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Phonology
- Phonology
- Phonology is the study of the sounds of language
- phone: a vocal sound
- phoneme: a minimal sound unit recognized as a distinct value by the speakers of a language (e.g. [p], [b], [a]); the smallest sound that can distinguish one word from another (e.g.[f]at/[v]at, stri[f]e, stri[v]e)
- allophones are variants of a phoneme which the speakers of the language don't perceive as different from that phoneme (e.g. compare the different sounds of the "t" in "cat," "satin," "cater"-- they sound very different but, to speakers of American English, they are all just t's!)
- there are about 100-150 human sounds (see International Phonetic Alphabet)
- Modern English has about 35 main phonemes, though English speakers use about 35-45 different sounds
- the sounds of language are produced by the passage of air through the vocal tract
- diagram of the human vocal tract (see number key below for identification of the different parts):

Illustration © 2002 Emily J. Fajardo
- 1 Lips
- 2 Teeth
- 3 Alveolar Region
- 4 Tongue
- 5 Palate
- 6 Velum
- 7 Uvula
- 8 Pharynx
- 9 Nasal Cavity
- 10 Epiglottis
- 11 Esophagus
- 12 Glottis
- 13 Vocal Cords
- 14 Trachea
- 15 Larynx
- Vowels: sounds involving the unrestricted flow of air through the mouth
- vowel sounds are always voiced (i.e. they involve vibration of the vocal cords)
- vowels differ depending on the degree of openness of the mouth and height
of the tongue (the lower the tongue the more open the mouth) (high, mid, low)
- also important in vowel articulation is the position in the mouth of the highest part of
the tongue (front, central, back)
- main vowel phonemes in English:

- diphthongs are sounds involving two vowels (e.g. [ai], [au], [oi], in words like "buy," "bough," and "boy" respectively )
- in English unstressed vowels tend to be pronounced as the mid-central vowel
- Consonants: phonemes that involve stoppage of flow of air in vocal tract
- voiced consonants: involve vibration of the vocal cords
- voiceless consonanst: no vibration of the vocal cords
- place of articulation:
- labial : involving the lips
- dental: involving the teeth
- alveolar: involving the area behind the teeth
- palatal: involving the hard palate
- velar: involving the velum or soft palate
- manner of articulation
- stops (plosives): involve the stoppage and sudden release of air
- fricatives (spirants): involve the constricted flow of air producing
a kind of hissing sound
- affricates: a combination of stop + fricative
- nasals: flow of air channeled through the nose, always voiced
- lateral: flow of air channeled through the sides of the tongue, also
voiced
- retroflex: similar to the lateral but involving a backward curving of
the tip of the tongue, also voiced
- semivowels (glides): similar to vowels in that the stoppage of the flow
of air is very minimal
- chart of consonant phonemes in English:

References & Links:
©
2000-2008 by Fidel Fajardo-Acosta,
all rights reserved
Last updated:
09/26/2008
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