In English our only velar sounds are [k], [g], and [ŋ]--all stops. However, it is also possible to produce fricatives at the same place of articulation. Try for yourself to extend [k] into a continous voiceless fricative.
The IPA symbol for a voiceless velar fricative is a small-case 'x', like this: [x]. It is pronounced as in the recording below.
[ax]
This is the sound in the German pronunciation of 'Bach' (which English speakers sometimes pronounce as in German, i.e. [bax], though English speakers also often pronounce 'Bach' instead as [bak]). The voiceless velar [x] also occurs in Scottish words, e.g. in 'loch Lomand'.
Note: Many languages also make a voiced velar fricative (i.e. the fricative counterpart of the voiced stop [g]). This voiced velar fricative is symbolized in the IPA by the Greek letter gamma: [ɣ].
Why would many English speakers pronounce 'Bach' with a [k] ? [click here for answer 9]
[Link : Velar Fricatives in Greek]
Try making a voiced fricative using just your lips. That is, put your two lips close together and constrict the airflow as you push it through continuously with friction. It you vibrate your vocal folds as you do this, you will make a sound similar to the one in the example below.
[βa]
As indicated in the transcription immediately above, the voiced velar fricative is symbolized as [β] in the IPA. Because the articulation is very similar to [v] (except that [β] uses both lips, rather than lips and teeth), it can be hard to tell [v] and [β] apart; this is one case where it can be very useful to watch speakers when transcribing, since you can easily tell by looking at the speaker's lips which sound they are making.
The voiced bilabial [β] occurs in a number of languages. For example, in many dialects of Spanish the word 'Cuba' is pronounced with this sound, rather than a [b].
Many languages also have a voiceless bilabial fricative. The voiceless fricative sounds something like the sound we make when we blow air through our lips, and it is symbolized like this: [ɸ].
[Link : Bilabial Fricatives in Ewe]
To practice the next sound, please start by making the voiceless alveo-palatal fricative [ʃ]. If you make the articulation of your fricative somewhat further back, so that you are creating friction right on the palate (roof of your mouth), you will create what is called a palatal fricative. Try now to make this voiceless palatal frictiave now.
If you have done it correctly, it will sound like the fricative in German 'ich', as in the example below.
'ich' [ɪç]
The voiceless palatal fricative also occurs as a distinctive sound in Chinese, and a number of other languages. Some languages also include a voiced version of the palatal fricative, which is symbolized like this in the IPA: [ʝ].
In German, [ç] only appears beside a front vowel. What does this suggest about the status of [ç] in the language? [click here for answer 10]
[Link : Greek Fricatives (again)]
Try making an [l], and then stopping your vocal fold vibration. The change results in a very different-sounding consonant, closer in acoustic quality to an [s] or a [ʃ] than the sonorant voiced [l]. The standard IPA symbol for this voiceless sound is an l with a kind of looped line through it, like this: ɬ].
This voiceless [l] sound is called a 'voiceless lateral fricative'. It occurs in many languages, including Welsh (where is spelled with a double-l, so that e.g. the name Llewellyn contains two voiceless lateral fricatives).
Why does the IPA introduce a special symbol for this sound, when you could just write 'll' (as in Welsh) or 'lh' (as some other languages also write), for a voiceless lateral fricative). [click here for answer 11]
[Link
: Laterals in Toda on this page]
Say again the sound [q] (the voiceless uvular stop). Now, instead of simply stopping the airflow at this place (i.e. the uvula), try making a voiceless fricative at your uvula.
The sound you just made, or attempted to make, is a distinctive sound in many languages. The IPA symbol is a large X with one line curved, like this: [χ]. (Some languages also have a voiced version of the same sound, which is symbolized with an upside-down capital 'R', like this: [ʁ]).
What's the difference between a [x] and a [χ]? [click here for answer 12]