Page 54 - DENG504_LINGUISTICS

Linguistics

Notes A B
FRONT FRONT

v v v v
G

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Figure 4.2 Figure 4.3
The vocal cords are open The vocal cords are closed
G = Glottis
V = Vocal cords

The number of times the vocal cords open and close in one second is known as the frequency of
vibration, and this determines the pitch of the voice. Whereas tension of the vocal cords
determines the pitch, the force with which air is passed out from the lungs, determines the
volume of a sound.
3. The Soft Palate: The roof of the mouth, as shown in Figure 4.1 has three parts: the hard convex
surface just behind the upper front teeth called the alveolar or teeth ridge; the hard concave
surface behind it called the hard palate; and the soft palate at the back, with the uvula at
its end.
The soft palate, also called the volume, can be moved up to block the passage into the nose. The
air from the lung then has to come out through the mouth only, and/the sounds produced/in
this way are called oral sounds. All English sounds except/m,n,ŋ/ are oral sounds. If the soft
palate is lowered and the passage through the mouth is closed, the air from the lungs comes
out through the nose only. Sounds produced in this manner are called nasal sounds. For
Example. /m,n,ŋ/ in English words man, nun, and song.
4. The Tongue: Of all the movable organs within the mouth, the tongue is by far the most fleecy,
and is capable of assuming a great variety of positions in the articulation of both vowels and
consonants. The tongue, for the convenience of description (as shown in figure 4.1) has four
parts: the tip, the blade, the front and the back. It is the position of the tongue which is largely
responsible for the difference in the sounds of various vowels. The extreme end of the tongue
is called the tip. The part of the tongue opposite the alveolar ridge is called the blade, the part
opposite the hard palate is called the front, and the part opposite the volume is called the back.
5. The Lips: The position of lips affects very considerably the shape of the total cavity. They may
be shut or held apart in various ways. When they are held lightly shut, they form a complete
obstruction to produce bilabial stops, e.g./p,b/. If the lips are held apart, the positions they may
assume can be summarized in the following manner:
(i) held sufficiently so close together as to allow friction in sound; Hk sounds, for example,
/the initial consonant/ in Hindi words bhagwan, bhai, bhanja.
(ii) held sufficiently far apart so that no friction is heard, yet in a spread position, as in the
vowel in see.
(iii) held in a neutral position, that is, a relaxed position with a medium lowering of the lower
jaw as in the vowel of get.
(iv) held in an open position: that is, a position in which lips are held relatively wide apart
without any marked rounding, as in the vowel in car, part.
(v) held in a close rounded position as in the vowel of do.
(vi) held in an open rounded position as in the vowel of got.

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