phonology, part 4: distinctive features march 13, 2012
TRANSCRIPT
Phonology, part 4: Distinctive Features
March 13, 2012
Mid-term rehash!
> 90: 10
80 - 89: 17
70 - 79: 13
60 - 69: 16
< 60: 14
Average: 71.9
High: 96.5
MT% = 2.6*QW + 41.2
R2 = 22%
Natural Classes• The same rules apply to /p/, /t/ and /k/. Why?
• /p/, /t/ and /k/ form a natural class of sounds in English.
• They are all voiceless stops
• No other sound in English is a voiceless stop
• A natural class is set of sounds in a language that:
• share one or more (phonetic) features
• to the exclusion of all other sounds in that language.
• …and function together in phonological rules.
• The phonetic “features” primarily include the phonetic labels we’ve already learned.
• …although we’ll need to make some additions.
Natural Class Examples• For instance, in English:
1. [k], [g], form the natural class of velar stops
2. [u] and [o] form the natural class of rounded, tense vowels.
• What natural classes are formed by the following groups of sounds?
• [t], [s]
• [v], , [z],
• , ,
This is actually useful.• Phonological patterns are often formed by natural classes of sounds.
• Ex: the (regular) English past tense exhibits allomorphy.
• Allomorph 1: [d]
study studied fear feared
mail mailed loan loaned
• Allomorph 2:
collect collected mate mated
wade waded need needed
• What’s the natural class of segments that induces the change?
New Features• There are a few features in phonology that are more general than the ones we find in phonetics.
• For instance: the Arabic Sun and Moon letters.
• What’s the pattern?
New Features
• The “Sun letters” include alveolars, post-alveolars and interdentals
• = sounds made with the front part of the tongue
• The “Moon letters” include everything else.
• New feature: [CORONAL] is a cover term for alveolars, post-alveolars and interdentals.
Assimilation• The change undergone by the definite article in Arabic is called assimilation.
• = when one sound becomes more similar to another in its environment.
• In the Arabic case, there is complete, or total assimilation.
• …but individual features can also change, as in place assimilation.
• Ex: In English, /n/ often takes on the place of articulation of a following consonant.
• ‘unpleasant’
• ‘engrossed’
More Assimilation• Remember this pattern?
• Plural forms:
cat: dog:
match: judge:
chair: pass:
hose: puck:
• The basic form of the plural is [z].
• It exhibits voicing assimilation when following voiceless segments…
• becoming voiceless [s].
More Assimilation• Remember this pattern?
• Plural forms:
cat: dog:
match: judge:
chair: pass:
hose: puck:
• The basic form of the plural is [z].
• It becomes when it follows [s], [z], or .
• These are [strident] consonants.
Some New Features• Only CORONAL consonants can be [strident].
• “strident” = noisy
• Other place of articulation features:
• LABIAL (involves the lips)
• includes both bilabials and labio-dentals
• [p], [b], [m], [f], [v]
• DORSAL (involves the back of tongue)
• includes both palatals and velars
• [k], [g], [j]
Distinctive Features• The features used to describe natural classes of sounds in phonology are known as distinctive features.
• …because they distinguish between otherwise identical sounds.
• The distinctions made by features are (almost always) denoted by a [+] or [-] in front of the feature name.
• For instance, stops and fricatives are distinguished by the feature [continuant].
• [s] = [+continuant] (air flows steadily through mouth)
• [t] = [-continuant] (air does not flow steadily through mouth)
• (Note: nasals and affricates are also [-continuant])
Hitting Bottom• Distinctive features are considered to be the basic building blocks of language.
Sentences
Words
Morphemes
Phonemes
Features
• The set of features is therefore universal.
• The distinctive features determine:
• What contrasts a sound makes with other sounds.
• What natural classes a sound belongs to.
Feature Matrices• All of a phoneme’s feature specifications (+ or -) can be lumped together into a feature matrix.
• For example: [t] =
• Note: - is the default (unmarked) value.
• Also note: there are complete feature matrices for all English sounds on pages 88 and 89 of the textbook.
Sub-Features, part 1• Note: the place features LABIAL, CORONAL, DORSAL are special in that they are not preceded by either + or -
• (the textbook puts a () before them)
• Some features only apply when a particular place feature is also part of a sound’s feature matrix.
• For instance: only CORONALS can be strident.
• Also: [anterior] applies only to CORONALS.
• Is the sound at or in front of the alveolar ridge?
• Yes: [+anterior] = interdentals, alveolars
• No: [-anterior] = post-alveolars (=posterior)
Sub-Features, part 2• A sub-feature for LABIAL is ROUND.
• = are the lips rounded?
• All rounded vowels are [LABIAL]
• …and all rounded vowels are [+round]
• However: LABIAL consonants in English are [-round]
• …with the exception of [w], which is [+round]
Sub-Features, part 3• DORSAL has the following sub-features:
1. [+back] vowels are (phonetically) back….
• [-back] vowels are (phonetically) front.
• Also: palatal consonants ([j]) are [-back];
• Velar consonants ([k], [g]) are [+back]
2. [high] distinguishes high and non-high vowels
3. [low] distinguishes low and non-low vowels
• (mid vowels are [-high], [-low])
4. Tense vowels are [+tense], and lax vowels are [-tense]
• is [+reduced]
More Major Features• Note: consonants and vowels are distinguished by [consonantal]
• Two major classes of consonants are distinguished by the feature [sonorant]:
• [+sonorant] segments resonate when they’re produced
• they include vowels, glides, liquids and nasals
• [-sonorant] segments include:
• stops, fricatives and affricates
• these sounds obstruct the flow of air in the mouth
• = “obstruents”
• In English, only sonorants can be [+syllabic]
Laryngeal Features• Voiced and voiceless segments are distinguished by [voice]
• Aspirated consonants are [+spread glottis]
• also: [h]
• And “glottalized” consonants are [+constricted glottis]
• this includes the “glottal stop”
• ….but otherwise you can ignore this one.
• Finally: affricates are distinguished from fricatives by [delayed release]
• Affricates = [+delayed release]
• Fricatives = [-delayed release]
Just for fun: Voice Quality• There are three primary types of vocal fold vibration:
1. modal
• vocal folds lightly adducted; flow of air causes periodic opening and closing of folds
2. breathy
• vocal folds slightly apart; flow of air makes folds “wave” in the wind
• Breathy voice is [+voice], [+spread glottis]
3. creaky
• vocal folds tensely adducted; low airflow causes irregular, low frequency voicing
• Creaky voice is [+voice], [+constricted glottis]
The point of it all• Phonological rules can (and should) always be expressed in terms of distinctive features.
• For instance, voicing assimilation (for English plurals):
• [+voice] [-voice] / [-voice] ____
[+continuant]
[CORONAL]
[+strident]
• Let’s try our hand at a few of these…