kʷ vs ɡ

Voiceless Velar Stop vs Voiced Velar Stop

How these sounds differ

kʷ

Voiceless Velar Stop

Voicing: voiceless
Place: velar
Manner: stop
Class: consonant
In languages: 69 / 500

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Voiced Velar Stop

Voicing: voiced
Place: velar
Manner: stop
Class: consonant
In languages: 301 / 500

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Cross-linguistic distribution

Languages with kʷ

Languages with both

301

Languages with ɡ

31 languages in our database contrast both sounds as distinct phonemes. Languages that have one but not the other tend to merge them into a single phoneme — meaning speakers of those languages often struggle to hear the distinction when learning a language that contrasts them.

Has kʷ, not ɡ (20)

Washkuk Sepik Guambiano Barbacoan DANI Nuclear Trans New Guinea Central Arrernte Pama-Nyungan Mixtec Otomanguean Arabela Zaparoan Kabardian Abkhaz-Adyge BELLA COOLA Salishan Chipewyan Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit SOUTHERN NAMBIQUARA Nambiquaran Squamish Salishan Lakkia Tai-Kadai AMUZGO Otomanguean Border Kuna Chibchan NAHUATL Uto-Aztecan SIONA Tucanoan HIGHLAND CHINANTEC Otomanguean SHUSWAP Salishan Wichita Caddoan HUAVE Huavean

Has ɡ, not kʷ (20)

NONI Atlantic-Congo Sango Atlantic-Congo PIRAHA Language isolate ARCHI Nakh-Daghestanian KULLO Ta-Ne-Omotic Aghem Atlantic-Congo Logbara Central Sudanic Avar Nakh-Daghestanian Wapishana Arawakan Darkhat Mongolic-Khitan Angas Afro-Asiatic Zoque Mixe-Zoque MURSI Surmic WEST MAKIAN North Halmahera Gbeya Atlantic-Congo JINGPHO Sino-Tibetan GWARI Atlantic-Congo Toba-Batak Austronesian Pashto Indo-European MUINANE Boran