CHAPTER 3 (Yule, 2010, pp. 25-39)

THE SOUNDS OF LANGUAGE

Speech organs1

PHONETICS

speech sounds / phonemes (distinctive sounds)(44 phonemes in English)

1. Articulatory Phonetics (production)2. Auditory Phonetics (perception)3. Acoustic Phonetics (sound waves)

In this course: Articulatory Phonetics (introductory)

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Respiratory System& Speech

air in breathing is basic ingredient of speech

air is modified to create different sounds

sounds are produced when we breath out

modification by vocal organs

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VOCAL ORGANS

organs of the body involved in the production of speech

Some examples:TonguePalateVocal cordsLungs

Other functions: breathing / eating

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Vocal tract

Sub-glottal system

Larynx

Vocal Organs

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SUB-GLOTTAL SYSTEMa) Lungsb) Trachea /trəˈkiː.ə/ / (windpipe) 6

LARYNX/ˈlær.ɪŋks/ (voice box)(on top of the trachea)1) Vocal Cords/Folds (two elastic bands of

muscle in the throat)2) Glottis (the gap between the

vocal cords)

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Glottal States

Wall of the Larynx

Open vocal cords (air passes through freely)e.g. /s/

Vocal Folds/Cords

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Approximated vocal cords (vibration: open and close rapidly and repeatedly– around 100 times per second in men, 200 times in women and children for a given sound / up to 800 times per second)e.g. /z/

Test: put your fingers on your throat/ears and say /s/ and /z/, alternating them. 9

VOCAL TRACT

1)Pharynx /ˈfær.ɪŋks/ (the passage above

the vocal cords)2) Oral cavity(space in the mouth)3) Nasal cavity (space behind the

nose)

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ARTICULATORS (parts of the oral cavity)

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Upper articulators (upper surface of the oral cavity)

1) Palate (the roof of the mouth) (separates oral and nasal cavities) 2) Upper teeth3) Upper lip

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Lower articulators

(lower surface) (they are moved toward the upper surface which is not mobile)

1) Tongue 2) Lower teeth 3) Lower lip

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THE PALATE

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hard palat

ealveolar

ridgesoft palat

e

Alveolar Ridge(behind the upper front teeth)hard roughfixed

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Hard Palate (highest part of the palate) (between the alveolar ridge and the soft palate)hardevenfixed

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Soft Palate (velum)(at the back of the mouth)softmovable Uvulathe end point of the soft palate

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States Of The Velum (Soft Palate)

Lowered position: gap between soft palate and pharynx; air goes into the nasal cavity and the oral cavity. (e.g. /m/)

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Raised position: contact with the back wall of pharynx; nasal cavity is closed; air goes into the mouth only. (e.g. /b/ )

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THE TONGUE

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BackLies under the soft palate/raised to touch the soft palate and to any point beneath that

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FrontLies under the hard palate/raised to touch the hard palate and to any point beneath that

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Blade

(between the tip and the front)

lies under the alveolar ridge

very mobile (can touch the lips, teeth, alveolar ridge and the hard palate)

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Tip

(the most forward part)

lies under the alveolar ridge

very mobile

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SidesRaised (curved upwards/pressed firmly against the sides of the palate/air goes through the centre) e.g. /s/

Lowered (centre is raised/air goes trough the sides) e.g. /l/

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Positions of the lips (extreme positions are rare in English)

Closed/Apart /p/ /t/ /m/ /g/

Rounding/Spreading /w/ /v/

Protrusion (pushed forward/almost none in English)

THE LIPS

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/f/ /v/ (upper teeth) /  / (upper and lower teeth)

THE TEETH

 

ð θ

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/ /

THANK YOU!

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