PROSODIC FEATURES

PROSODIC FEATURES

1. Length

   • In speech sounds is the duration;using length marks: ([:] or [:]), [.] (or [·]).
     • can be transcribed by doubling of letters (for simple long vs short duration)
       • There is also a diacritic for "extra short" sounds.Eg Luganda [\kkúlà] `treasure' vs. [kúlà] `grow up', Italian nonno [nonn] `grandfather' vs. nono [non] `
     • Avoid confusing phonetic duration with phonological length (e.g. long vs. short vowels and consonants).
       • Many durational differences in English are purely allophonic.
         • Note that the duration of the short vowel /a/ can easily exceed that of the long vowel /i:/ because more open vowels have a longer duration in English than closer vowels.

2. Stress

   • Is used in reference to the degree of prominence of individual syllables of single words (lexical stress).
     • Symbols for primary stress ['] and secondary stress [] may be placed before vowels.or equally well at the beginning of each syllable.Eg elephant ['elIfnt], elephantine [elIf'antIn].
       • Stressed :[ tu Im], [ tu ] unstressed :"to him" "to her" vs Unstressed: [t hIm] ,[t h ] Stressed "to him" "to her"

3. Pitch

   • Refers to the perception of relative frecuency (eg perceptually high pitched or low pitched)
     • Eg, In children the larynx is small, the shorter vocal cords vibrate faster, the pitch is higher. In adults the longer vocal cords vibrate more slowly and the spitch is lower.
   • Tone
     • Refers to significant (i.e. meaningful, constrastive, phonemic) constrasts between words signalled by pitch differences. Tone may be lexical, as in Mandarin Chinese:
       • TONE NUMBER: 1 DESCRIPTION: High level, TN: 2 D: high rising, TN: 3 D: low (falling+)rising , TN 4 high fall .
         • IPA transcription example Meaning [má]`mother', [m¯á] `hemp' ,[màá]`horse'
   • Intonation
     • refers to the rise and fall of voice pitch over entire phrases and sentences, even in non-tone languages, such as English.
       • At my lectures, they re always grumbling.