Untitled Flashcards Set
Phone, Phoneme, Allophone
A phone is a sound that is physically produced.
A phoneme is a sound that is contrastive, meaning it can change the meaning of a word. Phonemes are abstract psychological categories, and speakers perceive the allophones of a phoneme as the "same sound," even though they may be phonetically different. For example, the sounds [n] and [m] are phonemes in English, as evidenced by the minimal pair "net" and "met".
An allophone is a phonetic realization of a phoneme. Allophones are non-contrastive, meaning they do not change the meaning of a word, and they are phonetically similar to each other. Allophones are conditioned by their environment, which means they are influenced by the surrounding sounds. For example, in English, the phoneme /n/ has the allophones [n] and [n̪]. [n̪] occurs before dental consonants, while [n] occurs elsewhere.
Distributions
There are three types of distribution for phones:
Contrastive distribution: Two phones are in contrastive distribution when they occur in the same environment and can change the meaning of a word if substituted for one another. This indicates that the sounds belong to different phonemes.
Complementary distribution: Two phones are in complementary distribution when they occur in different, non-overlapping environments. This indicates that the sounds are allophones of the same phoneme. For example, in English, the phones [ɫ] and [l] are in complementary distribution, meaning they never appear in the same environment. [ɫ] occurs at the ends of words, while [l] occurs elsewhere. This indicates that [ɫ] and [l] are allophones of the same phoneme /l/.
(Free) variation: Two phones are in free variation when they can occur in the same environment but substituting one for the other doesn't change the meaning of the word. For instance, the word "button" can be pronounced as either [bɐtn̩] or [bɐʔn̩], demonstrating the free variation between [t] and [ʔ] before a syllabic nasal.
Minimal Pairs
Minimal pairs are pairs of words that differ by only one sound. This difference in sound must also result in a difference in meaning. Minimal pairs are used to demonstrate that two sounds are contrastive and belong to different phonemes. For example, the words "net" and "met" are minimal pairs, differing only in the sounds /n/ and /m/ and also having distinct meanings.
Near-minimal pairs are similar to minimal pairs. They consist of words that differ in one or more ways, but crucially, the sounds of interest are in the same local environment. For example, "pressure" and "pleasure" are near-minimal pairs that illustrate the contrast between /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ in English.
Environments
The environment of a sound refers to the sounds that come before and after it. The environment can influence how a sound is pronounced. For example, in English, the phoneme /t/ is aspirated [tʰ] when it occurs at the beginning of a stressed syllable before a vowel.
Describing Classes of Sounds Using Features
Features are characteristics of speech sounds. Features can be used to group sounds into natural classes. For example, the natural class of voiceless stops in English includes /p/, /t/, and /k/. These sounds are all [-sonorant], [-continuant], and [-voice].
Features are expressed with binary values, "+" or "−," to indicate the presence or absence of a specific characteristic. For instance, [+round] signifies rounded vowels while [-round] indicates unrounded vowels.
Analysis of Data
There are three main types of data analysis discussed in the lecture slides:
Phonemic analysis: This type of analysis is used to determine the phonemes of a language. It involves identifying the contrastive sounds of the language, and then grouping the non-contrastive sounds into allophones of the phonemes.
Historical sound change: This type of analysis looks at how the sounds of a language have changed over time. It can be used to reconstruct the sound systems of ancestor languages.
Generative analysis: This analysis sees the "elsewhere" allophone in a phonemic analysis as the input or underlying form to a generative "sound factory" which customizes this sound based on the environment.
Phonological Processes and Types of Sound Change
Phonological processes are ways in which sounds can change in a language. Some common phonological processes include assimilation, dissimilation, lenition, and metathesis.
Sound change is the change in pronunciation of a language over time. These changes can be reflected in the modern pronunciations of languages, or they can be reconstructed by studying the relationships between languages and their predecessors.
Phonological Rules
Phonological rules are statements that capture generalizations about the distribution of allophones. Rules are written in a standard notation that specifies the target sound, the change, and the environment. The target is the sound that undergoes the change, the change is the way in which the sound is pronounced differently, and the environment is the context in which the change occurs.
Explaining Rules
When explaining a rule, it is important to state what the rule does, and to provide examples. For example, the rule /t/ → [tʰ] / #__V in English states that the phoneme /t/ is realized as an aspirated voiceless stop [tʰ] word-initially before a vowel.
Using Technical Notation
There is a standard technical notation that is used to write phonological rules. This notation uses symbols to represent sounds, features, and environments. The notation includes:
The slash symbol "/" to separate the target sound from the environment.
The arrow symbol ">" to indicate a sound change in historical linguistics (as opposed to "→" in synchronic rules).
The underscore symbol "_" to represent the position of the target sound in the environment.
The number sign "#" to indicate a word boundary.
Parentheses "( )" to enclose optional elements in an environment.
Braces "{ }" to group together alternative elements in an environment. Note: The sources specify that brace notation will not be necessary for the exam.
The symbol "Ø" to denote deletion.
Allophonic Rules
Allophonic rules capture what allophone a phoneme has in a specific environment. These rules are written in the standard notation: target → change / environment. For example, the allophonic rule /n/ → [ŋ] / _[+dorsal] in Middle English states that the phoneme /n/ was realized as [ŋ] before a [+dorsal] sound.
Generative Rules
Generative rules, similar to allophonic rules, provide more expressive power for sound patterns. They focus on sound transformation and highlight the organization of sound patterns. These rules take an underlying form and customize it based on specific environments. For example, to explain the Japanese phones [h], [ç], and [ɸ], a generative analysis starts with a generic /h/ and modifies it to [ç] before /i/ and [ɸ] before /u/. If these environments are not present, the sound remains as [h]. Generative rules are written without slashes or brackets.
First Language Acquisition
First language acquisition (L1A) is the process by which children learn their native language. This process is remarkable because children acquire a complex and abstract grammar with limited input. All typically developing children successfully acquire their first language, and there is minimal variation in this ability despite differences in intelligence or experiences. The study of L1A explores questions such as the ability of infants to differentiate between sounds. To answer these questions, researchers often use experimental techniques like the high-amplitude, non-nutritive sucking paradigm. The transition to language in infants involves using sounds and sequences from babbling, with an emphasis on simple CV and CVCV structures, along with sounds like labial and alveolar stops and nasals. Children's pronunciation gradually becomes adult-like through phonological development, influenced by physiological constraints such as brain development and motor skills. Individual variation, including the L1 and non-linear acquisition patterns, also plays a significant role.
Second Language Acquisition
Second language acquisition (L2A) refers to the process of learning a language after the first language has already been established. This process differs from L1A due to the influence of pre-existing language knowledge, the conscious effort required, and the varying levels of ultimate attainment in L2 pronunciation. L2 learners face a two-fold challenge: perceiving and producing new sounds, and organizing these sounds within a new system. The interaction of L1 knowledge with L2 learning and the conscious effort involved make L2A distinct. Understanding L2A is crucial in a world with increasing ethnic diversity and a large proportion of children growing up bilingual. Key terms in L2A include non-native speaker (NNS) and interlanguage (IL), which refers to the learner's evolving language system as they progress from L1 to L2. Theoretical frameworks in L2A include the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH), which initially focused on predicting L2 learning difficulties based on L1-L2 differences. However, subsequent models, such as the Perceptual Assimilation Model (PAM) and the Speech Learning Model (SLM), shift emphasis towards how learners perceive non-native sounds through the lens of their L1 phonetic categories. The PAM suggests that L2 sounds are categorized based on their perceived similarities and differences to L1 sounds, leading to varying levels of discrimination ability. The SLM proposes that learners can form new phonetic categories, but the similarity between L1 and L2 sounds poses the greatest challenge. L2 learners must actively maintain these new categories as their long-term memory storage of phonetic categories evolves to encompass both L1 and L2 sounds. The impact of cross-linguistic patterns, such as markedness, also influences L2A, highlighting the inherent asymmetry in binary oppositions.
This information can help you understand the sources and their key concepts, but remember that each source is independent and may offer different perspectives or even contradictory information.