Article

Name: Ultrasound analysis of velar consonant articulation in the Yamal dialect of Tundra Nenets

Authors: M. K. Amelina, N. V. Makeeva

Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

In the section Фонетика

Abstract:

The place of constriction in the production of velar consonants is commonly believed to be determined by the quality of the following vowel. Typically, only two constriction locations are distinguished, corresponding to front versus non-front vowel contexts. This phenomenon has been described using very limited data, necessitating further investigation through enlarging the empirical base. The present study examines velar–vowel coarticulation in Tundra Nenets using ultrasound tongue imaging. The articulation of two word-initial velar consonants, /ŋ/ and /x/, is analyzed in the context of nine vowels. The dataset comprises 629 consonant productions elicited from two speakers using a set of 80 carrier words. Three articulatory parameters are statistically analyzed: curve degree, curve position, and radial distance to the furthest point of the tongue contour. The results are consistent with the prevailing typological trend and confirm the existence of two significantly distinct constriction locations corresponding to front and non-front vowel contexts. Variation within each group is not uniform across consonants, vowel contexts, or speakers. Coarticulatory effects are found to be most pronounced in the articulation of /x/ for both speakers. This finding is supported by visual inspection of averaged tongue contours, revealing articulatory strategy differences of the two speakers. A general tendency for /x/ to be highly sensitive to vowel context is observed. In contrast, /ŋ/ demonstrates a more stable articulatory realization. The hypothesis is that the pronounced coarticulatory effect seen in /x/ could be associated with its specific transparency in vowel harmony processes in Tundra Nenets.

Keywords: Tundra Nenets, the Yamal dialect, articulatory phonetics, ultrasound analysis, consonants, velar consonants, accommodation, coarticulation, assimilation

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