Stops and affricates

2.1  Introduction

  1. Differences of stops are made in: airstreams, laryngeal setting, VOT, velic closure/opening.

  2. Two ways of analyzing stop system: number of series and places.

2.2  Stop series

  1. Series is a set of stops which share in a general sense the same manner.

  2. Numbers of stop series in UPSID -- table 2.1

            --All languages have at least 1 series, and 2 series is the most common.

Table 2.1 Number of stop series

1

2

3

4

5

6

No. of languages

50

162

76

25

2

2

% of languages

15.8%

51.1%

24.0%

7.9%

0.6%

0.6%

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  1. Frequency of stop series in UPSID -- table 2.2

--Plain voiceless stop series has the highest frequency.

Table 2.2  Frequency of stop series

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Number of languages

Percent

Plain voiceless

291

91.8%

Plain voiced

212

66.9%

Aspirated voiceless

91

28.7%

Voiceless ejective

52

16.4%

Voiced implosive

35

11.0%

Prenasalized voiced

18

  5.6%

Breathy voiced

7

  2.2%

Laryngealized voiced

6

  1.9%

Laryngealized voiceless

3

  0.9%

Preaspirated voiceless

2

  0.6%

Voiceless with breathy release

2

  0.6%

Postnasalized voiced

1

  0.3%

Prevoiced ejective

1

  0.3%

Voiceless implosive

1

  0.3%

  1. Pattern of stop series, see appendix A.

2.3  Summary of analysis of stop systems.

Basic component of stop series include plain voiceless, and priority of expanding ones is VOT contrast,

then glottalic series, then further VOT contrast.

2.4  & 2.5 Stop system by place: two kinds of analysis

  1. Stop alone

(1) Number of places for stops -- table 2.4

Table 2.4  Frequency of sizes of stop systems by places

2

3

4

5

6

No. of languages

2

171

103

35

6

% of sample

0.3%

53.9%

32.5%

11.0%

1.9%

--Most languages utilize 3 places of articulation.

(2) Number of languages with stops at given places -- table 2.5

-- 3 commonest place of articulation: bilabial, dental or alveolar, velar.

-- Extra additions of place of articulation: retroflex, palatal, and alveolar.

Table 2.5  Number of languages with stops at given places

¡@

Bilabial

Dental or alveolar

Palatal or palatal-alveolar

Retroflex

Velar

Uvular

Labial-velar

No. of languages

314

316

59

36

315

47

20

% of languages

99.1%

99.7%

18.6%

11.4%

99.4%

14.8%

6.3%

        b. Stop and affricate

(1) Number of places for stops and/or affricate -- table 2.6

        --Most languages utilize 4 places of articulation.

Table 2.6  Number of places for stops and/or affricates

2

3

4

5

6

7

No. of languages

2

62

139

87

25

2

% of languages

0.6%

19.6%

43.8%

27.4%

7.9%

0.6%

¡@

(2) Extra additions of place of articulation: palatal-alveolar affricate.

2.6  Voicing and place of articulation for plosives

  1. Bilabial place is disfavored among voiceless plosives (p<k<*t);

Velar is disfavored among voiced plosives (g<*d<b).

  1. The tendency of devoicing voiced plosives, less bilabial.

  2. Area and genetic account for the /p/ and /g/ gap.

2.7  Secondary articulation with plosives

  1. Labialization: plosive>velar>uvular

  2. Palatalization: labial> dental or alveolar stop>velar

  3. Velarization and pharyngealization are rare.

  4. No secondary articulation in retroflex, palatal, palato-alveolar or labial-velar.

2.8  Affricates

Most common affricates are dental or alveolar sibilant.