LT3214 Phonology Lecture 2

LT3214 Phonology (Semester A, 2024/25)

• Lecture 2, September 11, 2024
• Topic: Phonological features I
• Reading: Spencer, Chapter 1 (sections 1.2.2, pages 25-35), Chapter 4 (sections 4.0-4.1, pages 105-110; section 4.3, pages 117-121), Appendix 4.3 (pages 141-144).

Phonological Features

• Used in phonology to define and group speech sounds in a language(e.g. English VPM, HPR)
• Converted from phonetic properties of speech sounds.
• Considered components of sound segments
• Each sound is represented by a bundle of features within brackets (e.g. [ ]).
• Features are listed without order.
• Example: [i]: [-consonantal, +high, -back, -round, +ATR, +voiced, -nasal, ...]
• Binary values (+ or -). + means the sound has a property and - means the sound does not have that property

Phonological Features for [i]

• vowel = [-consonantal] (no vocal tract constriction)
• high = [+high] (tongue dorsum close to palate)
• front = [-back] (no retraction of tongue dorsum)
• unrounded = [-round] (no lip rounding/protrusion)
• tense = [+ATR] (advanced tongue root leading to tense articulation)
• voiced = [+voiced] (produced with vocal fold vibration)
• oral = [-nasal] (no air passing through nasal cavity)

Defining Possible Sounds in Languages

• British English:
  • Front vowels: [i, I, ε, æ] as [-back, -round]
  • Back vowels: [u, U, ɔ, o, ʌ, ɑ] as [+back, +round] or [+back, -round]
• Cantonese:
  • Front vowels: [i, I, ε, œ] as [-back, -round] or [-back, +round]
  • Back vowels: [u, u, o, ɒ, ɑ] as [+back, +round] or [+back, -round].
• Impossible sounds may not be present in certain languages (e.g. certain vowel combinations)

Showing Contrasts of Sounds

• British English Vowels:
  • Front vowels [i, I, E, œ] = [-back]
  • High vowels [i, I]= [+high, -low]
  • Tense vowel [i] = [+ATR], Lax vowel [I]= [-ATR]
  • Mid vowels [e, ε] = [-high, -low]
  • Low Vowel [æ] = [-high, +low]
  • Back vowels [u, ʊ, ɔ, o, ʌ, ɑ] = [+back]
  • High Vowels [u, ʊ], = [+high, -low]
  • Mid vowels [ə, ɜ] = [-high, -low]
  • Rounded vowels [ʊ, ɔ, o] = [+round]
  • Unrounded vowels [i, I, e, ε, æ, ʌ, ɑ] = [-round]
  • Low Vowels = [-high, +low]

Describing Sound Variations

• To categorize sounds as "target" sounds involved in sound variations
• To show structural changes (changed phonetic properties) of that target
• To categorize the sounds as "determinant" sounds that trigger the variation

British English: "Vowel Nasalization"

• The set of vowels [ĩ, ĩ, ẽ, ẽ, ũ, ῦ, ɑ̃, ɑ̃, ɔ̃, ɔ̃, 3, 3, ]
• Vowels becoming nasalized before nasal consonants.

Writing Phonological Rules

• Possible rules define valid sound changes.
• Impossible rule defines sound changes that are not possible.

Capturing Contrasts and Changes of Sounds

• Contrast between "front" and "back" vowels, showing the way the tongue retracts.
• "Vowel Nasalization" details how sounds change from oral to nasal.

Unary Values for Features Not in Binary Opposition

• Features like 'place' (labial, coronal, dorsal, guttural) are not in binary opposition e.g., [labial] = [+coronal, +dorsal, +guttural].

Variations in Feature Systems

• Feature naming conventions vary (e.g., "tense" vs. [ATR]).
• Number of features used also varies (e.g., different groupings of vowels).
• Spencer's system will be the focus in this course.

Spencer's Feature System

• Major class features (consonantal, approximant, sonorant)
• Vowel features
• Consonant features (place and manner)
• Laryngeal features
• Prosody features (covered in lecture 3)

Major Class Features

• Consonants ([cons]): produced with constriction in the vocal tract.
• Consonants = [+cons]: no/small space between upper/lower articulators. There is a significant constriction.
• Vowels/glides = [-cons]: more space in the mouth, little to no constriction.

Approximants

• Approximants in phonology are described as glides, or semi-vowels,
• Similar to high vowels in articulation but they have shorter duration

Sonorants

• Sonorants = [+son]: pressure doesn't rise in the vocal tract; air can escape through mouth/nasal cavity.
• Obstruents = [-son]: significant constriction or complete closure in the vocal tract.
• Vowels, glides = [+son]

Feature Matrix of Major Sound Categories

• A table to summarize the major features ([cons], [approx], [son]) of different sound categories (obstruents, nasal, liquids, vowels/glides)
• Impossible combinations of features (e.g. *[-cons, -approx, -son])

Vowel Features

• Specify vowels and glides and their properties related to tongue dorsum position and lip-rounding characteristics
• Used in determining characteristics like consonant place and secondary articulation (covered in lecture 3).

High and Low Vowels

• [High]: Tongue dorsum close to the palate.
• [Low]: Tongue dorsum on the floor of the mouth
• High = [+high, -low]; Low = [+low, -high]; Mid = [-high, -low]
• Mid Vowels: [-high, -low]

Advanced Tongue Root ([ATR])

• [ATR]: Advanced tongue root; Used to specify tense/lax vowel distinctions (e.g., high tense/lax vowels).
• Tense vowels [+ATR], Lax vowels [-ATR].

Back Vowels

• [Back]: Tongue dorsum retracted behind the hard palate.

Rounded Vowels

• [Round]: Lip rounding or protrusion.
• Rounded vowels = [+round], Unrounded Vowels = [-round]

This quiz covers essential aspects of phonological features as discussed in LT3214 Phonology, Lecture 2. It focuses on defining and grouping speech sounds in language, their phonetic properties, and the binary values used in representation. Reference is made to Spencer's readings for deeper insights into the topics covered.