Laminal consonant
Encyclopedia
A laminal consonant is a phone produced by obstructing the air passage with the blade of the tongue, which is the flat top front surface just behind the tip of the tongue on the top. This contrasts with apical consonant
s, which are produced by creating an obstruction with the tongue apex (tongue tip) only. This distinction applies only to coronal consonant
s, which use the front of the tongue.
Laminal vs. apical is not a very common contrast within a language. Where such a contrast occurs, it is typically phonemic with fricatives and affricates rather than stops, although some native languages of California make the distinction with plosives as well, while Dahalo
makes the distinction only in its plosives. The Basque language
differentiates between laminal and apical in the alveolar
region, as does Serbo-Croatian
, while Polish
and Mandarin make the distinction with postalveolar consonant
s.
Because laminal consonants use the flat of the tongue, they cover a broader area of contact than apical consonants. Laminal consonants in some languages have been recorded with a broad occlusion (closure) covering the entire front of the mouth, from the hard palate to the teeth. Therefore it is difficult to compare the two: alveolar laminals and apicals are two different articulations.
A very common laminal articulation is sometimes called denti-alveolar; it spans the alveolar ridge to the teeth, but is a little further forward than other alveolar laminal consonants, which cover more of the alveolar ridge (and might be considered postalveolar). This is the situation for French.
Part of the confusion in naming laminal consonants is, quite literally, a matter of point of view: When looking at a person pronouncing a laminal alveolar
or denti-alveolar, the tip of the tongue can be seen touching the back of the teeth, or even protruding between the teeth. This gives them the common name of dental. Acoustically
however, the important element is where the rear-most occlusion is, for this is the point where the resonant chamber in the mouth terminates, and this determines the size and shape, and therefore the acoustics, of the oral cavity, which produces the harmonics of the vowels. By this consideration the French coronals are alveolar, and differ from English alveolars primarily in being laminal rather than apical (that is, in French the tongue is flatter). There are true laminal dentals in some languages, with no alveolar contact, and they sound different from the French consonants. Nevertheless, the breadth of contact has some importance, for it influences the shape of the tongue further back, and therefore the shape of the resonant cavity. Also, if the release of a denti-alveolar consonant is not abrupt, the tongue may peel off from the roof of the mouth from back to front, in effect shifting from an alveolar to a dental pronunciation.
In the International Phonetic Alphabet
, the diacritic for laminal consonants is .
Apical consonant
An apical consonant is a phone produced by obstructing the air passage with the apex of the tongue . This contrasts with laminal consonants, which are produced by creating an obstruction with the blade of the tongue .This is not a very common distinction, and typically applied only to fricatives...
s, which are produced by creating an obstruction with the tongue apex (tongue tip) only. This distinction applies only to coronal consonant
Coronal consonant
Coronal consonants are consonants articulated with the flexible front part of the tongue. Only the coronal consonants can be divided into apical , laminal , domed , or subapical , as well as a few rarer orientations, because only the front of the tongue has such...
s, which use the front of the tongue.
Laminal vs. apical is not a very common contrast within a language. Where such a contrast occurs, it is typically phonemic with fricatives and affricates rather than stops, although some native languages of California make the distinction with plosives as well, while Dahalo
Dahalo language
Dahalo is an endangered South Cushitic language spoken by at most 400 people on the Kenyan coast near the mouth of the Tana River. The Dahalo, former elephant hunters, are dispersed among Swahili and other Bantu peoples, with no villages of their own, and are bilingual in those languages...
makes the distinction only in its plosives. The Basque language
Basque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
differentiates between laminal and apical in the alveolar
Alveolar consonant
Alveolar consonants are articulated with the tongue against or close to the superior alveolar ridge, which is called that because it contains the alveoli of the superior teeth...
region, as does Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian language
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
, while Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
and Mandarin make the distinction with postalveolar consonant
Postalveolar consonant
Postalveolar consonants are consonants articulated with the tongue near or touching the back of the alveolar ridge, further back in the mouth than the alveolar consonants, which are at the ridge itself, but not as far back as the hard palate...
s.
Because laminal consonants use the flat of the tongue, they cover a broader area of contact than apical consonants. Laminal consonants in some languages have been recorded with a broad occlusion (closure) covering the entire front of the mouth, from the hard palate to the teeth. Therefore it is difficult to compare the two: alveolar laminals and apicals are two different articulations.
A very common laminal articulation is sometimes called denti-alveolar; it spans the alveolar ridge to the teeth, but is a little further forward than other alveolar laminal consonants, which cover more of the alveolar ridge (and might be considered postalveolar). This is the situation for French.
Part of the confusion in naming laminal consonants is, quite literally, a matter of point of view: When looking at a person pronouncing a laminal alveolar
Alveolar consonant
Alveolar consonants are articulated with the tongue against or close to the superior alveolar ridge, which is called that because it contains the alveoli of the superior teeth...
or denti-alveolar, the tip of the tongue can be seen touching the back of the teeth, or even protruding between the teeth. This gives them the common name of dental. Acoustically
Acoustics
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of acoustics...
however, the important element is where the rear-most occlusion is, for this is the point where the resonant chamber in the mouth terminates, and this determines the size and shape, and therefore the acoustics, of the oral cavity, which produces the harmonics of the vowels. By this consideration the French coronals are alveolar, and differ from English alveolars primarily in being laminal rather than apical (that is, in French the tongue is flatter). There are true laminal dentals in some languages, with no alveolar contact, and they sound different from the French consonants. Nevertheless, the breadth of contact has some importance, for it influences the shape of the tongue further back, and therefore the shape of the resonant cavity. Also, if the release of a denti-alveolar consonant is not abrupt, the tongue may peel off from the roof of the mouth from back to front, in effect shifting from an alveolar to a dental pronunciation.
In the International Phonetic Alphabet
International Phonetic Alphabet
The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic...
, the diacritic for laminal consonants is .
See also
- Apical consonantApical consonantAn apical consonant is a phone produced by obstructing the air passage with the apex of the tongue . This contrasts with laminal consonants, which are produced by creating an obstruction with the blade of the tongue .This is not a very common distinction, and typically applied only to fricatives...
- Subapical consonant
- Coronal consonantCoronal consonantCoronal consonants are consonants articulated with the flexible front part of the tongue. Only the coronal consonants can be divided into apical , laminal , domed , or subapical , as well as a few rarer orientations, because only the front of the tongue has such...
- List of phonetic topics