Distinguishing between tense and lax phonation in four minority languages of China

Abstract

The terms “tense” and “lax” have been applied to a number of different distinctions between vowel sets depending on the language(s) being discussed. Linguists working on Southeast Asian languages have used these terms to discuss phonological contrasts whose main component we can show to be one of phonation type. Aerodynamic and acoustic data were collected on four languages spoken in southwestern China—Jing‐pho, Hani, Yi, and Wa. Vowel quality and duration and some properties of adjacent consonants were involved in the distinction in some of these languages, but not in a consistent way. However, oral airflow is greater for the “lax” vowels, particularly when considered in relation to the subglottal pressure (inferred from measurements of the oral pressure in voiceless bilabial stops preceding the vowel). Also the fundamental has greater amplitude relative to the second harmonic in “lax” vowels than in “tense” vowels. The agreement between these two measures confirms that the contrast is one of phonation type. [Work supported by NINCDS.]