LINGUIST List 11.76

Mon Jan 17 2000

Disc: NEW: 11.8 Phonetics/Ejectives/Laryngealization

Editor for this issue: Lydia Grebenyova <lydialinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. David Beck, New Discussion: 11.8 Phonetics/Ejectives/Laryngealization

This comment appeared in a recent summary on
Phonetics/Ejectives/Laryngealization:

>Some of the contributors pointed me to Ladefoged's book "The
>sounds of the world's languages; unfortunately, it was this that
>made me wonder about the resemblance of laryngealized sounds and
>ejectives. They seem to be, though, phonetically totally
>different. Some of those who answered argued that phonologically,
>the difference is indeed irrelevant, as both features never
>co-occur in the same language (Jessen's description: [+constricted
>glottis, -voice] or [+checked, -voiced] in Jacobsonian terms).
>Unlike ejectives, laryngealized consonants may be voiced.
>

Upper Necaxa Totonac appears to be an exception to this last
generalization, as it has a creaky/plain distinction in vowels and has a
series of three ejective fricatives. Some dialects of Tepehua apparently
have creaky voice vowels and ejective stops (although I can't speak to that
from experience).

======================================================================
David Beck
Visiting Assistant Professor
Programme in Linguistics
University of Michigan
Room 1087 Frieze Building
105 South State St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1285
office: (734) 647-2156
FAX: (734) 936-3406
e-mail: dbeckumich.edu
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~dbeck/