From: "Antoine Leca" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > And yes, similarly to Catalan, the emphatic/prolongated l sound is not > usualy marked.
In French, the emphatic/prolongated l (written with a double l) is usually marked by altering the phonetic of the preceding vowel, such as - in "collčge" where 'o' is often pronounced open, unlike in "colatéral" where "o" is always closed. - if the preceding vowel is a 'e' it is clearly and always pronounced like a 'č' in "désceller" instead of the neutral 'e' in "déceler". - If the preceding vowel is a 'i' with another previous vowel the non-final sequence 'ill' notes a 'y' half-vowel sound like in "maille"; if there's no vowel before that i, the i is a plain vowel, and the double l is generally non emphatic like in "ville" (or "village" or the imported English term "grill") with a long i that shortens the l sound, to compare with "vile" (the feminine form of the adjective "vil") or "vilénie" where the i is short and the l emphatic... - There are known exceptions when i is not preceded by another vowel; between "mille" (long i, emphatic l) and "grille" (long i, half-vowel 'y') - With a preceding 'u', "műle" or "műlet" or "tubulure" use a short 'ü' sound and a l which may be emphatic/long if terminal, unlike "bulle" with a long 'u' sound and a non emphatic short l... Historically, Catalan and French had the same writing system.
