Voiced epiglottal tap

Voiced Epiglottal Tap

The voiced epiglottal tap or voiced epiglottal plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) that represents this sound is ⟨ʡ⟩. This sound is particularly rare and is found in only a few languages worldwide. It involves the epiglottis striking the back of the tongue in a tapping motion, which is a unique articulation among consonants.

Articulation

The voiced epiglottal tap is produced by briefly obstructing the airflow in the vocal tract. To articulate this sound, the epiglottis is brought into contact with the back of the tongue, creating a brief tap. This is different from the more common epiglottal trill, which involves a vibration of the epiglottis.

Characteristics

• Voicing: Voiced
• Place of articulation: Epiglottal, which means it is articulated with the epiglottis against the back of the tongue.
• Manner of articulation: Tap or flap, which means it is produced with a single contraction of the muscles so that one articulator (the epiglottis) is thrown against another.

Occurrence

The voiced epiglottal tap is a rare phoneme. It is found in languages such as Agul, spoken in Dagestan, Russia, and in some varieties of Abkhaz. The scarcity of this sound across languages can be attributed to the complex articulatory mechanism involved in its production.

Phonetic Notation

In the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), the voiced epiglottal tap is represented by the symbol ⟨ʡ⟩. This notation helps linguists and language learners alike to identify and study this unique sound.

See also

• Epiglottal trill
• International Phonetic Alphabet
• List of phonetics topics