In certain languages nasals or laterals may be said to be palato-alveolar, but it is unclear if such sounds can be consistently distinguished from alveolo-palatals and palatalized alveolars.
Not only are all four tongue shapes represented (with the palato-alveolar appearing in the laminal closed variation), but both the palato-alveolars and alveolo-palatals can additionally appear labialized.
Often, to speakers of languages or dialects that do not have the sound, it is said to have a whistling quality, and to sound similar to palato-alveolar.
The three labialized palato-alveolar affricates are missing, which is why the total is 27 not 30.
It is generally only within sibilants that a palato-alveolar articulation is distinguished.
Toda also has a four-way sibilant distinction, with one alveolar, one palato-alveolar, and two retroflex (apical postalveolar and subapical palatal).
The series is much more common than the /s/ series; both are described as palato-alveolar.
Later, the palato-alveolar fricative x changed into the velar fricative, while ch stay unchanged.
