Lesson 2 Speech Organs
Completion requirements
Speech Organs (Articulators)
◦The hard Palate:
this is also called “the roof of the mouth”, and is the hard portion of the roof of the mouth.
◦The Alveolar Ridge:
is the short distance between the area of the upper front teeth and the hard
palate.
◦Velum or Soft Palate:
this represents the soft portion of the roof of the mouth, lying behind the
hard palate. The velum can be seen in
two positions:
◦Lowered,
it creates an opening which allows the air to escape out through the nose
(nasal cavity);
◦Raised:
that opening is blocked so that no air can flow through the nose, and thus, the
only way to pass is through the mouth.
◦The Tongue:
this
can move and take different shapes and positions: it is divided into different
parts, namely, the Tip, the Blade, the Front, the Back and the Root, all of
which are moveable parts.
◦The Lips:
Are
very necessary in the production of speech sounds. They can be:
◦Pressed together, to get /p/, /b/
◦In
contact with the upper teeth to get
/f/, /v/
◦Rounded, to produce vowels like /u:/
◦Spread, to produce /i:/
◦The Larynx:
Is situated at the end of the wind pipe. It is very complex articulator having
the vocal folds
inside.
◦The Vocal Folds/Cords:
The vocal folds are folds of tissue stretched across the airway to the lungs.
They can vibrate against each other
◦The Glottis:
This represents the opening
between the vocal cords. Glottal sounds are sounds which are made in the larynx
through the closure or narrowing of the glottis like /h/.
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