Unit IV

The nature of the syllable

Syllable may be defined phonetically of Phonollogically.

Phonetically

 We can say syllable consisting of a centre a vowel sound.

 Which has a little or no obstruction (consonant sound) of the air flow and
which sound comparatively loud.
 Before and after the centre there will be greater obstruction to the air flow
and/or less loud sound.
 Example:

-MINIMUN SYLLABLE: single vowels in isolation; preceded and foowed by

silence

ɑ: are ɔ: or m indicating agreement ʃ asking for silence

some syllables have…

 ONSET: one or more consonants preceding the centre of a syllable

bɑ: bar ki: key mɔ: more

 CODA: ending with one or more consonants

æm am ɔ:t ought i:z ease

 BOTH: having onset and coda

ræn ran sæt sat fɪt fill

Phonologically

 Involves looking at the possible combinations of English phonemes

(phonotactics) because sometime in a coda or in an onset we may have
a quantity of consonants sounds
 What can occur at the beginning of the first word when we begin to
speak after a pause (vowel- 1, 2 or 3 consonants)
 How a word ends when it is the last word before a pause (vowel- q, 2, 3
or 4 consonants)
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Analysis

Zero ONSET, if the first syllable of the word beging with a vowel, we say that
this initial syllable has a zero onset.

Consonant Cluster, syllables beginning with 2 consonants, 2 or more

consonant together, we call them a consonant cluster.

Types: (Peter Rouch)

1. Composed of s followed by one small set of consonants /stɪŋ, sweɪ,

sməʊk/ the s in these clusters is called PRE-INITIAL, and the following
consonants are called INITIAL.
2. Beging with one of the set of about 15 consonants followed by one of the
set /l, r, w, j/ for example: /pleɪ, traɪ, kwɪk, fju:/ we call the 1st consonant
of these clusters the INITIAL consonant and the 2nd consonant the
POST- INITIAL.
3. Three-consonants clusters /splɪt, stri:m, skweə/ the s is PRE-INITIAL
p, t, k--- that follow are INITIAL consonant.
l, r, w--- are POST-INITIAL

Zero CODA, if there is no final consonant we say that there is a zero coda.

Consonant cluster---- FINAL consonant clusters.

 When there is one consonant only, it is called FINAL consonant

(except for h, w, j—glottal and semi vowel)
 There are final cluster in which final consonants are called PRE-
FINAL, FINAL, POST-FINAL 1, 2, 3.
Example:
Helped / h e l p t / (h=onset, e=centre, l=pre final, p=final, t=post
final)
Fifths / f=onset ɪ=centre f=final θ=post final 1 s=post final 2/

Summing up…

Pre initial- initial- post initial VOWEL pre final- final- post
ONSET CODA

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 O O

O R O R

N N C

stj u: d n t

The syllable: Syllabification

*What are the general rules for it?

Peter Roach--- “Most present-day work in phonology makes use of a rather

more refined analysis of the syllable in which the vowel and the coda (if there is
one) are known as the rhyme, just that part of the last syllable line. The rhyme is
divide into the peak (centre) normally the vowel and the coda (optional). As we
have seen, the syllable may also have an onset, but this is not obligatory”.

*The structure is thus the following

O = sigma= it is used to represent each of the syllables and it is subdivided into

Onset and Rhyme.

The rhyme is then broken up into two parts the nucleus and the coda.

Onset Rhyme

Nucleus Coda

C a t

S i ng

So, the first thing you like to do is to change it into phonemic transcription.
Generally speaking what goes into the nucleus is the vowel and that is the
element that is the highest in sonority and sonority basically means loudness.
The onset take with ever consonant is before the vowel, remember the
consonant cluster at the end and at the beginning, and the coda takes
whichever consonant is after the vowel now the only obligatory part is the

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nucleus in other words every single syllable must have energies but not every
part of the coda and onset are optional.

Syllabification

First, start up with the nucleus. (this is Second, the 2nd thing we have

a nucleus…mark the vowel sound). Go to do is up to better start at the

ahead and build up the rest of the end of the word and go to left

syllables. as I already told you.

Example

Rule MOP--- The Maximal Onset Principle

Suggests that consonants that are intervocalic are maximally assigned to

the ONSET. So long as they conform with universal and language-
specific conditions.
It seems to give preference to the CV (consonant vowel)- type syllable (a
basic universal type of syllable). A consonant followed by a vowel instead
of having a vowel followed by a consonant, VC type.

Rule: Phonetics constraints

*This is something that is purely related to language-specific, and its not

considered as universal.

*Which is the largest onset or coda we can have?

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The largest onset will be up to 3 consonants and the largest coda will be up to 4
consonants.

SSP---The Sonority Sequencing Principle, out lines the structure of a syllable

on sonority. Example, loudness, it states that the centre of the syllable, that is
the nucleus, the vowel sound constitute a sonority peak that is preceded and
followed by a sequence of consonants with progressively decreasing sonority
values.---What are…?

These values are determined by the sonority scale or the sonority heararchy it
shows, which sounds are more sonorous which sounds are louder, more easily
audiable and which sounds are less, so the higher we go up the scale the more
sonority exists and the lower, the less.

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RHYTHM

According to the connected speech we have seen how phonemes in isolation

are molded in into words and how isolated words show into the stream of
speech through a series of phonemic changes called simplifications we have
also seen how what stress and accent are an invariable attribute of words of
more than one syllable when spoken in isolation.

How is stress manifested in connected speech?

We need to look at how this stress is manifested and to do this we need first to
introduce the notion of prominence according to Abercombie a contemporary
politician, we talk about equal intervals of time, these isochronicity that he talks
about when he explains the prominence is related to the chest pulses and these
chest pulses are also correspond to the stress policies.

Prominence and Accent…

So far we have been using the term stress to mean two things but when dealing
with connected speech we need to distinguish these two meanings with 2
different terms:

- The 1st use has been as in worse stress, the emphasis on the syllable of
a word that is more or less a fixed attribute of that word and predictably
enough to be given in dictionaries for example.
- The 2nd use has been as in sentences, as the sentence stress
emphasis given to any word in a naturals by the speaker in order to
highlight the intended meanings to refer to this type of stress we´ll use
the meaning term prominence.
One way of looking at this contrast is to say that accent that is word
stress is determined by a language while prominence is determined by
the speaker decision.

Summing up…

Prominence can be given to any word whether lexical that is a context

word or not in other words grammatical function words.
In connected speech the role of stress is subordinated to the role of
prominence.
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 In multi-syllable words the speaker normally places prominence on the
syllable that normally carries word stress.
An uccented vowels tend to be reduced by using the pattern of
simplification, centralization of schwa
Remember! Any strong vowel becomes a shwa

Rhythm: is the sense of movement in speech, marked by the stress, timing and
quality of syllables. it is the measured flow of words and phrases in verse or
propose as determined by the relation of long and short or stresses and
unstressed syllables.

Five essentials:

1. Organization of words into appropriate rhythmic groups separated by

pauses.
2. The correct stress placement on the words within each group.
3. The appropriate signaling of transition between successive sounds and
syllables.
4. The basic intonation patterns.
5. Weakening of unstressed syllables in relation to the fully stressed
syllables of each rhythmic group.

Notation:

-A large circle to represent an accented syllable. Ex:

-A small circle to represent an unaccented one. Ex:

Till we find our place

Isochrony

Principle by which phonological units tend to be equally spaced in time.

 In actual speech, the rhythmic beats are isochronouns.

 Easier to detect isochrony in carefully organized, flowing sentences,
particularly in reading aloud.

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English rhythm shows a tendency towards isochrony.

Its Nature. Notion: it involves some noticeable events happening at regular

intervals of time. REMEMBER! When we talk about regular intervals of time we
talk about isochronicity.

 The English Speech it´s rhythmical core, it has detectable in the reular
occurrence of stressed syllables.
 English Language: it has a stressed-timed rhythm, the stressed
syllables will tend to occur at a relatively regular intervals of time whether
they are separated by unstressed syllables or not.

Example: pronunciation is important

 Spanish Language: its rhythmical structure is called syllable-timed

rhythm (the length of this rhythm, the length of the utterance depends on
the number of syllables and in the English language it will depend on the
stresses)----all syllables whether stressed or unstressed, tend to occur at
regular time intervals, and the time between the stressed syllable will be
shorter or longer in proportion to the number of unstressed syllable.
Example: la pro nun cia cion es imp or tan te.

Rhythmic Units

FOOT

It does not exist is syllable-timed language.

It includes a stressed ayllable and whatever follows it up to but not
including the next stress.
The length of an English utterance depends upon the number of feet it
contains.
Ex:
To des´troy the ´beauty from ´which one ´come
F1 F2 F3 F4
4 accents
4 feet

RHYTHMIC GROUP

The utterance is delivered as a series of closely-knit rhythmic groups.

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 Some phoneticians consider the R.U as the unit of the English rhythm
instead of the foot.
Sense groups: they include only one stressed syllable, but talking into
account semantic and syntactic categories.
Ex:
I´ve found a man to mend the car
RG 1 RG 2 RG3 RG4

TYPES OF RHYTHMIC UNITS

They are manifested both syllabically and accentually. Every full syllable gets
an accent.

 MONOBEATS: depends on the rare type of succession in which there

are no reduced syllables. Ex: ´John ´went ´home.
 TROCHEES: a metrical foot consisting of one long syllable followed by
one short syllable or of one stressed syllable followed by one unstressed
syllable. Ex: I ´found a ´man to ´mend the ´car
 DACTYLS: ideal for placing accents, providing two reduced syllables to
take the pitch turn after each potential accent. Ex: I ´wanted to ´borrow a
´table from ´Mary.

PAUSE

 It is possible for several speakers to divide a text in different ways

according to individual interpretation and provide the rhythmic units are
organized.
 They will produce and maintain a credible native rhythmic pattern
 Predictable pauses required for the speaker to take breath or for the
separation of grammatical units will coincide with rhythmic group
boundaries.
 From the Linguistic, the pauses made by native speakers are used to
delimit sense group and rhythmic group.

*DISJUNCTURE: is the speaker´s usual means of delimiting groups of words in

close grammatical relationship. Example: TAKE GREY to LONdon

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*JUNCTURE: is the speaker´s usual means of preserving the internal structure
of the unit. Example: TAKE GREATer LONdon.

TEMPO

 The average speed of delivery of any sentence is tentatively established

as soon as we have said the first two strongly stressed syllables.
 The rate of delivery varies constantly
 Faster if they are separated by weakly stressed syllables
 Slower if two strong syllables occur closely together
 Example: He ´realized that the ´bus ´wasn´t going to ´stop for him.

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