Introduction

In this lesson, you will be introduced to the major anatomical components of the speech system for human language.

Major Terms

• trachea
• larynx
• glottis
• pharynx
• vocal tract

Subglottal System

Sound in human language is produced by the regulation of airflow from the lungs through the throat, nose, and mouth. This airflow is altered in various ways by different aspects of this speech system. The first major segment of the speech system is the subglottal system. This subglottal system comprises the lungs, diaphragm and trachea.
The lungs are basically a pair of balloon-like sacs that inflate or deflate by the action of the diaphragm, a muscle just under the lungs, attached to them. When the diaphragm is lowered, the lungs inflate, and when the diaphragm is raised, air is pressed out of the lungs, allowing them to deflate.
When this air is pressed out of the lungs, air travels up the trachea, or windpipe, to the larynx, the next major segment of the speech system.

The Larynx

The larynx is a mass of cartilage at the top of the trachea. It is commonly called the voicebox.

The larynx contains folds of muscle called the vocal folds (sometimes called vocal cords). These vocal folds are connected to the larynx by the arytenoid cartilage at the front, but the other ends are left free. The opening between the vocal folds is known as the glottis. These folds can be relaxed, letting air flow freely through the glottis, or tensed, so that the air vibrates as itpasses through the glottis.
Sounds that are produced with relaxed vocal folds are known as voiceless sounds, and sounds that are produced with tensed vocal folds are known as voiced sounds. If the folds are only partially closed, a whispered sound is produced.

Voiceless Whisper Voiced

Above the Larynx

The area above the larynx consists of three main areas: the pharynx, the nasal cavity, and the oral cavity. The pharynx consists of the area above the larynx and below the uvula. The oral cavity is the area from the back of the throat to the mouth. The major parts of the oral cavity that are used in speech production are the uvula, the velum, the tongue, the hard palate, the alveolar ridge, the teeth, and the lips. The uvula is that fleshy blob that hangs down in the back of the throat. The velum is the soft palate, and the alveolar ridge is a mass of hard cartilage behind the teeth.
The following graphic shows these major parts of the area, which is also known as the supraglottal system

Summary

In summary, this lesson has outlined the major parts of the anatomy that relate to speech production. These parts are the following:
• Subglottal system, including lungs and trachea
• Larynx, including the vocal folds and glottis
• Supraglottal system, including the oral cavity, nasal cavity, and pharynx
In the next lesson, you will learn how consonants are classified in terms of the use of these parts of the speech system.

Introduction

In this lesson, the goals are to begin tolearn how speech sounds are classified in terms of their use of the speech system.

Major Terms

• voicing
• place of articulation
o bilabial
o labiodental
o interdental
o dental
o alveolar
o alveopalatal
o palatal
o velar
o uvular
o pharyngeal
o glottal

Voicing

In the last lesson, you were introduced to the following states of the glottis: voiceless and voiced. These states are determined by the action of the vocal folds in the larynx. If the vocal folds are held apart, the glottis is in a voiceless state, while if the vocal folds are held together, and allowed to vibrate, the glottis is in a voiced state.
Certain consonants in human language are distinguished by which state is active during production of the sound. For example, pronounce the sound [m], as in mat, and hold the sound. While producing this sound, place your fingers at the base of your throat. You should feel the vibration of the vocal folds. Since the sound [m] is vibrating, this is a voiced sound.
Now make the sound [p], as in pat. You can't really hold this sound, but again put your fingers near the base of your throat while you say [p]. You shouldn't feel much vibration, if any. This is because the vocal folds are held apart, making a voiceless sound.
Now say the sounds [p] and [b], as in bat, with your fingers at the base of the throat. When you say [p], there should be no vibration, but when you say [b], there should be vibration.Think about what you are doing with your mouth to make both sounds. Both sounds are made in basically the same way, but one is voiceless and one is voiced.

Speech and the Vocal Tract

As described in the earlier lesson, speech sound is created by airflow through the vocal tract. In pulmonic sounds, which are the sounds we will consider here, the lungs push air up into the trachea, through the larynx, and outward through the vocal tract.
So how are different sounds made? In part 1, we discussed that one way to make different sounds is to vary the state of the glottis, making either a voiced or voiceless sound.
Another way is to vary the shape of the vocal tract. Imagine the vocal tract as a tube, through which air passes. If this tube is simply open, the airflow creates a sound. But if you alter the shape of that tube, the airflow moves differently, making a different sound.
Here's an experiment that some of you may have tried. Take an empty bottle and blow air across the top of the bottle. If you can get the airflow just right, you should be able to produce a low sound. Now fill the bottle halfway with water. Blow across the bottle opening again. This time the sound is higher. If you put some more water in the bottle, the sound will get even higher.
What's happening? For a more detailed discussion, you can view the lesson Acoustic Phonetics. However, for now, just understand that if the bottle (vocal tract) is not as filled with water (larger), the sound will be a deep, low sound. If the bottle (vocal tract) is filled withwater (smaller), the sound will be a higher sound.
When we make speech sounds, one thing that is happening is that we are varying the shape of the vocal tract, making the sound different. For example, say the sound [t]. To make this sound, you are raising the tip of your tongue behind your teeth and then lowering your tongue. When you do this, the air builds up behind the closure made by your tongue and teeth and is then released. When the air is released by the tongue, the air travels outward through a small area, just from the teeth to outside the mouth.
Now say the sound [k]. To make this sound, you are bringing your tongue up to the velum, closing off the airflow, and then lowering your tongue to release the air. This time, when the air is released, it travels through a larger area before leaving the mouth. This space is from the velum to the lips. Thus, the sound made by the airflow is different from that made by [p].
The following diagrams illustrate the amount of space in the vocal tract available for [t] and [k]:
|
|[t] |[k] |

As the diagrams show, there is more space in the vocal tract for the release of air in the production of [k] than for [t]. Therefore, two distinct sounds are produced.
The point at which the vocal tract is altered is known as the place of articulation.

Place of Articulation

The term place of articulation, as discussed in the last section, classifies speech sounds in terms ofwhere in the vocal tract the shape of the vocal tract is altered. In this section, we will present the major places of articulation.

Bilabial

Bilabial sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the lips against each other. Examples of such sounds in English are the following: [b], [p], [m].

Labiodental

Labiodental sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the upper teeth towards the lower lip. Examples of such sounds in English are the following: [f], [v].

Interdental

Interdental sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the tongue between the teeth. Examples of such sounds in English are the following: , ..

Dental

Dental sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the tip of the tongue towards the back of the teeth. Such sounds are not present in Standard American English, but in some Chicano English dialects and certain Brooklyn dialects, the sounds [t] and [d] are pronounced with a dental articulation.

Alveolar

Alveolar sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the tip of the tongue towards the alveolar ridge, the ridge of cartilage behind the teeth. Examples of such sounds in English are the following: [t], [d], [s], [z], [n], [l], .

Alveopalatal

Alveopalatal sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the front of the tongue towards the area between the alveolar ridge and the hard palate. Examples of such sounds in English are the following: , , , ..

Palatal

Palatal sounds are those sounds made by thearticulation of the body of the tongue towards the hard palate. An example of such a sound in English is [j].

Velar

Velar sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the body of the tongue towards the velum. Examples of such sounds in English are the following: [k], [g], .

Uvular

Uvular sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the back of the tongue towards the uvula. Uvular sounds do not exist in English, but the French 'r' is pronounced by the uvular sounds and ..

Pharyngeal

Pharyngeal sounds are those sounds made by the articulation of the tongue root towards the back of the pharynx. Pharyngeal sounds do not exist in Standard American English, but are found in languages such as Arabic and Hebrew.

Glottal

Glottal sounds are those sounds made at the glottis. Examples of glottal sounds in English are the following: , ..
On the next page is a diagram that illustrates all the places of articulation.

Place of Articulation

This diagram illustrates positions of the articulators in the articulation of certain consonants. The consonant being represented is transcribed beneath the figure.
In the next lesson, you will learn how consonants are classified on the basis of the manner in which the articulators modulate the airflow.

Introduction

In this lesson, the goals are to continue learning how speech sounds are classified in terms of their use of the speech system.

Major Terms

• manner of articulation
o plosive
o fricative
oaffricate
o nasal
o approximant
o glide

Manner of Articulation

In the last lesson, you were introduced to the places of articulation. These are the points in the vocal tract at which the articulators alter the shape of the vocal tract to produce distinct consonant sounds.
However, consonants are further distinguished on the basis of how the articulators alter the shape of the vocal tract. That is, how is the airflow regulated by the tongue or lips.
In the following sections, you will be introduced to the major manners of articulation for pulmonic consonants.

Plosives

A plosive is formed by the complete obstruction of the vocal tract by the articulators. This obstruction is then released, allowing the air to 'explode' out of the mouth.
When the air is blocked by the articulator, it begins to raise in pressure. Then, when the air is released, the high pressure air rushes out into the lower pressure area beyond the blockage. This results in a burst of air, signifiying a plosive.
Examples of plosives in English are , , , , , .
In the next section, you will be introduced to the fricative manner of articulation.

Fricatives

A fricative is formed by a constriction in the vocal tract by the articulators, such as the tongue or the lips. However, unlike stops, the occlusion (blockage) in the vocal tract is not complete. Some of the air is allowed to come through a very narrow opening. This air becomes turbulent, because of the friction between the airflow and thenarrow passage.
Fricatives happen in two ways. One way is simply for the air to flow through a narrow opening, like in the sound . Another ways is for the air to be sped up through a narrow passage and then forced across another area, like the teeth, which is the way the sound is formed. The air behind the occlusion is relatively slow, but the air that is forced between the tongue and the roof of the mouth is much faster and more turbulent.

Examples of fricatives in English are , , , , , .

In the next section, you will be introduced to the affricate manner of articulation.

Affricates

An affricate combines the manners of articulation for the plosive and the fricative. Like a stop, the articulation of the affricate begins with a complete closure of the vocal tract by an articulator. However, when the closure is released, the release is somewhat gradual, providing a narrow space between the articulator and the mouth for the airflow to move through. This narrow space creates an environment similar to a fricative, in that the airflow moving out becomes turbulent for a brief period until full release of the closure.
Examples of affricates in English are , .
In the next section, you will be introduced to the nasal manner of articulation.

Nasals

A nasal is formed by the obstruction of the vocal tract and the lowering of the velum. This lowering of the velum alows the airflow to flow out through the nasal cavity, rather than through the oral cavity.

Examples of nasals inEnglish are , , .
In the next section, you will be introduced to the approximant manner of articulation.

Approximant

An approximant is formed by the constriction of the vocal tract, but with no obstruction in the vocal tract. Therefore, no turbulent airflow, as in a fricative. Instead, the air is allowed to flow freely through the vocal tract.
Examples of approximants in English are , , , .
The sound is also known as a lateral approximant, since the articulators do touch at a central point, but the air is allowed to flow through one or both sides of the contact point.

Other Articulations

There are two other articulations in varieties of English that should be noted here: the tap and the trill.
A tap is formed by a quick contact between an articulator and the vocal tract. In Standard American English, for example, there is the tap , which can be found in the middle of words such as ladder, and butter.
A trill is formed by the rapid vibration of the tongue tip against the roof of the mouth. This vibration is caused by the motion of a current of air. This sound, represented by , is found, for example, in varieties of British and Scots English. It is also known as a 'rolled r'.

Summary

In this lesson, you have been introduced to several manners of articulation. These are listed below:
• Plosive
o Formed by a blockage of the vocal tract, followed by an explosive release of air
• Fricative
o Formed by slight contact between articulators,allowing turbulent airflow
• Affricate
o Formed by a blockage of the vocal tract, like plosive, followed by a gradual release of turbulent air, like a fricative
• Nasal
o Formed by the lowering of the velum, allowing air to flow through the nasal cavity
• Approximant
o Formed by the constriction of the vocal tract, but with no blockage of the airflow
• Tap
o Formed by a quick contact between articulators
• Trill
o Formed by the rapid vibration of the tongue tip by a current of air
In the next lesson, you will be introduced to the classification of vowel sounds.

Introduction

In this lesson, the goals are discuss how vowel sounds are classified in terms of their use of the speech system.

Major Terms

• tongue height
• tongue backness
• lip rounding
• tense
• lax

Vowel Classification

In the last two lessons, you were introduced to the classification of consonant sounds. The classification of consonants were shown to be based on three aspects of articulation: place of articulation, manner of articulation, and voicing.
In this lesson, you will be introduced to the classification of vowel sounds. The classifcation of vowels is based on four major aspects: tongue height, tongue backness, lip rounding, and the tenseness of the articulators.
In the first section, you will be introduced to the classification of vowels based on tongue height.

Tongue Height

The first aspect of vowel classification that you will beintroduced to is that of tongue height. Vowels are classified in terms of how much space there is between the tongue and the roof of the mouth, which is determined by the height of the tongue.
There are three primary height distinctions among vowels: high, low, and mid.
In English, examples of high vowels are , , , . These are vowels with a relatively narrow space between the tongue and the roof of the mouth. Examples of low vowels are , . These are vowels with a relatively wide space between the tongue and the roof of the mouth. Examples of mid vowels are [e], , , . These are vowels whose tongue positions are roughly between the high and low vowels.
These classifications are quite relative, as different languages have different canonical tongue heights for different classifications.
As illustration of tongue height, observe the following diagrams for the vowels , , .



As you can see from the diagrams, the tongue height of the high vowel is much higher than that for the low vowel , while the tongue height for the mid vowel lies somewhere in between the two.

Tongue Backness

The second aspect of vowel classification that you will be introduced to is that of tongue backness.Vowels are classified in terms of how far the raised body of the tongue is from the back of the mouth, which is called the backness of the tongue.
There are three primary height distinctions among vowels: front, back, and central.
In English, examples of front vowels are , , [e], , . These vowels are articulated relatively forward in the mouth. Examples of back vowels are , , , . These vowels are articulated relatively far back in the mouth.. Examples of central vowels are , . These are vowels whose tongue positions are roughly between the front and back vowels.
These classifications, like the tongue heights, are quite relative, as different languages have different canonical tongue backnesses for different classifications.
As illustration of tongue backness, observe the following diagrams for the vowels , .
|
|

As you can see from the diagrams, the articulation of the front vowel is much farther forward than that for the back vowel ..
In the next section, you will be introduced to the classification of vowels in terms of lip rounding.

Lip Rounding

Another aspect of vowel classification is the presence or absence of lip rounding. Some vowels, such as the vowels and , are formed with a high degree of lip rounding. Such vowels are called roundedvowels. Some vowels, such as and , are formed without such rounding, and are called unrounded vowels.
In the next section, you will be introduced to the classification of vowels in terms of tenseness.

Tense vs. Lax

Another aspect of vowel classification is commonly characterized in terms of the tenseness or laxness of the articulators. Some vowels, such as the vowels and [e], are formed with a high degree of tenseness. Such vowels are called tense vowels. Some vowels, such as and , are formed without a high degree of tenseness, and are called lax vowels.
Some languages have a similar distinction in the articulation of vowels. This classification is in terms of the position of the tongue root. In these languages, the primary classificational feature for the vowels and [e] is not that the articulators are tense, but that the root of the tongue is pushed forward, opening up the pharynx. Such a condition is known as Advanced Tongue Root (ATR). Vowels such as and , on the other hand, do not have ATR in those languages that have that distinction.

Summary

In this set of lessons, you have been introduced to the classification of vowel sounds in human language. The four classifications are as follows:
• Tongue Height
• Tongue Backness
• Lip Rounding
• Tense vs. Lax

What is Phonology?

The study of phonology is the study of the patterned interaction of speech sounds. A fairly obvious observation about human language is that different languages have differentsets of possible sounds that can be used to create words. For example, the sound is found in languages like Navajo, Coushatta, and Secwepemc, but not in English, Spanish, or French.
When one language borrows sounds from another language, the borrowing language must often adapt the words to fit the set of possible sounds in its inventory. For example, observe the following data, which illustrate borrowings into Hawaiian from English:
|English |  |Hawaiian |
|rice |
|wine |
|brush |
|ticket |
|Albert |

The data in the table above show that Hawaiian alters the English words in order to fit them into the possible inventory of sounds. For example, Hawaiian does not have the sounds , , or . Whenever the English word contains one of these sounds, it is replaced with the sound (eg. > ). Also, Hawaiian does not have the sound . Whenever the English word contains this sound, it is replaced with the sound (eg. > ). Similarly, the sounds and are replaced with and , respectively. have the sounds , , or . Whenever the English word contains one of these sounds, it is replaced with the sound (eg. > ). Also, Hawaiian does not have the sound . Whenever the English word contains this sound, it is replaced with the sound (eg. > ). Similarly, the sounds and are replacedwith and , respectively.
The following chart shows the sound inventory of Hawaiian:

However, besides the replacement of one sound for another, there are other differences between the English and Hawaiian words. In the Hawaiian forms, vowels are inserted that do not exist in the English forms. For example, you may note that in all the examples, a final vowel is added in the Hawaiian forms (eg. > ). Also, a vowel is inserted whenever there are two consonants side-by-side in the English forms ( > ). Finally, in the name Albert, there is a consonant added at the beginning of the word ( > ).
This suggests that Hawaiian not only has restrictions on what sounds can occur in the language, but also conditions on how those sounds can be used in the formation of words. Based on the data above, we can propose three conditions on the interaction of sounds in Hawaiian:
• Words in Hawaiian must not end in a consonant
• Words in Hawaiian must not have two consonants in a row
• Words in Hawaiian must begin with a consonant
A thorough study of Hawaiian words would show that these restrictions are not just restrictions on borrowed words, but also on all words in Hawaiian.
One of the goals of phonology is to describe the rules or conditions on sounds and sound structures that are possible in particular languages.
Tohono O'odham
Another major goal of phonology is to account for the similarities among human languages. That is, even though the different languages have different sets ofsounds and different ways of arranging and patterning those sounds, there are a number of similarities across human languages. The following are a few of these similarities, often called universals:
• All consonant inventories have voiceless stops
• All languages have syllables
• All inventories can be split into vowels and consonants
There are also some near-universals, such as the following:
• Only two languages in the University of California Segment Inventory Database (UPSID), Rotokas and Mura, have no sonorant consonants
• All languages in UPSID have some kind of , except Hawaiian
• 91.5% of the languages in UPSID have
One of the goals of phonology is to define the space of possible sounds and sound structures that all human languages draw from.

Exercises

• Vowel Length in Standard English
• African-American English
• American Indian English
• Chicano English
• New England English
• Southern States English
• Other Exercises



Introduction

In this lesson, the goal is to learn about the motivations for distribution, allophonic variation, and the concept of the phoneme.

Major Terms

• complementary distribution
• phoneme
• allophone
• overlapping distribution
• contrastiveness

The English Stops

Observe the following English words:

Is the boldfaced letter pronounced the same in all of the words above?
.

English Stops Continued

When you looked at the actual transcriptions, you should have seen thatthe transcriptions of the sounds represented by the letter p in the words were not the same. Take a look at the words with their transcriptions:

You can demonstrate how these sounds are different on your own. Take your hand and place it in front of your mouth. Now say pat.
Did you feel the air against your hand? Now say spat.
When you say pat, you should feel more air against your hand than when you say spat. That extra puff of air is known as aspiration, and is represented in the transcription by the superscript 'h'.
Now, often, when one says tap, tip or top, there is no release of the 'p' sound, and no air is present when the sound is articulated. This is known as an unreleased sound, represented by the '' next to the sound.
Spectrograms

English Stops Continued

So now we know that the sound that English speakers hear as 'p' can be pronounced in three different ways: regular, aspirated, and unreleased.
Let's look at those transcriptions again:

Look at the distribution of the different pronunciations across these data. The distribution is not random. That is, we can predict where each pronunciation can occur. These facts can be shown as the following:
• The 'p' sound is pronounced as when it occurs at the beginning of the word.
• The 'p' sound is pronounced as when it occurs at the end of the word.
• The 'p' sound is pronounced as everywhere else.
The facts thus far about the data that we've been looking at are the following:
1. The 'p' sound in the data is pronounced inthree different ways.
2. This difference in pronunciation is not random, but predictable, depending upon where the 'p' sound occurs in the word:
o Beginning of the word
o End of the word
o Anywhere except at the beginning or the end
It is important to note that the places in which the different pronunciations occur are unique, and do not overlap. That is, you never find at the end of the word, or at the beginning of the word, or in either place.
Since these different pronunciations never appear at the same place in words, they are said to be in complementary distribution.

The Phoneme

This brings us to the concept of the phoneme. A phoneme is a mental representation of a sound that has predictable variants. Each of the variants of that sound is called an allophone.
For example, in the case of the English stops, the sounds , , and are all predictable variants of one sound. They are in complementary distribution, as discussed above. Therefore, they must all be allophones of a phoneme.
How do we represent this phoneme? For reasons which will become clearer in later lessons, the phoneme is represented by the sound which has the broadest distribution, or occurs in the most places. Since and can only appear at the beginning or end, and appears everywhere else, has the widest distribution.
Therefore, the phoneme is . The // indicates that the representation is a phoneme, not a single sound.

Truth, Justice and the Linguistic Way

Stillconfused? Ok, imagine Clark Kent and Superman. We know that Clark Kent and Superman are the same person, right? Each persona is a variant of a single person, even though they look and act differently.
Even if we didn't know they were the same person, we could figure it out (because we're smarter than Lois and Jimmy) by looking at the different contexts in which we see Clark Kent and Superman. Here are the contexts we find Clark Kent:
• On the trail of a story
• In the supermarket
• Buying a new suit for a date with Lois
• etc.
Clark Kent shows up during contexts of being a reporter, being the owner of a refrigerator, being a suitor for Lois, etc. Now what about Superman:
• The world is going to explode in 5 seconds
• Jimmy is being held captive by Braniac
• etc.
So Superman appears only in the context of being a hero.
In other words, Clark Kent and Superman never appear at the same in the same place in the same context. This means that they are in complementary distribution.
Since they are in complementary distribution, if they were sounds, they would be allophones of the same phoneme.
Which is the phoneme, Clark Kent or Superman? Well, since Superman only appears in the context of being a hero, Clark Kent has the wider distribution. Therefore, the phoneme is /Clark Kent/.

Overlapping Distribution

Earlier, we discussed the term complementary distribution. Again, sounds are in complementary distribution if they never appear in the same contexts.
Sometimes, sounds do appear in at least some ofthe same contexts. When this happens, the sounds are in overlapping distribution.
For example, observe the following data:

Note in particular the sounds , , and . In each form, one of those sounds appears at the beginning of the word. Therefore, each one of the sounds can appear in the context of the beginning of the word.
Based on that fact, the sounds , , and cannot be in complementary distribution, because they can appear in the same context.
This leads to the conclusion that , , and are in overlapping distribution, since in the context of the beginning of the word, each of those sounds can appear.
Furthermore, if these sounds are in overlapping distribution, they must be variants of separate phonemes. That's an important relationship. Say the following to yourself as a mantra:
complementary distribution = allophones of the same phoneme
overlapping distribution = allophones of separate phonemes
Repeat this to yourself as needed.

Holy Aspiration, Batman!

Let's go back to the superhero analogy for a moment. We'll now add Bruce Wayne and Batman into our data set. As with Superman, Batman appears in the context of being a hero, while Bruce Wayne appears everywhere else (i. e. they are in complementary distribution).
Hence [Bruce Wayne] and [Batman] are allophones.
Now, consider just Superman and Batman. Are they allophones of a single phoneme?

Contrastiveness

So, to answer the last question, Batman and Superman must belong to different phonemes, becausethey can both appear in the context of being a hero, and are therefore in overlapping distribution.
Another useful term to know is contrastiveness. When sounds are in overlapping distribution, they are contrastive. This is to indicate that the sounds can create lexical contrasts.
What does that mean?
Basically, it means that you can change the meaning of a word simply by changing one of the sounds to another. For example, if you have the word pat , you can change the meaning of the word to something else by changing the to a , giving you the word bat . Therefore, the sounds and are contrastive.
Take the word pat again. If you change the to , is the result a different word? Not in English, it isn't. It sounds a little strange, but it's still recognizable. Therefore, these sounds are not contrastive.

Summary of Phonology Lesson 1: What are Phonemes?

In this lesson, we looked at concepts of sound distribution. If sounds are in complementary distribution, they cannot appear in the same contexts. If sounds are in overlapping distribution.
Furthermore, if sounds are in complementary distribution, they are allophones of the same phoneme. If sounds are in overlapping distribution, they are allophones of different phonemes.
If sounds are allophones of different phonemes, they are contrastive.



Introduction

In this lesson, the goal is to learn about the motivations for distinctive features in phonological theory.

Major Terms

• natural class
• distinctivefeatures
o [± consonantal]
o [± sonorant]
o [± approximant]
o [± voice]
o [± spread glottis]
o [± constricted glottis]
o [± continuant]
o [± nasal]
o [± lateral]
o [LABIAL]
a–S [± round]
o [CORONAL]
a–S [± distributed]
a–S [± anterior]
a–S [± strident]
o [DORSAL]
a–S [± high]
a–S [± low]
a–S [± back]
a–S [± tense]
o [RADICAL]
In the first section, you will be introduced to the idea of a natural class.

Natural Classes

Recall the previous lesson, which discussed the distribution of aspiration in English. In that lesson, it was shown that certain consonants are aspirated at the beginnings of words. However, observe the following data, remembering that a * refers to an ungrammatical form.

The data above illustrate that the consonants that are aspirated at the beginnings of words forms a subset of the English consonants.
The sounds , , aspirate at the beginnings of words, but consonants such as , , do not aspirate at the beginning of words.
Since there are rules of language that apply to only certain sets of words, it is useful to refer to such sets as being composed of a certain feature or features that are not shared by other consonants in the larger set. These subsets are known as natural classes.
Further, the features that define natural classes are known asdistinctive features. The next sections will further elaborate the idea of distinctive features and introduce many of the specific features that have been proposed for human language.

Distinctive Features

So, we have the concept of distinctive features. These distinctive features allow us to define natural classes of sounds. But how do we define these features?
Well, first of all, the features we define should be adequate to define some natural class of sounds. But remember that a natural class is composed of sounds that share a certain feature or group of features. Clearly, different sounds should not share all of the same features. So, if the proposed set of distinctive features in human language is adequate, every sound should have a unique set of features.
In the phonetics lessons, it was discussed that different sounds are classified by the features associated with their specific articulations. For example, consonants are classfied in terms of their place of articulation, manner of articulation, and voicing. Each sound was represented by a unique combination of these features.
So, a good place to approach distinctive features might be those used in the phonetic classifications discussed in the phonetics lessons. Are these features adequate? If they are, they should be able to define all natural classes of sounds, and every sound should be definable in terms of those features.
To test all the natural classes of human language is a long drawn out process, and such features are still being tested. However, we don't have togo too far afield to discover that places of articulation, manners of articulation, and voicing are not adequate. Observe the following data from Scottish English:

Data from Aitken (1981; 1984)
Question: Based on the above data, before which consonants do the vowels appear, and before which consonants do the vowels appear?
|

|The previous section presented you with some data from Scots English. In that data, it was shown that the vowels and the vowels appeared before the following sets of consonants

Question: In looking at these two sets of environments (environments are those sounds that follow or come before a particular sound), are the vowels and the vowels in complementary or overlapping distribution? If you're not sure, review the section on phonemes (hint: remember Superman and Clark Kent?).

Based on the data shown in the previous section, it is clear that the vowels and the vowels are in complementary distribution.
Let's run through the argumentation.
The vowels can appear before the following set of consonants: .
The vowels can appear before the following set of consonants: .
The two sets of consonants are not the same.
Therefore, the vowels do not appear in the same contexts as the vowels .
Therefore, the two sets of vowels are in complementary distribution.
Now that we know that the two sets of vowelsare in complementary distribution, we can theorize that they are allophones of the same phoneme.
Question: if they are allophones of the same phoneme, which set represents the phoneme? (Which one is Clark Kent?)
Go to the next section to see if you're right.
Remember from the section on phonemes that the phoneme is represented by the allophone that has the broadest environment. In this case, the vowels from the set would represent the phonemes , , , , , , .
The other set of vowels represent allophones of those phonemes. When we discussed English stops, we defined the contexts in which the aspirated stops appear and when the unreleased stops appear. We want to do the same here for the vowels .
This is where natural classes come in handy. In order to define where the vowels appear, we simply have to define the features of the natural class of consonants that can follow those vowels. These features should define this class uniquely; that is, the features that define that natural class should not also define the class of consonants that follow the short vowels, as that would defeat the purpose.
So, to begin with let's look at the set of consonants in question in terms of the phonetic classifications that we determined before.
Here's the set of consonants: .
Let's start with Place of Articulation. Do all these consonants share the same Place of Articulation?
Move on to the next section to see the answer.
So, the question is: do all of the consonants in the set share thesame place of articulation?
The answer is no. The consonant is a labiodental consonant, the consonant is an interdental consonant, the consonants and are alveolar consonants, and the consonant is an alveopalatal consonant.
Therefore, we cannot define the natural class in terms of Place of Articulation. Now, let's see if we can define this set in terms of Manner of Articulation. Do the consonants in the set share the same manner of articulation?
Try to determine this for yourself and then go to the next page for the answer.
So, the question is: do all of the consonants in the set share the same manner of articulation?
The answer is almost, but no. The consonants , , , and are all fricatives. However, the consonant is a trill, not a fricative.
Therefore, we cannot define the natural class in terms of Manner of Articulation. Now, let's see if we can define this set in terms of voicing. Do the consonants in the set share the same voicing?
So, the question is: do all of the consonants in the set share the same voicing?
The answer is yes. All of the consonants are voiced.
Therefore, we can define the natural class at least partially in terms of Voicing. However, the classification of voicing doesn't uniquely define this set of consonants as opposed to the consonants that define the other environment. That is, if we were to define the consonants as voiced consonants, we would have to say that the vowels appear only before voiced consonants. However,the vowels appear before the consonants and four of those consonants are voiced.
Therefore we need some other feature besides place of articulation, manner of articulation and voicing to define the set as a natural class of consonants. This is where distinctive feature theory comes in.

One can think of distinctive features as a set of binary 'switches' that all sounds have as part of their mental representation. Every sound has a unique configuration of these 'switches'. For each sound, some of the switches may be turned on, while others are turned off. Which switches are turned on and which are turned off determine what kind of sound is produced.
To represent these switches, every switch is given a name, such as [voice], [distributed], etc. (See the last section of this lesson for a more complete list of the features)
To represent whether the switch is turned on or off, either a + or - is placed before the name. For example, if the switch [voice] is on, it is represented as [+voice]. If it is off, it is represented as [-voice].
We noted that the consonants in the set are all voiced. Therefore, each of the sounds has the feature [+voice], which indicates that the switch [voice] is turned on.
The only real exceptional features are the place features [LABIAL], [CORONAL], [DORSAL], and [RADICAL]. For a number of linguists, these features do not have an on-off switch like other features. Instead, some sounds have the feature, and some don't. The reasons for this, and the implications of this will not bediscussed here. You need only remember that these particular features act a little differently.
In the case of Scots English, what we need is to define a feature that is shared by all of the consonants in the set that is separate from voicing. One such feature that has been proposed is the feature [continuant]. Sounds that are [+continuant], that is, that they are characterized has having this feature, are produced with continual airflow through the oral cavity. Sounds such as fricatives and some approximants have this feature, but stops and nasals do not. Thus this feature divides speech sounds into two sets that are not part of the classification system learned in the phonetics section.
Now if we look at the set again, we see that they are all fricatives or approximants. So now we have two ways of defining this set as a natural class. These consonants are all both [+voice] and [+continuant]. Can any of the consonants in the set be defined by both of these features?
Well, the consonants are [+continuant], being fricatives, but they are not [+voice]. The consonants are [+voice], but not [+continuant].
What about ? The consonant is often discussed as being ambiguous. In some languages, is [+continuant], and in some languages it is [-continuant]. It would appear that in Scots English, the consonant is [-continuant].
Therefore, the features [+continuant] and [+voice] do, indeed, define the set as a unique natural class.
In the lesson What are Rules?, you will learn about how to usephonemes and distinctive features to create phonological rules. In the next lesson, What are Syllables?, you will learn about the concept of the syllable, and the evidence to support this phonological entity.
The next page in this lesson gives a list of distinctive features that have been proposed for human language.
The following is a list of proposed distinctive features, compiled in Gussenhoven and Jacobs (1998):
[± consonantal]
Sounds which are [+ consonantal] are those which have some kind of constriction along the center of the vocal tract. This constriction must be at least as narrow as that required for a fricative.
[± sonorant]
Sounds which are [+sonorant] are those which are produced with a constriction in the vocal tract that allows the air pressure both behind and in front of the constriction to be relatively equal. This feature generally divides the sound system into sonorants ([+sonorant] sounds), which are nasals, approximants, glides, and vowels, and obstruents ([-sonorant] sounds), which are oral stops, fricatives, and affricates.
[± approximant]
Sounds which are [+approximant] are those sounds whose constriction allows for a frictionless escape of air.
[± voice]
Sounds which are [+voice] are those which are produced with vibration of the vocal folds.
[± spread glottis]
Sounds which are [+spread glottis] are those produced with a glottal configuration that produces audible glottal friction. For example, the aspirated stops in English are [+spread glottis]
[± constrictedglottis]
Sounds which are [+constricted glottis] are those which are produced with the vocal folds drawn together and tense.
[±continuant]
Sounds which are [+continuant] are those which are produced without a central blockage in the vocal tract. For example, fricatives have a central constriction, but there is no complete blockage of the air, and they are therefore, [+continuant].
[±nasal]
Sounds which are [+nasal] are produced with nasal airflow.
[±lateral]
Sounds which are [+lateral] are produced with airflow passing through one or both sides of the tongue, which is in contact with the central part of the oral cavity.
Place Features
These features, [LABIAL], [CORONAL], [DORSAL], and [RADICAL] are features that are often characterized as not being + or -, but rather, either a consonant has the feature or not.

Introduction

In this lesson, the goal is to learn what syllables are, and the evidence that motivates them.

Major Terms

• syllable
• nucleus
• onset
• coda
• syllabification
• Maximum Onset Principle
• syllabic resonants

The Beat Goes On

To begin with, you should be made aware of the fact that you, as a speaker of language, have some intuitions about what a syllable is. In fact, you may already have learned about syllables in your previous education.
In rather basic terms, a syllable is a timing unit for language. Words in language take certain amounts of time to utter. This time can be measured in terms of syllables.

How do we know thatsyllables exist?

One reason is that we can count them. On the previous page, we talked about syllables as timing units. Language users can perceive those units and even count them. If I give you the word antidisestablishmentarianism, you know that there is more than one syllable involved. You even know that it's probably more than two or three. So, you have some perception of some words being perceptually longer than others in terms of syllables.
Here's another reason.
In English, we use an alphabetic system to write sounds. More or less. An strict definition of an alphabetic system is one in which one symbol refers to one sound. For example, the word mat has the following phonological representation: . In this word, the symbol m can be said to refer to , the symbol a can be said to refer to , and the symbol t can be said to refer to .
Of course, when we get to words like rough, show, and the like, this breaks down a bit. But you get the idea.
Other languages use a system in which one symbol refers not to a single sound, but a group of sounds. Observe the following from Cherokee, and Iroquoian language spoken in Oklahoma and North Carolina:
ganeli 'married person'
gadu 'bread'
newada 'hominy'
suli 'buzzard'
The word gadu has one of the same symbols as ganeli, the symbol . Both ganeli and gadu have the 'ga' combination. The words newada and suli also have one of the same symbols as ganeli, the symbols and . Further, they each have one of the same sound combinations asganeli, 'ne' and 'li'.
Therefore, one can see that there is a match between a Cherokee symbol and a combination of consonants and vowels.
If we separate consonant and vowel sequences into syllables, then we can say that Cherokee uses a writing system in which one symbol represents a syllable.
In the next section, another piece of evidence regarding the existence of the syllable is discussed.
Each of the preceding words had differing lengths, each measureable in terms of syllables. The first word is composed of one syllable, the second word is composed of two syllables, and the final word is composed of five syllables.
In the next sections, there will be a discussion of the structure of the syllable, and the motivations for considering the syllable as a phonological entity.

Other Evidence

Observe the following data from English:
• Atlantic
• Atlanta
• hitlist
• potlatch
In each of these examples, there is a sequence in the middle of a word.
However, in English, there is no way to begin a word with the sequence . So, words like *tlap, *tling, etc. are not possible words of English.
Using the idea of syllables, can you explain why?
The next section will discuss a possible solution.

Why Can't English Words Begin with 'tl'?

Well, we could just say that this is a special rule of English, but that would only restate the problem. We still would want to find out what the underlying reason is.
But, if we have the concept of syllables, then there is a possiblesolution.
As we noted earlier, is perfectly acceptable in words like atlantic and hitlist. It is also possible to state that, in each such case, the and are conceivable part of two separate syllables:
• Atlantic
• hitlist
In a hypothetical word such as [tlap], there is only one syllable, and both and are part of that one syllable.
So, perhaps the rule is that a combination can't be in the same syllable.
Such an explanation is only possible if syllables exist as phonological entities.
On the next page, there is discussion about the parts of syllables.

What's in a Syllable?

What sorts of things are in a syllable? Let's take a simple example to start with: cat.
Let's take that one step further and use IPA to represent the word cat: .
It's not very hard to determine that has one syllable. In some varieties of English, the word cat is pronounced with two syllables, but that would have a different IPA representation. The pronunciation , however, has one syllable.
So, what's in it? Well, there's a , a , and a . If we simplify that a little, there is are two consonants with a vowel in the middle, or we have a CVC sequence, where C is a consonant, and V is a vowel.
Based on this, we know that a syllable can be composed of a consonant followed by a vowel, followed by a consonant.
What other structures can a single syllable have ? Think of different single syllable words.
Observe the following monosyllabic words and decide what kind of structure eachword has:
• tea
• a
• at
• tree
• ask
• skit
• task
• stamp
• strap
• stray
• strength
• strengths
Since each of these is monosyllable, they should represent a possible syllable.
Thinking in terms of just consonants and vowels for the moment, what are the possible syllable structures represented above (for example, the word tea represented the structure CV, since it is composed of a consonant and a vowel .
In terms of consonants and vowels, the following words represent the following structures:
• tea CV
• a V
• at VC
• tree CCV
• ask VCC
• skit CCVC
• task CVCC
• stamp CCVCC
• strap CCCVC
• stray CCCV
• strength CCCVCC
• strengths CCCVCCC
One fact that one may notice from these structures is that they all contain a vowel. This vowel is known as the nucleus of the syllable.
Another fact is that a syllable may have a consonant or string of consonants before the vowel. These consonants that are before the vowel are called onsets.
Finally, a syllable may have a consonant or string of consonants after the vowel. These consonants that are after the vowel are called codas.
The following diagram is an illustration of a syllable such as the one in cat:

In the next section, there will be a discussion on syllabification.

Syllabification

In this section, there will bea discussion on how to separate polysyllabic words into syllables. This is called syllabification.
Let's take a word like banana :
Now, we can look at the word banana in terms of consonants and vowels: CVCVCV.
The first step is to find the nuclei of the syllables in the word. There are three vowels, and since vowels are usually nuclei, there are three nuclei, and thus, three syllables.
Therefore, at this point, we have the following structure:

Now, we have to decide which consonants are onsets, and which consonants are codas.
In working with English, it is usually best to give every syllable an onset, where possible. So, if we give every syllable an onset, we have the following structure:

In the above structure, every segment is syllabified, and thus, we are done.
Let's take another word: racket .
In terms of consonants and vowels, the word racket has the following structure: CVCVC. As stated above, the first step is to find the nuclei of the syllables in the word. In this case, there are two vowels.

Now, we can give both syllables an onset:

Now, we have a consonant that is not associated to some syllable structure. Therefore, we can associate it to the end of the final syllable:

Since this consonant is at the end of the syllable, it is considered a coda.
Now try the word flood on your own. As practice in transcribing words into IPA, which of the following transcriptions of flood would be correct? To see if you're correct, place your mouse pointer over the transcription that you think most closelymatches the pronunciation of the word flood.
If you had trouble with the transcription, you might want to review the section on the International Phonetic Alphabet.
Once you've determined what you think the syllabification of flood is, go the the next section.
Well, we know that the consonant-vowel structure of flood is CCVC. Move your mouse pointer over the structure to see if you chose the right syllable structure.

In this structure, you can see that there is only one syllable, and two onsets. This results because it is the only way to incorporate all consonants and vowels into the syllable structure. Such groups of onsets (or codas, in some cases) are called tautosyllabic consonant clusters.
Now, what about a word like cutlass ?
First, we syllabify the vowels:

Then we provide onsets where possible:

Now, the final consonant clearly has to be syllabified as the coda of the final syllable (just like in racket), since it has no other option:

But, what about the other consonant? There would appear to be two possible syllabifications:

Which of the two possibilities would you choose? Why?
Go on the next section to see a discussion of which of the two is argued for here.

Decisions, Decisions

Which one did you choose? There is a strong argument for the following structure, an argument that we discussed earlier.

Remember the discussion of words like atlantic and atlas? The hypothesis put forth in that section is that the [tl] combination was possible in the middle of these wordsbecause they had to be from different syllables. Otherwise, they would also be possible at the beginnings of words. This hypothesis basically states that [tl] is not a possible onset cluster. Therefore, a syllabification in which [tl] is parsed as a consonant cluster should be disallowed.
What about a word like caprice ? Which of the following structures would you choose?

Maximum Onset Principle

In the case of the word caprice, by the rules that we have defined so far, it would seem that both of the following structures are possible.
(a) |(b) |How could both structures be possible in caprice, but not in cutlass?
Remember how structure (b) was disallowed for cutlass. Structure (b) was disallowed, because it would include a [tl] as a tautosyllabic consonant cluster. We knew that [tl] was not a good onset cluster in English because of the fact that it could not appear at the beginning of English words.
In the case of caprice, structure (b) would have a [pr] as a tautosyllabic consonant cluster. Words such as price, pride, probably, etc. show us that [pr] is a perfectly acceptable onset cluster, because each of those words begin with [pr].
Therefore, we could not rule out structure (b) for caprice, as we did for cutlass.
So, which is it then? One possible answer is that structure (b) is the correct structure, because it fills up the onset of the second syllable with as much content as is possible, given the restrictions on onset clusters. This is known as the Maximum Onset Principle, which states that asmany consonants as possible will be syllabified into the onset. This principle is an extension of the idea that onsets are syllabified before codas. This is generally accepted as a universal concept: syllables prefer onsets, and disprefer codas.
In the next section, syllabic resonants will be discussed.

Syllabic Resonants

Earlier in this lesson, it was stated that nuclei of syllables were generally vowels. This is not always the case. In English, it is possible for some types of consonants to serve as nuclei of syllables.
Say the word babble.
How many syllables does it have?
Hopefully, you said two.
The transcription of the word babble used in this website would be , where is a consonant.
Let's try to syllabify this. The consonant-vowel sequence would be CVCC. However, we know that there are two syllables, but only one vowel. So, something has to serve as the nucleus of the second syllable.
Certain consonants, like [l], [r], [m], and [n] can serve as nuclei for syllables. When they are used as syllabic nuclei, they are called syllabic resonants, and are written as , , , .
Therefore, the syllabification of the word babble would be:

The next section summarizes all that has been discussed in this lesson.

Summary

In this lesson, there was discussion of the timing units of language that are known as syllables.
To begin with, there was discussion of the evidence supporting their existence as phonological entities. The following are the types of evidence discussed:
• Syllables arecountable
• There are writing systems that are arguably based on the concept of the syllable
• The concept of the syllable allows for an elegant explanation for limitations on consonant clusters in English
There was also discussion of the different parts of the syllable: onset, nucleus, coda. These parts are schematized below:

Finally, this lesson provided instruction on the syllabification of words in English. The basic process is as follows:
• find a nucleus for each syllable in the word
• give every syllable an onset, and fill up the onset position with as many consonants as are allowed in the syllable structure
• associate any remaining consonants to the coda position of the syllable.

Printable version of this page
The exercises on the following pages are designed to give practice in using the International Phonetic Alphabet, an alphabet designed to be used in the transcription of human speech sounds. To obtain an empty chart for your practice, click here.
If you would like to see charts that concentrate only on the sounds of Standard American English, click here.
If you need to know the names of symbols, click here. Use this link if you are enrolled in ANTH 383 and need to transcribe words without using an IPA font.
Click on (almost) any symbol below to hear it spoken!



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Wells, J.C. Estuary English web site (regularly maintained by J.C. Wells) Provides numerous web links to 'scholarly articles, papers, lectures, web sites and 'light journalism.'
Found at: https://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/estuary/home.htm)
1998. Cockney (iii): and Estuary English. Handout for lecture for November 9, 1998 for PLINX202 English Accents.
Found at: https://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/estuary/x202-5-lecture.pdf
Wolfram, Walt and Natalie Schilling-Estes.
1998. American English: Dialects and Variation. Blackwell: Malden, Massachusetts
Woods, Howard B.
1993. A Synchronic Study of English Spoken in Ottawa: Is Canadian English Becoming More American? In Focus on Canada, Sandra Clarke (Ed.). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. 151-178.