Die sprechende Landkarte | Tips zur Aussprache
The Talking Map | Tips for pronunciation
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In German, consonant sounds which are normally voiced (/b/, /d/, /g/, /v/, /z/) become voiceless (/p/, /t/, /k/, /f/, /s/) at the end of a syllable. You'll notice this in the speech of many native speakers of German when they pronounce English words-- sometimes a word like 'bag' comes out sounding like 'back,' for example. Click on the city names below and concentrate on hearing this at the end of each of the syllables. Notice that devoicing does not affect m, n, l, or r.
When a word ends in the suffix -ig, it comes out in the standard pronunciation sounding like the word ich. In southern areas, you might hear this pronounced instead as -ik. Click below to hear the standard pronunci ation.