Phonetics and Phonology

Outline

In order to cover the basic concepts of the "Phonetics and Phonology" module, the following sections have been chosen as the main topics:

The phonetics part consists of the three phases of the speech communication channel, namely the production, acoustics, and perception of speech. Although the most important phenomena are listed as key words under only one topic each, they can be seen from several different viewpoints. Due to the fact that the focus is on processing acoustic data in the language and speech area, speech acoustics is given greater prominence.

The phonology section comprises the fundamental terms introduced by the Structuralists (such as phoneme and minimal pair), together with the important concepts introduced by Generative Phonology (such as features and rules), finishing with the basic innovations of non-linear theories of the mental representation and formalisation of sound structures. In the latter case, it is not only individual sound segments that are taken into consideration, but also prosodic events such as phrasing and intonation.

Since it is important for the student to gain an understanding of how acoustic material is organised and realised in particular languages, phonetics and phonology are covered together in this area. The area thus represents a bridge between the "language world" and the "speech world". The Euromasters degree aims to bring both worlds closer together in the student's understanding. This integrated understanding is of great importance in the development of speech-driven applications.

Topics

• Speech production

• • Sound source [C&Y 6.4 - 6.6, 7.11 - 7.12]

• • Articulation [C&Y 6.7 - 6.11]

• • Coarticulation [C&Y Ch. 4.1]

• • Prosody [C&Y Ch. 9]

• Acoustic phonetics

• • Fant's source-filter model [C&Y 7.10 & 7.18]

• • Experimental methods and tools [C&Y 7.1 - 7.8] (see also Speech Signal Processing)

• • Acoustic properties of speech sounds [C&Y 7.15 - 7.19]

• Speech perception [C&Y Ch. 8] (see also Cognitive Models of Language and Speech)

• • Auditory system

• • Psycho-acoustics

• • Perception of speech units

• Taxonomic phonemics [C&Y Ch. 4]

• • Phonemes and allophones

• • Minimal pairs

• • Syllable structure

• • Phonological processes

• Distinctive features [C&Y Ch. 5 & 10]

• • Jakobson: Acoustic features

• • Generative Phonology

• • Rules

• Non-linear phonology [C&Y Ch. 11]

• • Autosegmental phonology

• • Metrical phonology

• • Other non-linear models (eg. feature geometry, dependency phonology)