SPEECH ORGANS &

ARTICULATION

PHONOLOGY & MORPHOLOGY WEEK 2

The air breathed in

Lungs

The air pressed out

Trachea (windpipe)

Larynx

Pharynx

Mouth cavity Nasal cavity

THE PROCESS OF PRODUCING SPEECH

CHECK THIS OUT!

CHECK THIS OUT!

1. Lips 10. Uvula 2. Teeth 11. Hard palate 3. Alveolar ridge4. Tongue5. Larynx6. Vocal cords7. Epiglottis8. Pharynx9. Soft palate

THE MAIN SPEECH ORGANS

SUB-DIVISION OF SPEECH ORGANS

On the basis of their function, our speech organs can be subdivided into:a.Initiator : the speech organ that

sets air into motion for the production of speech sounds.

b.Phonator : the speech organs that are used to produce speech sound called ‘voice’.

c.Articulator : the speech organs that are used to obstruct the out-going air in the production of speech sounds.

The main initiator is the lungs, because most speech sounds are produced by pulmonic air (lung air). When pulmonic air flows outwards, it is said to be egressive. The vast majority of speech sounds are made using this air. It is also possible – though not usual – to speak while the air stream is flowing inwards to the lungs (pulmonic ingressive air). This happens when someone is trying to talk while laughing, crying, or when out of breath.

THE INITIATOR

THE PHONATOR

The term refers to the vocal cords (vocal folds) in the larynx, which are used to produce voice. A laryngoscope is used as an instrument to study the interior of the larynx and various positions of vocal cords.

THE LARYNXBefore we can speak, lung air has to be converted into audible vibrations, using the various organs within the vocal tract. The most important source of vibration for the production of speech sounds is in the lower region of the tract, at the larynx.

THE VOCAL CORDS: two elastic membranes situated horizontally in the larynx which can be made to assume various positions.

In describing articulation, it is usual to distinguish between those parts of the vocal tract that are unmovable (passive articulators) and those that can move under the control of the speaker (active articulators). PASSIVE ARTICULATORS

Upper teethAlveolar ridge (teeth ridge)Hard palate

THE ARTICULATOR

ACTIVE ARTICULATORSLips, tongue, uvula, vocal cords and lower jaw (mandible).ARTICULATORS’ POSITION IN THE

MOUTHUPPER MARGIN LOWER MARGIN

Upper lipUpper teethAlveolar ridgeHard palateSoft palate (velum)Uvula

Lower lipLower teethTongueLower mandible

ARTICULATORY vs. ACOUSTIC

Phonetics is actually divided into two kinds, namely ‘Articulatory Phonetics’ and ‘Acoustic phonetics’. The first category studies speech sounds from the point of view of their ways of speech organs, therefore it is closely related to Physiology.

Acoustic Phonetics, on the other hand, studies speech sounds from their physical attribute such as measuring the loudness, pitches, waves, etc. It requires special electronic equipment and is closely related to Physics.

The act of moving two articulators toward each other for the obstruction of the out-going air is called ‘articulation’. The two articulators may be moved in such a way that they are touching or almost touching each other at a certain point which is called ‘point (place) of articulation’.

Besides on the basis of point of articulation, speech sounds are also classified based on the ways in which the out-going air is obstructed (manner of articulation).

ARTICULATION

POINT (PLACE) OF ARTICULATION

There are eleven possible places are used in speech. However, only around eight which are used in English.1. Bilabial 8.

Retroflex2. Labio-dental 9. Palatal3. Dental 10. Uvular4. Alveolar 11.

Pharyngeal5. Palato-alveolar (alveo-palatal)6. Velar7. Glottal

1. Bilabial: both lips are involved in articulation, as in [p], [b], [m], [w] – pink, beat, milk, walk2. Labio-dental: the lower lip articulate with the

upper teeth, as in [ f ], [ v ] – fan, van3. Dental: the tongue tip and rims articulate with

the upper teeth, as in [ θ ], [ δ ] – thin, then4. Alveolar: the blade (and sometimes the tip) of

the tongue articulates with the alveolar ridge, as in [t], [d], [ s ], [ z ], [n] – tap, date, cell, zoom,

nap

POINT (PLACE) OF ARTICULATION

5. Velar: the back of the tongue articulates with the soft palate,

as in [k], [g], [ŋ] -- coke, give, sing6. Palato-alveolar (alveo-palatal): the blade (and

sometimes the tip) of the tongue articulates with the alveolar ridge, with a simultaneous raising of the front of the tongue towards the hard palate,

as in [ ʃ ], [ ʒ ] – sheep, treasure7. Glottal: the vocal cords come together to cause

a closure or friction, as in [h] – whose8. Palatal: the front of the tongue articulates with

the hard palate, as in [ʧ ], [ʤ], [y] – chair, judge, young

8. Retroflex: the tip of the tongue is curled back to articulate with the area between the rear of the alveolar ridge and the front of the hard palate. We can hear this from Indian English accent of [t], [d].

9. Uvular: the back of the tongue articulates with the uvula, as in French rue.

10. Pharyngeal: the front wall of the pharynx (in the region of epiglottis) articulates with the back wall. This exists in Arabic [h].

MANNER OF ARTICULATION

There are four main kinds of constriction made by the articulators in producing speech sounds:1. Total closure: plosive, nasal, affricate2. Intermittent closure: roll (trill), flap3. Partial closure: lateral4. Narrowing: fricative, approximants

TOTAL CLOSURE

PLOSIVE (STOP): a complete closure is made at some point in the vocal tract; the soft palate is raised. Air pressure thus builds up behind the closure, which is then released explosively, as in [p], [b], [t], [d], [k], [g].

NASAL: a complete closure is made at some point in the mouth; the soft palate is lowered, so that air escapes through the nose, as in [m], [n], [ŋ].

AFFRICATE: A complete closure is made at some point in the mouth; the soft palate is raised. Air pressure builds up behind the closure, and is then released relatively slowly (compared to a plosive sound), as in [ʧ], [ʤ].

INTERMITTENT CLOSURE

ROLL (TRILL): one articulator taps rapidly against another – typically the tongue tip against the alveolar ridge or the tongue back against the uvula, as in [r] in French, German or some English accent.

FLAP: a single tap is made by one articulator against another, as in some pronunciation of the ‘r’ in very, or ‘d’ in ladder, where the tongue tip taps once against the alveolar ridge.

PARTIAL CLOSURE

LATERAL: a partial closure is made at some point in the mouth, in such a way that the air stream is allowed to escape around the sides of the closure. Various kinds of [ l ] sound are the result.

NARROWING

FRICATIVE: two vocal organs come so close together that the movement of air between them causes audible friction, as in [ f ], [ v ], [ s ], [ z ], [ ʃ ], [ ʒ ], [ θ ], [ δ ].

APPROXIMANT: the articulation is strongly influenced by the following vowel sound. [w], [y] and [h] (voiceless) are produced with the tongue moving (gliding), to or from the position of nearby vowel.

INDIVIDUAL HOMEWORK: 1. Draw the main speech organs in a piece of

paper. Make it colorful and interesting.Be creative.

2. Create a consonant chart, which includes the point of articulation and the manner of

articulation, in a piece of paper. Create an interesting one.

3. Prepare yourself for next week’s test. You will be

questioned in regards to the speech organs and the

production of speech sounds.

Good Luck