PhonologyPhonology

Study of the

sound system of a language

Phonetics vs. PhonologyPhonetics vs. Phonology

both deal with speech sounds phonetics: deals with physical properties of speech

sounds phonology: deals with the organization of speech

sounds in a particular language– Which sounds are predictable? Which are unpredictable?– What context allows us to predict the occurrence of

certain sounds?– Which sounds affect the meaning of words?

English has the sounds [s] and [š].sue [su] shoe [šu]

see [si] she [ši]

- [s] and [š] can occur before any vowel.

- changing from [s] to [š] affects the meaning of the word

Japanese also has the sounds [s] and [š].– sushi [suši]– Satoko [satoko] (proper name)– shiro [širo] ‘white’– sha'kkuri [šak:uri] ‘hiccup’– shuukan [šu:kan] ‘habit’

But [š] can only occur in certain contexts– It can only occur before [i]. There are no

Japanese words with the sequence [si].– When speaking other languages, natives speakers

of Japanese may have difficulty producing and perceiving [s] before [i].

Same sound or different sound?Same sound or different sound?

• Within a given language, some sounds are considered to be the same sound, even though they are phonetically distinct.

Same sound or different sound?Same sound or different sound?

• Within a given language, some sounds are considered to be the same sound, even though they are phonetically distinct.• Same or different?• pool [pul] spool [spul]

Same sound or different sound?Same sound or different sound?

• Within a given language, some sounds are considered to be the same sound, even though they are phonetically distinct.• Same or different?• pool [pul] spool [spul]

Same sound or different sound?Same sound or different sound?• Within a given language, some sounds are

considered to be the same sound, even though they are phonetically distinct.• Same or different?• pool [phul] spool [spul]

• phonetically different (aspirated vs. unaspirated)• native speakers perceive the same sound

• mitt, Tim, metal, mitten• phonetically different• all perceived as ‘t’ by English speakers

ContrastivenessContrastiveness• Two sounds are said to be contrastive if

replacing one with the other results in a change of meaning.• E.g., [s] and [š] are contrastive in English.

• [su] and [šu] mean different things

• Two sounds are said to be noncontrastive if replacing one with the other does not result in a change of meaning.• E.g., aspirated and unaspirated stops are not

contrastive in English• [tep] and [teph] mean the same thing

• Note that the notion of contrastiveness must be determined within a given language.• In some languages (e.g., Hindi), difference

between aspirated and unaspirated stops is contrastive (can make a difference in meaning).

• [kap] ‘cup’• [khap] ‘phlegm’

Phonemes and AllophonesPhonemes and Allophones• Phoneme:

• class of speech sounds judged by native speakers to be the same sound.

• a mental entity• E.g., The /t/ sounds in mitt, Tim, metal, mitten

corresponds to one phoneme.

• Note: often revealed in spelling systems.

• Allophone: • one of a set of non-distinctive realizations of the

same phoneme.• Corresponds to something physical produced by a

speaker• E.g., [th] is an allophone of /t/.

• See p. 72 for a helpful schematic.

Bracketing conventionBracketing convention

slashes enclose phonemes: /t/square brackets enclose allophones: [t]

This is an important distinction!

Distribution of speech soundsDistribution of speech sounds

• Distribution of a speech sound: the set of phonetic environments in which it occurs.• E.g., In English, aspirated consonants occur

syllable-initially.

• Two types: contrastive distribution and complementary distribution.

Contrastive distributionContrastive distribution

• A pair of speech sounds (or phones) is in contrastive distribution if interchanging the two can result in a change in meaning.• [s] and [š] are in contrastive distribution in English

Are [p] and [b] in contrastive Are [p] and [b] in contrastive distribution in English?distribution in English?

• To answer this question, construct a minimal pair.

• Minimal pair: two words that differ only by a single sound in the same position and have different meanings.

Are [p] and [b] in contrastive Are [p] and [b] in contrastive distribution in English?distribution in English?

• To answer this question, construct a minimal pair.

• Minimal pair: two words that differ only by a single sound in the same position and have different meanings.

• E.g., [pag] ‘pog’[bag] ‘bog’

Complementary distributionComplementary distribution

• Speech sounds in complementary distribution are allophones of the same phoneme.

• Sounds in complementary distribution occur in non-overlapping environments.

• Non-technical meaning of complementary: supplying parts to make up the whole.

• E.g., [ph] and [p] are in complementary distribution in English.spit [spIt]pit [sphIt]spied [spayd] pied [phayd]spool [spul] pool [phul]

Free variationFree variation

• Term used to refer to two sounds that occur in overlapping environments but cause no distinction in the meaning of their respective words.

• E.g., • released/unreleased word-final stops (top, pot)• ash-tensing (bat)