Phonology

The idea of feature systems that we

have been talking about in relation to
phonetics also lends itself quite
handily to the description of natural
classes of sounds.
Phonetic natural classes are groups
of sounds in a language which share
some articulatory or auditory feature.
Phonology
In order for a group of sounds to be a
natural class, it must include all of
the sounds that share a particular
feature or group of features, and not
include sounds that dont.
Phonology
We have already talked about
several natural classes of sounds,
such as stops, fricatives, nasals,
affricates, etc.
To talk fully about phonetic natural
classes, however, we need to clarify
a few other features.
Phonology
Some sound classes are based on
articulation or production:
For example, both labio-dental and
bilabial involve the lips.
Therefore, we can group them together
under the term labial.
Phonology
In English, these sounds are [m, b, p,
f, v, w]
In English, the sound [w] doesnt
occur after any of these sounds.
We can use the term labial to
simplify the description: [w] doesnt
occur after labial sounds.
Phonology
Other natural classes are based on sound
quality, or auditory properties.
One example of a natural class based on
auditory properties is Sibilants.
Take a look at the pronunciation of the
plural suffix in English, which we will
label -s
This suffix is pronounced in three
different ways, depending on the last
sound in the noun to which it is added.
Phonology
If the noun ends with a voiced sound the
phonetic form is [z].
If the noun ends in a voiceless sound the
phonetic form is [s].
However, after such words as rich, bush,
kiss, garages, rouge, and maze, (in other
words, [s, z, e, L, te, dL,]) the form is
[*z].
Phonology
This group of sounds all differ in respect
to voicing, place, and manner of
articulation.
However, they do have an auditory
property in common: a high pitched
hissing sound.
These sounds, therefore, form a natural
class called sibilants.
Phonology
So using this natural class, we can
state a generalization:
+ plural [*z] / after a
sibilant
This rule states that the sound occurs
in a general context, rather than
having to specify for each individual
context.
Phonology
Other classes include:
Obstruents, which are sounds produced with
an obstruction of air flow, namely stops,
fricatives, affricates.
Sonorants, which are consonants produced
with a relatively open passage for the air flow,
including nasals, approximants and others (or
nasals, liquids, glides, and others).
Distinctive Features
In every language, certain sounds are
considered to be the same sound, even
though they may be phonetically distinct.
For example, native speakers consider
the [l] in lay to be the same sound as that
in play, even though the former is voiced
and the latter voiceless.
Distinctive Features
Liquids and glides in English are
ordinarily voiced, but when they follow a
voiceless obstruent in speech, they are
pronounced as voiceless consonants.
proof [pruf] sleep

quick [kwk]

Distinctive Features
Native speakers overlook the fact
that the [p] in pat and spat are
phonetically different and just
consider them both to be /p/.
Hindi speakers, however, cant
ignore the difference.
Distinctive Features
Take the following data, for example:
[k*l] wicked person
[k*l] yesterday
[kapi] copy
[kapi] ample
[p*l] fruit
[p*l] moment
[b*l] strength
Distinctive Features
In general, speakers will attend to
phonetic differences between two (or
more) sounds only when the choice
between the sounds can change the
meaning of a word, - that is, can cause a
distinction in meaning.
Such sounds are said to be distinctive
with respect to one another.
Distinctive Features
So, how do we determine when two
sounds are distinctive?
One way to determine whether two
sounds are distinctive is to identify a
minimal pair - a pair of words that differ
only by a single sound in the same
position - and which have different
meanings - but which are otherwise
identical.
Distinctive Features
Some examples from English are:
tot vs. hot
tap vs. top
tap vs. tab
Lets take a second to go back and
look again at the examples from
Hindi.
Distinctive Features
[k*l] wicked person
[k*l] yesterday
[kapi] copy
[kapi] ample
[p*l] fruit
[p*l] moment
[b*l] strength
Distinctive Features
What must be considered minimal
pairs in Hindi?
What sounds do Hindi speakers
consider distinctive?
Distinctive Features
Before we proceed any further, we need
to discuss some definitions:
The first definition we need to consider
is that of a Phone, which is simply an
individual speech sound.
The second definition to consider is that
of a Phoneme, which is a class of speech
sounds which are identified by a speaker
as the same sound.
Distinctive Features
The members of these classes are
called Allophones.
Thus, an allophone is a phone that
has been classified as belonging to
some class (phoneme).
Distinctive Features
In English, p in pat and spat are
allophones of the same phoneme in
English.
In Hindi, these sounds are
allophones of different phonemes.
Distinctive Features
Symbols representing phonemes are
written with slash marks instead of
brackets.
So, in English, we would have one
phoneme labeled /p/, with allophones
labeled [p] and [p]
But in Hindi, we would have two
separate phonemes, labeled either /p/ or
/p/
Distinctive Features
By giving a description like this,
linguists are attempting to show that the
phonological system of a language has
two levels.
The more concrete level involves the
physical reality of phonetic segments
(which is what phonetics looks at).
Phonemes are more on the psychological
level; they are more abstract.
Distinctive Features
Allophones are physical units of
linguistic structure.
Phonemes are psychological units of
linguistic structure.
Phonemes are not directly
observable; allophones are.
Distinctive Features
Writing systems also reflect this
reality. In English, we dont make
the orthographic distinction between
[p] and [p]. In Hindi, they do.
In general, alphabetic writing
systems tend to be phonemic rather
than phonetic.
Distinctive Features
To find out which sounds are thought of
by a native speaker as the same sound,
and which sounds are distinctive to one
another, it is important to look at where
these sounds occur in a language.
In other words, linguists try to discover
what the phonemes of a language are by
examining the distribution of that
languages phones.
Distinctive Features
The Distribution of a phone is the set
of phonetic environments in which it
occurs.
Two speech sounds in a language will
either be in overlapping distribution or
complementary distribution with
respect to one another.
Distinctive Features
Overlapping distribution occurs when
the sets of phonetic environments in
which the sounds occur are partially or
completely identical.
For example, consider [p] and [b]:
bait [bet] date [det]
lobe [lob] load [lod]
knobs [nabz] nods [nadz]
Distinctive Features
Since the sets of possible phonetic
environments overlap, we say that [b]
and [d] are in overlapping distribution
in English.
Distinctive Features
Most sounds that are in overlapping
distribution are contrastive with respect
to one another, which is another way of
saying they are distinctive sounds.
Consider [b] and [d] above: they form
minimal pairs.
Since the difference between [b] and [d]
can result in contrastive meaning, we say
that [b] and [d] are in contrastive
distribution.
Distinctive Features
These two distinctive phones are
classified as being allophones of two
separate phonemes.
Thus, [b] is an allophone of /b/ and
[d] is an allophone of /d/.
Distinctive Features
Some other phones that are in
overlapping distribution are in free
variation. As an example:
Leap [lip] leap [lip ]
Soap [sop] soap [sop ]
Troop [trup] troop [trup ]
Happy [haepi] *[haep i]
Distinctive Features
These sounds are in overlapping
distribution, because they share some of
the same environments: they both appear
at the end of words.
Unlike [b] and [p], however, there are no
minimal pairs.
In other words, although they contain the
same sounds but one, these words do not
contrast in meaning.
Distinctive Features
These sounds are interchangeable in
word-final position.
So we say that they are allophones of
the same phoneme.
For example, [p] and [p ] are
allophones of /p/
Distinctive Features
Complementary Distribution is just the
opposite of overlapping distribution.
To understand this, think of the term
complementary. Two complementary
parts make up a whole.
People in this class, for example, may be
divided up into those who wear glasses
and those who dont.
Distinctive Features
These two sets of people
complement each other.
They are mutually exclusive. That is,
they are non-overlapping, but
together they make up the whole
class.
Distinctive Features
As an example, consider the sounds
[p] and [p]
Spat [spt] pat [pt]
Spool [spul] pool [pul]
Speak [spik] peek [pik]
Distinctive Features
As you can see, [p] and [p] are not
in overlapping distribution.
In other words, they do not occur in
the same phonetic environment.
In fact, they are in complementary
distribution.
Distinctive Features
First: There are no minimal pairs
involving the [p] vs.
[p+ ]E4C4.
Second: [p] occurs after [s] but not word
initially. [p] occurs word initially, but
not after [s].
Since these sounds appear in different
phonetic environments there can be no
pair of words composed of identical
strings of sounds except for [p] in one
and [p] in the other.
Distinctive Features
Phones that are in complementary
distribution are allophones of a single
phoneme.
In this case, [p] and [p] are allophones
of the phoneme /p/.
The appearance of one allophone or the
other is predictable when those
allophones are in complementary
distribution.
Distinctive Features
Recall that phonemes and allophones
belong to different levels of structure in
language.
Phonemes are mental entities.
Allophones/phones are physical events.
So what is the connection between the
two levels?
The mapping between phonemic and
phonetic elements is accomplished using
phonological rules.
Phonological Rules
A speakers knowledge of
phonological rules allows him or her
to translate phonemes into actual
sounds.
Knowledge of these rules forms part
of a speakers linguistic competence.
Phonological Rules
The following is a representation of
the process:
Phonemic form

rules

phonetic form
Phonological Rules
In other words, phonological rules apply
to the phonemic form to produce the
phonetic form.
To accept this is to accept the notion that
there is something called an underlying
form.
In the linguistic literature, this
underlying form is called the
Underlying Representation or UR.
Phonological Rules
There are several different ways that we
can classify phonological rules.
One of the most common types of
phonological rules is called
Assimilation.
Rules involving assimilation cause a
sound to become more like a
neighboring sound with respect to some
feature.
Phonological Rules
In other words, the segment affected by
the rule assimilates or takes on a feature
from a nearby (usually adjacent) sound.
For example:.
I can ask [ay kn sk]
I can bake [ay km bek]
I can go [ay k go]
Phonological Rules
Another type of assimilation is
dental assimilation, as in the
following examples:
width [wd]
health [hl]
unthinkable [*nk*bl]
in this [ns]
Phonological Rules
Another example is vowel
nasalization:
pit [pt] pin [p+n]
Phonological Rules
Other phonological rules involve
dissimilation. Rules involving
dissimilation cause two neighboring
sounds to become less alike with
respect to some feature.
Dissimilation rules are less common
than assimilation rules, at least in
English.
Phonological Rules
One example of a dissimilation rule is
fricative dissimilation:
// changes to [t] following another
fricative:
fifth phonemically [ff]
phonetically often realized as [fft]
sixth phonemically
[sks]
but often realized as [skst]
Phonological Rules
Another classification is insertion
(also called epenthesis).
Rules of insertion cause a segment
not present at the phonemic level to
be added to the phonetic realization
of a word.
Phonological Rules
One example of an insertion rule is
voiceless stop insertion. Between a nasal
and a voiceless fricative, a voiceless stop
with the same place of articulation as the
nasal is inserted.
strength /str/ [strk]
hampster /hmster/ [hmpster]
Phonological Rules
Another classification is Deletion.
Deletion rules eliminate a sound. Such
rules apply more frequently to unstressed
syllables and in casual speech.
/h/ - deletion: /h/ may be deleted in
unstressed syllables.
In the sentence, He handed her his hat,
the UR is:
/hi hnd*d * hz ht/
Phonological Rules
but is often represented on the
surface as:
[hi hnd*d *r = ht]
Phonological Rules
The final type of rule that we will
concern ourselves with is called
metathesis
These rules change the order of
sounds

Phonological Rules
For example, for many children, the
word that is normally pronounced
[sp*g^i] ([sp*k^i])
gets pronounced as
[p*sg^i] ([p*sk^i])
How about animal?
Phonological Rules
The Format for representing
Phonological Rules
The basic format for specifying
phonological rules is as follows:
A B/ C __ D
This format is meant to be read as
A becomes B in the environment
following C and preceding D.
Phonological Rules
For example, here are the formulations
for two of the rules we have discussed so
far:
Vowel + nasal/ ___ nasal
Alveolar + dental/ ____ dental