• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.195-203
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• 2014

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of phonation types ([+/- aspirated], [+/- fortis]) on aerodynamic measures with Korean bilabial stops. Sixty-three healthy young adults (30 males, 33 females) participated to evaluate the VOEF (Voicing Efficiency) tasks with bilabial stop consonants /$p^h$/, /p/, /p'/ using Phonatory Aerodynamic System (PAS) Model 6600 (Kay PENTAX Corp, Lincoln Park, NJ). All VOEF measures were significantly influenced by phonation types except RANP(pitch range)(p <.01). For sound pressure, maximum SPL, mean SPL, and Mean SPL during Voicing have been shown to be significantly greatest in fortis stop /p'/ than aspirated /$p^h$/ and lenis stop /p/ (p<.001). On the other hand, mean pitch after lenis stop was significantly lower than after aspirated and fortis stops (p<.001). Peak expiratory airflow, Target airflow, and FVC (Expiratory volume) were significantly lowest in fortis stop /p'/ which might be associated with higher aerodynamic resistance while peak air pressure and mean peak air pressure during closure were significantly lower in lenis stop /p/. Additionally, AEFF (Aerodynamic efficiency) was significantly higher in fortis stop /p'/ than lenis stop /p/ as well as aspirated stop /$p^h$/ (p<.001). Thus, sound pressure, airflow parameters, and aerodynamic resistance made crucial roles in distinguishing fortis /p'/ from lenis stop /p/ and aspirated. Additionally, pitch and subglottal air pressure parameters were important aerodynamic characteristics in distinguishing lenis /p/ from fortis /p'/ and aspirated /$p^h$/. Therefore, accurate aspirated /p/ stop consonant should be elicited when collecting the airflow, intraoral pressure related data with patients with voice disorders in order to enhance the reliability and relevance or validity of aerodynamic measures using PAS.

• MALSORI
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• no.53
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• pp.17-35
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• 2005

A New Method of Extracting the Filter Characteristics of the Nasal Cavity Using Homorganic Nasal-Stop Sequences: A Preliminary R eportHansang ParkThis study provides a new method of extracting the filter characteristics of the nasal cavity. Korean lenis stops are realized as voiced in the homorganic nasal-lenis stop sequences between vowels. Since the only difference between the two members of the homorganic nasal- lenis stop sequences, such as [mb], [nd], and [ g], is whether the passage to the nasal cavity is open or not, the subtraction of the LPC spectrum of the voiced stop from that of the preceding nasal leads to the filter characteristics of the nasal cavity of an individual speaker regardless of place of articulation. The results suggest that various attempts should be made to extract a robust filter characteristics of the nasal cavity by giving variation to LPC coefficients and by paying particular attention to speech samples. This study is significant in that it provides a preliminary report about a new method of extracting the filter characteristics of the nasal cavity.

• Speech Sciences
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.223-232
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• 2004

This study investigated and compared the acoustic characteristics of the Korean stop sound [k'] in three different phonological environments: the tensified lenis stop [k'] as observed in /prek+kaci/, the fortis stop /k'/ as in /pre+k'aci/, and the fortis stop /k'/ following an obstruent as in /prek+k'aci/. The specific research question was whether or not the tensified lenis stop shares all the acoustic features with the other two kinds of fortis stops. The acoustic measures adopted in this study were H1*-H2*, VOT, length of stop closure, and $F_0$. The major findings were that the three stops showed no significant difference in all the acoustic measures except the length of stop closure. The fortis stop /k'/ following an obstruent showed significantly longer duration of stop closure than the other two stops, both of which showed no significant difference. Based on these phonetic results, this study argued that, for the proper phonological description of post-obstruent tensification, the phonological feature [slack vocal folds] of a lenis stop should be changed into [stiff vocal folds, constricted glottis] that the fortis stops should have.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.67-75
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• 2011

In Korean, 'Aspiration Merger' is the result of the heteromorphemic sequence of lenis stop and /h/ becoming a single aspirated stop word-medially. However, the contrast between lenis stop-plus-/h/ and an underlying aspirated stop is maintained when they span Phonological Phrase boundaries. By varying the position in the prosodic domain such as APP (Across Phonological Phrase) and PPM (Phonological Phrase Medial) positions, the phonetic properties of the two categories are compared. In the results from noise duration and change of intensity, lenis stop-plus-/h/ show a large difference between the APP and PPM positions. The results from a noise duration comparison show that the two categories are completely neutralized into aspirated stop in the PPM position and the complete neutralization is sensitive to prosodic phrasing.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.57-61
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• 2020

Previous research has indicated that the patterns of phonetic modulations induced by prominence are not consistent across languages but are conditioned by sound systems specific to a given language. Most studies examining the prominence effects in Korean have been restricted to segments in word-initial and phrase-initial positions. The present study, thus, set out to explore the prominence effects for Korean stop consonants in word-medial intervocalic positions. A total of 16 speakers of Seoul Korean (8 males, 8 females) produced word-medial intervocalic lenis and aspirated stops with and without prominence. The prominence was induced by contrast focus on the phonation-type contrast, that is, lenis vs. aspirated stops. Our results showed that F0 of vowels following both lenis and aspirated stops became higher when the target stops received focus than when they did not, whereas voice onset time (VOT) and voicing during stop closure for both lenis and aspirated stops did not differ between the focus and no-focus conditions. The findings add to our understanding of diverse patterns of prominence-induced strengthening on the acoustic realizations of segments.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.17-24
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• 2024

The Korean three-way stop contrast (lenis, aspirated, fortis) is currently undergoing a sound change, such that the primary cue distinguishing lenis and aspirated stops is shifting from voice onset time (VOT) to F0. Despite recent discussions of this shift, research on voice quality, traditionally considered an additional cue signaling the contrast, remains sparse. This study investigated the extent to which the associated voice quality [as reflected in the acoustic measurements of H1^*-H2^*, H1^*- A1^*, and cepstral peak prominence (CPP)] contributes to the three-way stop contrast, and how the realization is conditioned by prominence- vs. boundary-induced prosodic strengthening amid the ongoing sound change. Results for 12 native Korean speakers indicate that there was a substantial distinction in voice quality among the three stop categories with the breathiness of the vowel being the greatest after the lenis, intermediate after the aspirated, and least after the fortis stops, indicating the role of voice quality in the maintenance of the three-way stop contrast. Furthermore, prosodic strengthening has different effects on the contrast and contributes to the enhancement of the phonological contrast contingent on whether it is induced by prominence or boundary.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Laryngology, Phoniatrics and Logopedics
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.18-26
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• 1997

There are two types of phonetic study, acoustic and physiologic, for differentiating the three manner categories of Korean stop consonants. On the physiologic studies, there are endoscopic, electromyographic(EMG), electroglottographic(EGG) and aerodynamic studies. In this study, I tried to investigate general features of Korean stops using EGG study for the open quotient of vocal fold and baseline shift during speech, and aerodynamic characteristics for e subglottal air pressure, air flow and glottal resistance at consonants. On the aerodynamic study, the glottalized and aspirated stops may be characterized by e increasing subglottal pressure comparing with lenis stop at consonants. The airflow is largest in the aspirated stops followed by lenis stops and glottalized. The glottal airway resistance (GAR) showed highest in the glottalized followed by the lenis, but lowest in e aspirated during e production of consonants, and showed highest in e aspirated, but low in the glottalized and lenis during the production of vowel. The glottal resistance at consonant showed significant difference among consonants and significant interaction between subject and types of consonant. The glottal resistance at vowel showed significant difference among consonants, and e interaction occured between subject and types of consonant. The electroglottography(EGG) has been used for investigating e functioning of e vocal folds during its vibration. The EGG should be related to the patterns of the vocal fold vibration during phonation in characterizing the temporal patterns of each vibratory cycle. The purpose of this study is to investigate the dynamic change of EGG waveforms during continuous speech. The dynamic changes of EGG waveforms fir the three-way distinction of Korean stops were characterized that the aspirated stop appears to be characterized by largest open quotient and smallest glottal contact area of the vocal folds in e initial portion of vocal fold vibration ; the lenis stop by moderate open quotient and glottal contact area ; but the glottalized stop by smallest open quotient and largest glottal contact area. There may be close relationship between the OQ(open quotient) in the initial voice onset and the glottal width at the time of consonant production, the larger glottal width just before vocal fold vibration results in the smaller OQ of the vocal fold vibration in the initial voice onset. The EGG changes of baseline shift during continuous speech production were characterized by the different patterns for the three types of Korean consonants. The small and less stiffness change of baseline shift was found for the lenis and the glottalized, and the largest and stiffest change was found for the aspirated. On the baseline shift for the initial voice onset, they showed so similar patterns with for the consonant production, larger changed in the aspirated. for the lenis and the glottalized during the initial voice onset, three subjects showed individual difference each other. I suggest at s characteristics were strongly related with articulatory activity of vocal tract for the production of consonant, especially for the aspirated stop. The suspecting factors to affect EGG waveforms are glottal width, vertical laryngeal movement and the intrapharyngeal pressure to neighboring tissue during connected spech. So the EGG may be an useful method to describe laryngeal activity to classify pulsing conditions of the larynx during speech production, and EGG research can be controls for monitoring the vocal tract articulation, although above factors to affect EGG would have played such a potentially role on vocal fold vibratory behavior obtained using consonant production.

• Speech Sciences
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.281-285
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• 2003

An EPG study was conducted to examine the place of articulation of Korean lenis affricate /c/. Results indicated that the place of articulation of the stop portion /t/ of /c/ was shifted to the place of articulation of the fricative portion /s/ of /c/. Also, we found that the shifting in the place of articulation occurred because of the gap of the place of articulation between /t/ and /s/ (two portions of /c/). From this study, we proposed that the /e/ is articulated at the same place of articulation of /s/ both for its stop portion and its fricative portion. Also, we observed that the place of articulation of /t/ is articulated farther front than that of /s/ and /c/.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.1 no.3
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• pp.39-48
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• 2009

Previous studies on the effects of speaking rate on voice onset time (VOT) of stops in English, French, Icelandic, and Thai indicate that speaking rate asymmetrically affects VOT values. That is, pre-voiced and long-lag stops vary due to the rate factor more than short-lag stops do. One suggested explanation for this asymmetry is that it is due to the necessity of maintaining phonetic contrasts among the stop categories. Since pre-voiced and long-lag stops represent the ends of the VOT scale, they encompass broad swathes of that range and consequently allow for large variations. On the other hand, the VOT variations of short-lag stops may result in overlap with the VOTs of long-lag stops. This study aimed to explore the effects of speaking rate on the VOTs of Korean stops and see whether Korean fortis and lenis stops are limited in the degrees of variation as a function of rates due to the existence of stops with larger VOT values, lenis and aspirated stops respectively. Conversely, aspirated stops were expected to show more variation since there are no other categories with longer VOTs. Fortis, lenis, and aspirated stops in /CVn/ words (C = bilabial or velar stop, V = /i/ or /a/) were examined in isolation, and at normal and fast rates in a carrier sentence. Speaking rates were controlled by alternating words or sentences on a computer screen at intervals of two seconds for the isolation- and normal-rate conditions and one second for the fast-rate condition. This study found that while the VOTs of fortis stops did not change significantly, those of lenis and aspirated stops showed considerable changes as a function of speaking rates. Also, overlap between lenis and aspirated stops occurred considerably at all speaking rates. These phenomena were interpreted to relate to the fact that VOT contrasts between lenis and aspirated stops in Korean are currently being collapsed. Large variations of lenis stops as a function of rates seem to occur due to a weak motivation to limit the degree of variations for the purpose of maintaining phonetic contrasts. The significant overlap between lenis and aspirated stops at all rates was interpreted to occur because the VOT merger between the two categories became considerably fixed. Also the percentage of correctly-classified VOTs by optimal-boundary values between lenis and aspirated stops turned out to be lower than in previously-studied languages. This was interpreted to be further evidence that VOTs are losing their role in contrasting the two stop categories in Korean.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.25-36
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• 2016

Previous studies showed that the voice onset time (VOT) of aspirated and lenis stops has been merged, and post-stop fundamental frequency (F0) has emerged as a primary cue to distinguish the two stops in the younger generation and female speech. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that VOT merger in aspirated and lenis stops occurs after an F0 difference between the two stops becomes stabilized. In other words, unless post-stop F0, which is a redundant feature, is fully developed, it is hard for VOT merger to happen. Females have got a stable F0 difference in stops earlier than males. Therefore, VOT merger could happen, and as a result, females could take the lead in changing from VOT to F0 in initial stops. This study also shows that speakers who acquired F0 as a primary cue use F0 to the full to distinguish lenis stops from two other stops (aspirated and fortis).