Synchronic, diachronic and socio-linguistic factors in phonological system.

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 383.

In other words, synchronic analysisof linguistic facts of the phonological level should be made from the point of view of the most general (typological) linguistic categories (paradigms). But it must be done on the basis of the diachronic or historicalbackground.

The study of the phonological system can never be complete and truly adequate if we disregard socialphenomena of the period under investigation. And so the socio-linguistic factors are the most important. It is especially true of the English language, where the class dialects are expressed clearly and widely spread.

There is a very subtle interconnection between the socio-linguistic factors and their influence on the phonological system of the language.

The feature level is coordinated with other, the higher levels of the language. The phonemes have different functional loading in the language. And those, which are not sufficiently loaded according to the requirements of the higher levels, will tend to disappear from the language. This process is also explained by the system of the language.

1. The phonetic structure of a language.

Each language has its phonetic structure which is represented by a historically formed system of its sound means. In other words, the phonetic structure of a language includes:

a) its system of phonemes – consonants and vowels;

b) combinations and positions of phonemes in words, syllables and also their functions;

c) peculiarities of syllable formation and syllable division;

d) word accent (type, degree, place);

e) intonation – as a complex unity of speech melody, sentence stress, voice timber, rhythm and tempo of speech);

There are two major classes of sounds traditionally distinguished by phoneticians in any language. They are termed consonants and vowels. The criteria accepted by the majority of linguists for classifying speech sounds into vowels and consonants are as follows:

1. the presence or absence of an articulatory obstruction to the air stream in the superglottal cavities (the pharynx, the mouth and the nasal cavity);

2. the concentrated or defused character of the muscular tension in the production of speech sounds;

3. the force of exhalation.

A vowelis a sound in the articulation of which the air passes through the mouth freely (there is no obstruction to the stream of air). The stream of air is weak. The tongue and the vocal cords are tense, muscular tension is distributed more or less evenly throughout the mouth cavity and the pharynx, as in [u:], for example.

The particular quality, or timber, of vowel sounds depends on the volume and shape of the mouth-resonator, as well as on the shape and size of the opening of the resonator. The mouth-resonator is changed by the movements of the tongue and the lips. If the lips are rounded, the increase the volume of the mouth-resonator. The opening of the mouth resonator is formed either by the lips when they are neutral or rounded and protruded or by the teeth when the lips are spread.

A consonantis a sound in the production of which an obstruction is formed in the mouth by the active organs of articulation. The organs of speech are tense at the place of obstruction, the stream of air is strong, especially in the articulation of voiceless consonants, as in [t], [p], for example.

The particular quality of consonant sounds depends on the kind of “noise” that results when the tongue, or the lips, or the uvula obstruct the air-passage.

Consonants are subdivided into noise consonantsand sonorous consonants,or sonorants.

An obstruction is formed in the articulation of sonorants as well, but the air passage is wider than in the formation of noise consonants. This results in very little friction produced by the rather weak stream of air. That is why in the production of sonorants tone prevails over noise, whereas in all the other consonants (both voiced and voiceless) noise prevails over tone.

Questions for self-control:

1. What is the phonemic system of the language based on?

2. What is the principle difference between paradigmatic and syntagmatic approaches?

3. What other factors influence the phonological system of the language?

4. What does the phonetic structure of the language include?