Lecture 3. Articulation Basis

The study of the identical sounds in different languages demonstrates that they are pronounced according to the different techniques, characteristic only of these languages. In other words, in every language there are distinguished some characteristic articulatory tendencies which determine position and movement of the articulators. These tendencies form articulation basis of the language.

The term articulation basis was first introduced in 1906 by an outstanding British phonetician H.A. Sweet and was later given rise to the development of foreign language teaching in view of Teaching Foreign Pronunciation. In the broadest sense, articulation basis is viewed as a unit of general traditionally established in the language tendencies in position and movement of the articulators at the moment of speaking and at rest. These tendencies are characteristic of all speakers of the language and basis of all or a larger part of articulatory gestures.

In the history of Linguistics there was a period when articulation basis was viewed as a man’s inherited property dependent on his nationality. Anthropologists however proved that there is no fundamental difference in mechanism of the articulators of people of different nationalities. Moreover, they stated that a man masters the language of the social environment he was taught to speak in, regardless his origin. In later periods, articulation basis was not associated with the mechanisms of the articulators but with the peculiarities of the phonological system of the language.

Articulation basis of non-sister languages, as a rule, vary enormously, that is why it is necessary for all learners of foreign languages to know peculiarities of articulation bases not only of the mother tongue but the target language as well in order to bring their speech more in line with Received Pronunciation Standards.

It is common knowledge that interference of the mother tongue is revealed at all levels of the phonetic system and touches upon such components as syllable, stress and intonation. Therefore some linguists introduce a broader term of phonetic basis which includes the prosodic basis along with the articulation basis. Phonetic basis is understood as a complex of pronunciation tendencies more frequently occurred in speech and perceived as a general “colouring”. Articulation basis in this case is a part of phonetic basis. There are distinguished two aspects of articulation basis: staticand dynamic.

The static aspect of articulation basis represents the working position of the main organs of speech; it is articulatory setting, i.e. habitual and constant position of the articulators kept at the moment of speaking and at rest. Articulatory position represents the position of speech organs which provides the fastest and the most natural accomplishment of certain articulatory gestures.

The dynamic aspect of articulation basis is revealed in a specific character of changing sounds within one syllable and at syllable (word) junctures.