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Redundancy and Underspecificity

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Speech sounds are defined by distinctive phonetic properties or features that, when combined, distinguish these sounds from each other. We use the features [-syll, -cont, +ant, +cor, -vce] to represent the phoneme /t/. If any feature is altered, /t/ is no longer /t/, but a combination of the altered features. For example, changing [-vce] to [+vce] yields /d/. These are distinctive features. On the … [Read more...]

Features

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An Introduction to Features The most basic component of a speech sound is a feature, which can be described as the minimal specification that separates one phoneme from another. In fact, a phoneme can be described as a bundle of features, since all phonemes bear at least two or more. Articulatory features are defined in terms of the place and type of constriction of air as it travels through … [Read more...]

An Introduction to Phonology

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Phonology is where you put into practice all you’ve learned in phonetics. It is the study of how sounds are strung together (phonotactics), how they interact with each other, and the rules that account for these processes. The focus of phonology at an introductory level course can be categorized into the following areas. 1. The Distribution of Phonemes Phonemes are individual sounds described … [Read more...]

Language Universals, Yilmaz

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  Language Universals Demet Yilmaz Mersin University 0. Introduction When asked the question 'What may 'Universals of language refer to? the answer will most probably be 'the features that are common to all human languages in the world' which is true. As generally known all human beings speak and communicate by the use of a language that cannot be found in any of the other species. … [Read more...]

Aspiration and Voice Onset Time

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Each language has parameters concerning the distribution of plosives. Some languages only permit voiceless plosives, e.g., Proto-Quechua, whereas others permit both voiced and voiceless, e.g., Spanish. Still others allow a 3-way distribution of plosives, adding aspiration to the mix, e.g., Hindi. (Aspiration is symbolized by the diacritic [h].) Hindi (1) [pʰəl] ‘fruit’ [pəl] ‘moment’ … [Read more...]

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