Class 1 Phonetics and Phonology WELCOME TO ENGLISH

Class 1: Phonetics and Phonology WELCOME TO ENGLISH PHONETICS

PHONE: A speech sound in a language SPEECH: the ability to talk, the activity of talking, or a piece of spoken language LANGUAGE: a system of communication consisting of sounds, words and grammar, or the system of communication used by the people of a particular country LINGUISTICS: the systematic study of the structure and development of language in general or of particular languages

The LINGUISTIC study of language includes: The study of the STRUCTURE OF SENTENCES (categories like nouns, verbs, & rules governing the structure of phrases, clauses and sentences) The study of the STRUCTURE OF WORDS (parts of the word, such as affixes) The study of MEANING (the meaning of words and the relationship between word meanings, and the way they combine to give the meanings of sentences) The study of HOW TO USE WORDS (the words of a language, their pronunciation and their meaning) The study of LANGUAGE, MEANING & CONTEXT (the influence of situation on the interpretation of what people say; the study of the aspects of meaning and language use that are dependent on the speaker , the addressee and other features of the context of utterance )

The study of SPEECH SOUNDS OR PHONES

General Information about Phonetics and Phonology: • Every language has a small number of regularly used sounds (vowels and consonants). We call these sounds PHONEMES. Examples: ØThe vowels in the words ‘pin’ and ‘pen’ are different phonemes ØThe consonants at the beginning of the words ‘pet’ and ‘bet’ are also different phonemes • English spelling has a notoriously confusing nature. • For this reason it is important to think of English pronunciation in terms of phonemes, and not in terms of letters of the alphabet. Examples: ØThe word ‘enough’ begins with the same vowel phoneme as that at the beginning of ‘inept’ and ends with the same consonant as ‘stuff’

E H T S ’ T A H W ? E C N E R E F DIF

They are both part of a general theory about SPEECH SOUNDS and how they are used in LANGUAGE. • PHONETICS is concerned with the CONCRETE reality of the sounds used in language. • PHONOLOGY is concerned with HOW sounds FUNCTION in a SYSTEMATIC way IN A PARTICULAR LANGUAGE.

It deals with how speech sounds are organised into patterns or systems for each individual language

It deals with: Three branches of Phonetics • How SPEECH SOUNDS are made ARTICULATORY PHONETICS • How SPEECH SOUNDS are perceived AUDITORY PHONETICS • SPEECH SOUNDS and the physics involved ACOUSTIC PHONETICS

Because you are going to work with the English language at an advanced level as TEACHERS, TRANSLATORSINTERPRETERS or RESEARCHERS. . . … you will need the deeper understanding provided by the study of Phonetic and Phonological theory to understand the principles regulating the use of sounds in spoken English.

Classes 3 and 5: PHYSIOLOGY OF PRONUNCIATION THE PHYSIOLOGY(*) OF PRONUNCIATION Physiology: the science that deals with the way the bodies of living things operate.

ORGANS OF SPEECH

Diagram of human head • UPPER LIP • LOWER LIP • UPPER TEETH • LOWER TEETH • TONGUE TIP • TONGUE BLADE • TONGUE FRONT • TONGUE BODY • TONGUE BACK • TONGUE ROOT • ALVEOLAR RIDGE • HARD PALATE • SOFT PALATE (VELUM) • UVULA

ANOTHER VIEW

HOW IS SPEECH POSSIBLE? THE AIR STREAM EXPELLED FROM THE LUNGS IS THE MOST COMMON SOURCE OF ENERGY FOR OUR VOCAL ACTIVITY. IN THE TRACHEA OR WINDPIPE IT PASSES THROUGH THE LARYNX, CONTAINING THE VOCAL FOLDS OR VOCAL CORDS. THE FRONT PORTION OF THE TRACHEA OR WINDPIPE IS PROMINENT IN THE NECK BELOW THE CHIN AND IS KNOWN AS “ADAM’S APPLE”.

VOCAL CORDS OR FOLDS THE VOCAL FOLDS ACT AS VIBRATORS MOVED BY LUNG AIR. TO PRODUCE VOICE THEY ARE BROUGHT TOGETHER AND VIBRATE. GLOTTIS: OPENING BETWEEN THE FOLDS e. g. /g/, /l/, /m/

From the larynx to the phrarinx THE PHARYNGEAL CAVITY EXTENDS FROM THE TOP OF THE TRACHEA AND OESOPHAGUS, PAST THE EPIGLOTTIS AND THE ROOT OF THE TONGUE, TO THE REGION AT THE REAR OF THE SOFT PALATE. Sounds such as [æ] are articulated with a strong contraction of the pharynx.

When the air escapes from the pharynx, the soft palate may be: • LOWERED AS IN NORMAL BREATHING. THE AIR MAY ESCAPE THROUGH THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH. • RAISED: THE AIR ESCAPES ONLY BY THE MOUTH. ALL NORMAL ENGLISH SOUNDS (EXCEPTION OF NASAL CONSONANTS) HAVE THIS ORAL ESCAPE.

THE MOUTH LO O K ! It’s no coincidence that in English and Spanish the word “tongue” refers to the organs and to language as a means of communication.

THE MOUTH SPEECH MECHANISM WHICH DETERMINES THE QUALITY OF THE MAJORITY OF THE SPEECH SOUNDS BECAUSE ITS PARTS ARE EASIER TO CONTROL. FIXED ELEMENTS: MOVABLE ELEMENTS: • TEETH (IN THE FRONT) • LIPS • HARD PALATE (IN THE UPPER PART) • VARIOUS PARTS OF THE TONGUE • PHARYNGEAL WALL (IN THE REAR) • LOWER JAW • SOFT PALATE INCLUDING UVULA

THE ROOF OF THE MOUTH THREE PARTS: • ALVEOLAR RIDGE OR TEETH RIDGE (BACK OF THE UPPER TEETH). • BONY ARCH WHICH FORMS THE HARD PALATE. • THE SOFT PALATE, FOLLOWING THE HARD PALATE AND ENDING IN THE UVULA.

FOR FUTURE REFERENCE… TO DESCRIBE SOUNDS, WE NEED TO CONSIDER: THE NATURE OF THE AIRSTREAM: USUALLY STRAIGHT FROM THE LUNGS THE ACTION OF THE VOCAL FOLDS: CLOSED, WIDE APART OR VIBRATING THE POSITION OF THE SOFT PALATE: DESCIDES IF THE SOUND HAS NASAL RESONANCES DISPOSITION OF THE MOVABLE ORGANS OF THE MOUTH

Class 7: The concept of Phoneme THE CONCEPT OF “PHONEME” PHO WHY TOG DO R MA KE APHE “CH US SA RS EES Y E”? DO KE Y WH S MA ”? R h O h a T a C DO AY “A S S U

What are these symbols? • They are called phonemic symbols (as opposed to phonetic symbols). • Each one represents a PHONEME, that is, ONE specific SIGNIFICANT speech sound.

Significant? • By “significant” we mean that each of these sounds can make a difference in the meaning of a word. • Take the case of “map” and “cap”. Phonemes /m/ and /k/ are significant from the moment they can alter the meanings of words.

PHONEMES!!! • A phoneme is the smallest contrastive unit in the sound system of a language. • A phoneme is a minimal unit that serves to distinguish between meanings of words • By convention, a phoneme is represented between /slashes/, • e. g. /b/, /m/.

HOW MANY PHONEMES ARE THERE IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE?

HOW ARE PHONEMES CLASSIFIED? S VOWEL GS DIPTHON CONSONANTS

SPELLING FORMS 12 VOWELS EN G AN LISH DD V IPT OW HO ELS NG S 8 DIPTHONGS

PRACTICE WITH TONGUE TWISTERS: CAN YOU IDENTIFY EACH TARGET SOUND? Everybody saw Eddie and the Eskimo enter the elevator on the elephant. The important Indian was ill with injuries inside the igloo. Oliver had an operation in October, and Oscar gave him an octopus. Andrew and Alice asked if Annie's active animals were angry. . On Mondays Michael's mother Mary mostly mopped. Uncle was upset because he was unable to put his umbrella up. The excited experts explained that the extra X-rays were excellent.

EN GL ISH CO NS ON AN TS

Bill and Betty baked brown bread for Barbara's baby. Carol and Claire can cook carrots, corn, cabbage, and candy. Harry had a horrible headache and hated to hear Henry howl. John got juice and jelly on his jacket when Judy jumped on him. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. Tommy tricked Tim and took his train off the track. Virginia visited Vicky and gave her violets and vegetables with vitamins. When the weather is warm we will walk with William in the wild woods. Yesterday you yelled in the yard for a yellow yo-yo.

HOW DO THESE SYMBOLS HELP US? • THEY ARE WRITTEN REPRESENTATIONS OF SIGNIFICANT SOUNDS. • WE CAN PRONOUNCE A WORD WITHOUT HAVING HEARD IT. • OUR MESSAGE IS UNDERSTOOD AS IT WAS THOUGHT.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN: CAP BAG CAT RAG CUP BUG CUT RUG The answer is: one PHONEME! One SIGNIFICANT sound makes a new word. These contrastive examples are called MINIMAL PAIRS. They will help you teach your students to pronounce beautifully.

PHONEMES AND ALLOPHONES THINK OF: “TOP” V. “LATER”. • THE TWO /t/ SOUNDS ARE PRONOUNCED DIFFERENTLY. (THE FIRST ONE IS ASPIRATED AND THE SECOND IS UNASPIRATED) • THEY ARE VARIATIONS OF THE SAME PHONEME. • THEY DO NOT ALTER THE MEANING OF THE WORDS. An allophone is any of the variant forms of a single phoneme. Allophones are NOT SIGNIFICANT

“The true teacher defends his pupils against his own personal influence” Amos Bronson Alcott (1799 -1888) US educator & Transcendentalist THE TRUE TEACHER IS A MEDIATOR BETWEEN STUDENTS AND CONTENTS… THE TRUE TEACHER IS AVAILABLE WHEN NECESSARY ONLY… THE TRUE TEACHER KNOWS WHEN TO BE SILENT… THE TRUE TEACHER FORMS AUTONOMOUS LEARNERS!!!

THIS IS WHAT I’LL TRY TO DO WITH YOU TODAY… THIS IS WHAT YOU WILL TRY TO DO WITH YOUR STUDENTS IN THE FUTURE!

TODAY’S CLASS: THE ARTICULATION OF SPEECH SOUNDS HOW DO WE MAKE THE SOUNDS WE PRONOUNCE?

JUST A REMINDER… a few concepts… IN THE FIRST PLACE: ORGANS OF SPEECH W DO HAT W OR E HA GAN VE S OF ? SP EE CH

Diagram of human head • UPPER LIP • LOWER LIP • UPPER TEETH • LOWER TEETH • TONGUE TIP • TONGUE BLADE • TONGUE FRONT • TONGUE BODY • TONGUE BACK • TONGUE ROOT • ALVEOLAR RIDGE • HARD PALATE • SOFT PALATE (VELUM) • UVULA

PASSIVE ARTICULATOR? UPPER LIP LOWER LIP UPPER TEETH LOWER TEETH TONGUE TIP TONGUE BLADE TONGUE FRONT TONGUE BODY TONGUE BACK TONGUE ROOT ALVEOLAR RIDGE HARD PALATE SOFT PALATE (VELUM) UVULA ACTIVE ARTICULATOR?

X UPPER LIP LOWER LIP X X UPPER TEETH LOWER TEETH (JAW) x TONGUE TIP X TONGUE BLADE X TONGUE FRONT X TONGUE BODY X TONGUE BACK X TONGUE ROOT x ALVEOLAR RIDGE X HARD PALATE X SOFT PALATE (VELUM) X UVULA X

WHAT’S MOVING? … WHAT’S FIXED? UPPER LIP LOWER LIP • /f/ UPPER TEETH LOWER TEETH • /d/ TONGUE TIP TONGUE BLADE TONGUE FRONT • /g/ TONGUE BODY TONGUE BACK TONGUE ROOT • /∫/ ALVEOLAR RIDGE HARD PALATE SOFT PALATE (VELUM) UVULA • /k/

TO DESCRIBE SOUNDS, WE NEED TO CONSIDER: THE AIRSTREAM MECHANISM THE ACTION OF THE VOCAL FOLDS THE POSITION OF THE SOFT PALATE DISPOSITION OF THE MOVABLE ORGANS OF THE MOUTH

1. THE AIRSTREAM MECHANISM • The lungs are the source of air to produce most speech sounds. • The normal flow of air from the lungs is uninterrupted, thus there is no sound production as when we sleep. • HOWEVER! Snoring… even when sleeping we can produce sounds!!

1. THE AIRSTREAM MECHANISM • Two lung processes: INHALING AND EXHALING. • Inhaling: our lungs and chest cavity expand. • Exhaling: they contract and the air is expelled to… • THE BRONCHI and then to… • THE TRACHEA OR WINDPIPE to • THE LARYNX and to the THE THROAT

2. THE ACTION OF THE VOCAL FOLDS • THREE POSITIONS: – OPEN: NORMAL BREATHING AND VOICELESS SOUNDS – TIGHTLY CLOSED: GLOTTAL STOPS – VIBRATING: VOWELS AND VOICED SOUNDS

2. THE POSITION OF THE SOFT PALATE • THREE POSITIONS: – LOWERED: NORMAL BREATHING THE AIR ESCAPES THROUGH THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH – LOWERED TO LET THE AIR COME OUT THROUGH THE NOSE – RAISED: THE AIR ESCAPES ONLY THROUGH THE MOUTH

3. POINT OF ARTICULATION BILABIALS PALATOALVEOLARS LABIO-DENTALS PALATALS DENTALS VELARS ALVEOLARS POSTALVEOLARS GLOTTAL

3. MANNER OF ARTICULATION REFERS TO THE VERTICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ACTIVE AND PASSIVE ARTICULATORS

3. MANNER OF ARTICULATION PLOSIVES FRICATIVES AFFRICATES NASALS LIQUIDS (LATERALS AND FRICTIONLESS CONTINUANT) GLIDES OR SEMIVOWELS

OUR CHALLENGE…

Articulation of VOWELS 1. In the shape and position of the tongue a. The vertical distance between the palate and the upper surface of the tongue. b. The part of the tongue, between front and back which is raised highest. (horizontal)

a. The vertical distance between the palate and the upper surface of the tongue. TONGUE HEIGHT HIGH VOWELS cheese pin Full, book Fool, glue MID VOWELS Also known as CLOSE vowels friend caught, or Burn, turn About, clever LOW VOWELS bad Dance, bark Pot, got Come, bus Also known as OPEN vowels

b. The part of the tongue, between front and back which is raised highest. (horizontal) FRONTNESS AND BACKNESS FRONT VOWELS CENTRAL VOWELS BACK VOWELS F O NK S I H T RD U O O Y W L N E CA MOR VOWE O TW EACH D? FOR SOUN

2. Another important variable of vowel quality is LIPROUNDING ROUNDED VOWELS SPREAD VOWELS NEUTRAL VOWELS

English Diphthongs day eye boy mouth nose ear hair pure re o m o w ach t f o e r k o n f Thi ords hong w ipht d