"heed" "who'd" "hod"
Vowels
Why are gestures for vowels harder to think about than those for consonants?
How do vowel gestures differ from consonant gestures?
(1) consonants are more constricted than vowels
exceptions?
(2) vowel gestures are formed more slowly and "last longer" than consonant gestures.
Types of vowel gestures
3 basic types that occur in (almost) all languages of the world:
All types involve a dorsal gesture, but a different constriction location
"heed" palatal
"who'd" velar also labial constriction
"hod" pharyngeal
"heed" "who'd" "hod"
The three constriction locations span the extreme locations at which a dorsal constriction can be made:
More vowels than 3
Languages often have more than 3 contrastive vowels. How are these gestures distinguished?
Systems for describing vowels:
Location and degree of dorsal constriction
- degrees: narrow mid wide (and intermediate)
- locations: palatal velar uvular pharyngeal
Tongue Position system
- high-low position of tongue body
- front-back position of tongue body
- round-unrounded
Formant (resonance) system
