Michael Proctor

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Phonetic Characterization of a Problematic Class—the Liquids

Michael Proctor
Yale University and Haskins Laboratories

ABSTRACT

Many aspects of the phonetics of liquids are still poorly understood; consequently, the influence that phonetics might have on the phonological behavior of this class of sounds has been difficult to gauge. It is unclear why such a diverse group of sounds tends to pattern together in phonological systems (Walsh–Dickey 1997), and what phonetic properties the members of the class might share, if any (Lindau 1985, Ladefoged & Maddieson 1996). In this talk, I present recent work examining liquid production in Russian, Spanish and Tamil, using ultrasound and real time magnetic resonance imaging. The results of these studies suggest that the production of liquids involves a more global coordination of lingual gestures than that used in the production of obstruents. I argue that a number of phonological phenomena involving liquids might arise from the sonorant properties inherent in these types of articulation, and examine some ways in which the dynamic characterization of these consonants can inform our knowledge of the nature of phonological classhood.