	uã	uã	uã	uã		uã	uã		uã	uã	uã	uã	ua

PSM	examples	Hokkien										Teochew			Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
		LK	gQZ	TA	AM	CT	ZZ	ZP	YX	CA		ST TC	TY HLH		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
*õi	反	uĩ	uĩ	ãi	iŋ	an	iŋ	ioŋ	an	iŋ		oĩ	ãi		ĩ	an	iŋ	ĩ	e
	先前閑肩千	ɯĩ							ian
*ãi	指				ãi	ãi	ai	ai	ai	ai		ãi			ai	ai	ɛ	ai	ai
*uẽ	關			uĩ	uĩ	uãi	uã	uɛ̃	uẽ	uɛ̃		uẽ	uẽ		uɛ̃	uĩ	uã	uĩ	ue
	橫			uãi	uãi											uẽ		uã	ua
*uõi	縣懸					uan	uan	uan	uan	uan		uĩ	uãi		uĩ	uan	uŋ	ĩ	e

PSM	examples	Hokkien					Teochew					Western Hokkien		Datian	Hinghwa
		gQZ TA AM	CT	gZZ	CA		ST TC	KY EN	TY	HLH		LN	ZP	FL	XY	PT
*õ	唐堂向糖	ŋ	ɔ̃	ŋ	ŋ		ɯŋ	ɯŋ	ŋ	ŋ		õ	ŋ	ŋ	ŋ	uŋ
*uĩ	全酸鑽斷頓		ŋ	uĩ						uĩ		ĩ	uĩ	uŋ	ỹ	ø
	光廣				uĩ							uĩ			ŋ	uŋ
	勸穿磚管傳														uĩ	ue
	門問飯晚						uŋ
	遠園荒						ŋ	ŋ

Another type of nasalized finals is used in syllables with nasal initials that did not undergo denasalization. Such syllables may be alternatively analyzed as having a plain, non-nasalized final and a nasal initial. Although this analysis is not typical for Hokkien, it is more common in descriptions of Teochew (e.g. the Peng'im romanization would spell 迷 as mi5, and 棉 as min5, even though both are actually /mĩ⁵⁵/, or mî in Pe̍h-ūe-jī). This type of nasal finals occurs in both literary and vernacular readings.

Tone correspondences

locality	平 'level'		上 'rising'		去 'departing'		入 'entering'		total
	陰 'dark'	陽 'light'	陰 'dark'	陽 'light'	陰 'dark'	陽 'light'	陰 'dark'	陽 'light'
Tn̂g-kheng	13	35	33	53	21	22	32	5	8
Dehua	13	44	42	35	21	陰去	42	35	7
Hui'an	33~44	214	53	22	31	陰去	54	24	7
Quanzhou, Nan'an	33~44	214	554	22	31	陰去	54	24	7
Jinjiang, Shishi	33	214	554	陰平	31	陰去	54	24	6
Tong'an, Xiang'an	44	214	31	陽去	11	22	32	4	7
Quemoy	44	214	53	陽去	12	22	32	4	7
Amoy, Taiwan, Changtai, Yongchun	44	214	53	陽去	21	22~33	32	4	7
Zhangzhou, Longhai, Pinghe, Nanjing	34	213	53	陽去	31	22~33	32	121	7
Zhangpu, Yunxiao, Dongshan	44	212	53	陽去	21	22~33	32	213	7
Chawan	55	213	53	陽去	21	22~33	32	213	7
Swatow, Teochew	33	55	53	35	212	22~21	32	54	8
Puning	34	44	53	23	31	42	32	54	8
Teoyeo (old)	21	44	551	陰去	53	42	43	45	7
Teoyeo (new)	31	33	55~35	陰去	52	43	32	45	7
Haimen	31	44	551	陰平	51	441	43	45	7
Lengna	334	11	21	52	213	55	5	32	8
Zhangping	24	22	53	陽去	21	55	21	53	7
Datian	33	24	53	55	31	陰去	3	5	7
Hinghwa	533	13	453	陽去	42	21	2	4	7