Schwa deletion — why namaste, not namasate

Five rules

• R1

  Final schwa drops

  Word-final schwa is almost always deleted — except when the word ends in a consonant cluster. "नमस्ते" pronounces as namaste, not namasate.

• R2

  Pre-cluster schwa drops

  Schwa before a geminate or conjunct consonant cluster is deleted. "राम्रो" pronounces as raamro — the schwa between म and र disappears.

• R3

  Medial schwa at a sonorant

  In non-final syllables of longer words, the schwa at a medial sonorant (l, n, m, r) often drops in fast speech. "जनता" → jantaa, the schwa at न drops, not ja-na-taa.

• R4

  Light syllable in long word

  In four-syllable or longer words, the schwa of an open light syllable tends to drop. "परिवार" → pariwaar, not para-i-waar.

• R5

  Keep schwa before word-final conjunct

  If the word ends in a consonant cluster, the preceding schwa is preserved. "गर्छ" stays as garchha — the schwa before र+छ is needed.

Fifteen examples

Compare the naive letter-by-letter reading to the natural Nepali pronunciation.