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4 - Coarticulation

from Section I - Segmental Production

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 November 2021

By
Khalil Iskarous  and
Christine Mooshammer
Edited by
Rachael-Anne Knight  and
Jane Setter
Rachael-Anne Knight
Affiliation:
City, University of London
Jane Setter
Affiliation:
University of Reading
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Summary

When speech sounds are produced, articulatory movements for one sound overlap with those of the surrounding sounds, generating articulatory and acoustic signals that at any point in time are informative about two or more sounds, not just one. This process of intermingling of information about several speech sounds in the articulatory and acoustic signals is called coarticulation. This chapter synthesises theories and experimental findings of the last century on the nature of coarticulation, and shows how our modern understanding of this complex process is deeply rooted in theories that have evolved over decades due to novel experimental findings as well as critique from competing theories. After discussion of our current understanding of coarticulation, some suggestions for initiating students into the surprising effects of coarticulation are introduced.

Keywords

coarticulationdynamical systemsspeech productionTask DynamicsExemplar TheoryArticulatory PhonologyloopsAcoustic Kinematics
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Phonetics , pp. 106 - 132
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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