Student’s name: Martina Cantos

Teacher’s name: Marisa Jara

Subject: Phonetics and phonology
Institution: IES del atuel
FIRST YEAR (ENGLISH)

SUMMARY OF LINGUISTIC
SCIENCES AND
ARTICULATORY PHONETICS
Phonetics and phonology
The linguistic sciences

Language

1) What do people combine when they speak?

They combine series of conventional sounds and certain rules into an established system.

2) How do people understand each other?

They must share the same Linguistic code.

3) Which are the substantial forms of communication?

In case of spoken language: Phonic substance

In case of written language: Graphic substance

4) What is language?

It has been defined as the human vocal noise or the graphic representation of it, used
systematically and conventionally by a community, mainly for purposes of communication.

The linguistic sciences

5) Which are the linguistic sciences? Which are their origins?

The two sciences concerned with language are linguistics and phonetics

People have been interested in language since the time of the Greek and Roman Empires (the
origins of the language)

Linguistic: In the late Nineteenth century European linguists began to concentrate on languages in
their present state. The name of Ferdinand de Saussure is linked with this change of direction.
Franz boas, Edward Sapir and Leonard Bloomfield were the pioneers of providing the techniques
to describe and record them before their final extinction. Linguistic is concerned with how
language is structured grammatically and semantically.

Phonetics: In the sixteenth century people in England became interested in reforming their
spelling system. Phonetics studies the relationship between spelling and sound and is interested
in how they are organized and transmitted. In 1886 the International Phonetic Association (IPA)
was founded. This association devised a set of symbols (phonetic alphabet) that would serve to
represent the sounds of ANY LANGUAGE. The pioneers of this work are Henry Sweet and Daniel
Jones.

Phonetics and Linguistics

6) Where do they stand in relation to each other?

The main aspect will depend on what we are going to use these sciences for. I mean, they will be
join perhaps in many cases, or they will stand separately in other cases.

The first thing we should know is that both of them study language but from a different angle.
The speech chain

7) What is the speech chain?

The speech chain is a complex process which contains a series of events that take place at
different levels and stages such as psychological level that will be concerned on feelings, and the
thoughts of a person, and a physiological level that will be concerned on the organs and
articulators of human beings and their function. It is called a CHAIN because it is a chain between
the speaker’s brain and the listener’s brain.

8) How does this process start? How does this process work?

It starts when a speaker has a message to transmit to a listener. This activity occurs at a
psychological level because the speaker has to arrange his thoughts and ideas into a linguistic
form. He does this by choosing the correct words and sentences in accordance with the
grammatical rules, and by choosing the correct sounds in accordance with the phonological rules
of the language.

The next type of activity occurs at a physiological level because it implies the action of nerves and
muscles. The motor nerves that link the speaker’s brain with his speech mechanism activate the
corresponding muscles.

9) What happens with the articulators?

The movements of the tongue, lips, vocal fold, etc produce disturbances in the air pressure called
Sound waves. This sound waves travel toward the listener’s ear and activate the listener’s ear-
drum (which occurs at a physiological level) and his sensory nerves carry the message in the form
of nerve impulses to the brain. The last stage, which occurs at a psychological level, is when the
listener’s brain decodes the message in order to make it recognizable
Definition of phonetics

10) Which are the difference between phonetics and phonology?

Phonetics is more general. It describes the sounds and it usages. It is also descriptive, analytical
and classificatory.

While Phonology is really specific. For instance, it studies sounds in contrast with other sounds but
in a particular language.

11) Which are the brunches of phonetics?

We have three brunches in phonetics: Articulatory, Acoustic and Auditory.

Articulatory phonetics deals with the production of the speech

Acoustic phonetics deals with the transmission of the speech.

Auditory phonetics deals with the perception of the speech.

Articulatory Phonetics

The speech mechanism

12) Which are the functions of the speech mechanism?

This is not used exclusively for the production of speech sounds, but also for breathing and eating.
Speech is only a secondary activity and it is closely connected with breathing.

13) Which organs and cavities does the speech apparatus contain?
The entire speech apparatus is made up of a series of organs and cavities that form a passage from
the lungs to the lips and nostrils.

14) What is the vocal track?

The section of the passage from the lungs to the lips and nostrils, extending from the larynx
upwards is called the vocal track.

15) How are the organs organized?

 16) What are the lungs?

These have the consistency of two large sponges which are made to expand to take air (inhalation)
and contract to let it out (exhalation). That is to say that the main function of these organs is to act
like a motor or activator that set the passage of air into the movements of inhalation and
exhalation.

17) What is the larynx?

The larynx, a rigid structure, situated at the top of the trachea and below the pharynx. The
important point about the larynx in speech is that it contains the first valve or trap that can
interfere with the passage of the air-stream (the vocal folds)

18) What are the vocal folds?

These are two bands of muscle lying across the centre of the larynx. (Their main function is to
produce voiced or voiceless sounds and it has to do with the vibration that the vocal folds
produce)

19) What is the epiglottis?

It is an elastic piece of cartilage, and it has NO FUNCTION IN SPEECH but acts as a valve. It is raised
during the speech and lowered during swallowing, thus preventing food from going into the lungs.
(An irrelevant organ in terms of the speech mechanism).

20) What is the glottis?

For normal breathing the vocal folds are open forming a V-shape the back ends forming the two
points of the V. The space between is called the GLOTTIS.

21) What is the vocal folds’ function? (complex definition)

The vocal folds can also be brought tightly together so that no air can pass through. When the
vocal folds come into light contact, the air passing through them causes them to vibrate. The
sound produced by this vibration is call VOICE. So, in conclusion, all sounds produced with
vibration of the vocal folds are VOICED SOUNDS, and all sounds produced without vibration are
VOICLESS SOUND. The tenser the vocal folds, the faster they will vibrate, and the higher the pitch
of the sound will be.

Of course, we may say that differences in pitch also depend on sex. For example, the adult male’s
vocal folds are usually longer and thicker than in female’s.

The cavities or resonators

22) What are the cavities?

We can say that any hollow space containing air can act as a resonator (cavity)

The human speech mechanism has three resonator:

The pharynx which can change its shape slightly. It is the passage situated at the top of the larynx,
communicating with the oral and nasal cavities.

The nasal cavity which is constant in shape and size. It extends from the pharynx to the nostrils,
and is separated from the oral cavity by the palate. The entrance to the nasal cavity is controlled
by the VELUM.

The oral cavity which is extremely variable. This one is by far the most important resonator, due to
the great mobility of its organs and consequent changes of size and shape.

The articulators: Tongue, palate, teeth and lips.

23) How are they classified in accordance with the movement?

Articulators are called ACTIVE when they are capable of movement, and PASSIVE when they are
incapable of movement, that’s why the vocal folds can act as articulators because they are capable
of producing two consonant sounds, a plosive and two fricatives.
 24) What is the palate?

The palate is a concave structure, separating the mouth from the nasal cavity. We can divide it
when describing speech sounds into alveolar ridge, hard palate, and soft palate or velum.

25) What does velum do?

When the velum is raised and pressed against the back wall of the pharynx, it closes the entrance
to the nasal cavity, and the air escapes through the mouth. When it’s lowered it doesn’t
completely close the passage into the oral cavity.

26) What is the tongue?

The tongue is the most agile speech organ, as it is principally made of muscle. It is divided in three
main parts: Front, central and back. It can interfere with the air-stream by coming intro light
contact with the palate causing friction or producing a stop.

27) What do the upper teeth do?

They are used in speech to interfere with or stop the air-flow with the help of the tongue or the
lower lip. The lips constitute the very mobile outer edges of the mouth and can adopt DIFFERENT
SHAPES.

To sum up, it is important for us to think that:

The lungs are activators, setting the air-stream in motion

The air-stream is the raw material out of which sounds are made.

The vocal folds are vibrators which when in action turn the air-stream into voice and when wide
apart let it trough as breath.

The cavities are resonators which vary in shape

The articulators are the elements which vary the shape of the resonators and further interfere
with the passage of air.