Introduction to LinguisticsChapter 2: Phonology

Instructor: LIU Hongyong

Review questions

In what ways can English consonants be classified?

In what ways can English vowels be classified?

Phonology vs. Phonetics

1. Phonetics: it is interested in all the speech sounds used in all human languages: phonetic features they possess, how they can be classified, etc.

2. Phonology: it aims to discover how speech sounds in a language form sound patterns. The conclusions we reach about the phonology of one language is very often langauge specific.

Phone, Phoneme, and Allophone

1. Phone: a phonetic unit or a segment (a consonant or a vowel). The speech sounds we hear and produce are all phones.

pit: [ph] [i] [th]

spit: [s] [p] [i] [th]

leaf: [l] [i:] [f]

feel: [f] [i:] [ł]

Phone, Phoneme, and Allophone

2. Phoneme: an abstract phonological unit of distinctive value that is represented or realized by a certain phone.

peak: [ph] [i:] [kh]speak: [s] [p] [i:] [kh]

There is a slight difference in the way [ph] and [p] are pronounced, but such a phonetic difference does not give rise to difference in meaning. so the phoneme /p/ is realized by two different phones.

Phone, Phoneme, and Allophone

3. Allophones: the different phones which can represent a phoneme in different phonetic contexts.

pit: [ph] [i] [th]

spit: [s] [p] [i] [th]

leaf: [l] [i:] [f]

feel: [f] [i:] [ł]

/ p /

/ l /

Phonemic contrast

Phonetically similar sounds may be related in two different ways: in phonemic constrast vs. in complementary distribution

Phonemic contrast: the contrast between two phonetically similar sounds that are actually two different phonemes.

pit: /p/

bit: /b/

/p/

Complementary Distribution

If the two similar sounds are allophones of the same phoneme, then they are said to be in complementary distribution, which means they cannot occur in the same phonetic environment.

dark / l /: at the end of a word

clear / l /: before a vowel

Minimal pair

Minimal pair: When two different forms are identical in every way except for one sound segment which occurs in the same place in the string, the two sound combinations are said to form a minimal pair

pill/bill; pill/till; till/kill; kill/dill; dill/gill

cut/but; big/peg; peak/leap

Minimal set

Minimal set: When more than two different forms are identical in every way except for one sound segment which occurs in the same place in the string, all the many sound combinations are said to form a minimal set

beat, bit, bet, bat, boot, but, bait, bite, boat

Some rules in phonology

1. Sequential rules 2. Assimilation rule 3. Deletion rule

Sequential rules

To find out all the phonemes of a language is only part of the task of the phonologist. He also has to find out in what way the phonemes can be combined.

/k/ /b/ /l/ /i/

possible arrangements: /kilb/, /blik/, /kilb/, /klib/, etc.

impossible arrangements: /lbki/, /ilbk/, /bkil/, etc. There are rules that govern the combination of sounds in a particular language. These rules are called sequential rules.

Sequential rules

In English, if three consonants occur together at the beginning of a word, the combination should obey the following three rules:

1. the first phoneme should be: /s/2. the second phoneme should be: /p/, /t/, /k/3. the third phoneme should be: /l/, /r/, /w/

spring, strict, square, scream sixths /siksθs/ CCCVCCCC

Assimilation rule

The assimilation rule assimilates one sound to another by "copying" a feature of the neighbouring phoneme, thus making the two phones similar.

Cantonese閊门 san mun --> sam mun唔好 m hou --> m mou今日 kam jat --> kam mat

Deletion rule

A sound segment may be deleted. Examples: /g/ is deleted in 'sign' /sain/, but retaine

d in 'signature'; 'he is' /hi iz/ in fast speech becomes /hiz/ 'memory' /meməri/ becomes /memri/

segmental vs. suprasegmental

segmental features 音段特征phonological features associated with consonants or

vowels

suprasegmental features 超音段特征phonological features associated not with segments,

but with larger units such as syllalbe, word, and sentence.

main suprasegmental features

1. Stress: word stress and sentence stress 2. Tone 3. Intonation

stress

The location of stress in English distinguishes meaning.

'increase (n.) vs. in'crease (v.)'rebel (n.) vs. re'bel (v.)'permit (n.) vs. per'mit (v.)

stress The location of stress in English distinguishes meaning.

'blackbird (compound) vs. black 'bird (noun phrase)'greenhouse (compound) vs. green 'house (noun phrase)'hotdog' (compound) vs. hot 'dog (noun phrase)

'dining room (compound) 'reading glasses (compound)'sewing machine (compound) 'swimming pool (compound) swimming 'boy (noun phrase) sleeping 'baby (noun phrase)

stress

sentence stress （句子重音）

stressed word classes: N. V. Adj. Adv. Dem.

unstressed word classes: Art. personal pron. Aux. Prep. Conj.

He is driving my car.

he, is, my can be stressed to express certain meaning.

Tone

Tones are pitch variations. 不同的音高 Pitch variations can distinguish meaning just like

phonemes. The tone is a suprasegmental feature associated with syllables.

Language with tones are called tone language.

Example ：白午苗话的反复问句

胡晓东：《白午苗话的反复问句》，《民族语文》 2008 年第 2期。

Example: 白午苗话的反复问句

Example: 白午苗话的反复问句

What is the phonological rule governing the pattern of tone change?

Intonation

When pitch, stress and sound length are tied to the sentence rather than the word in isolation, they are collectively known as intonation.

Four basic intonation types of English, known as the four tones:

1. the falling tone2. the rising tone3. the fall-rise tone 4. the rise-fall tone

That's not the book he wants.