labial (adj./n.)

A general term in the PHONETIC classification of speech sounds on the basis of their PLACE OF ARTICULATION: it refers to active use of one lip (as in LABIO-DENTAL sounds, such as [f]) or both lips (as in BILABIAL CONSONANTS, such as [b], or ROUNDED VOWELS, such as [u]). In an empty sense, all ORAL sounds are labial, in that the airflow has to pass through the lips: the important qualification in the above definition is that the lips are actively involved. From a position of rest, there must be a marked movement to qualify as a labial sound (‘a labial’), and it is lip-rounding which is the most common and noticeable feature.

Similarly, labialization is a general term referring to a SECONDARY ARTICULATION involving any noticeable lip-rounding, as in the initial [k] of coop, or sh- of shoe, which are here labialized, because of the influence of the labialization in the following vowel [u]. Labialization is applied both to cases where the lip-rounding is an essential feature of a sound’s identity, as in [u], and to cases where the lip-rounding is found only in specific contexts, as in the [k] example above – in kill, there is no labialization. The DIACRITIC for labialization is [w], underneath the main symbol, but a raised [^w] is often used. The term has developed a special status in phonological theory, especially in various NON-LINEAR models. For example, in ARTICULATOR-BASED FEATURE THEORY, it refers to a single-valued NODE involving the lips as an active articulator. In CONSTRICTION-based models, it is defined as a constriction formed by the lower lip.

مواضيع ذات صلة

Phonetic Transcription

Phonetics

Word sharing and dialects: Dialects generally borrow from dialects

Dialects—Where Do You Draw the Line?

The standard

Koinés

Externally motivated change

Chain shifts

Changes to make life easier

Systemic changes

Weakening of intervocalic unvoiced stops

Simplification of consonant clusters