VOT in cross language and comparative phonetics

Abstract

Since the earliest introduction of the concept of voice onset time to describe laryngeal timing in stop consonants (Lisker and Abramson, 1964), this measure has been used as a tool for discussing phonetic similarities and differences among languages. The distinction between broad categories of leading, aligned, or lagging voice onset in relation to oral release is useful across many languages. There are also more subtle effects on VOT duration, such as some concerning major consonant places of articulation and following vowel contexts which have proved to be repeated across languages. Combining these regularities allows relatively precise prediction of VOT in timing models. The VOT concept has also been extended to discussion of certain less-common classes of segments such as ejective stops, as well as to fricatives and affricates. The latter case raises interesting questions of distinguishing between frication noise and aspiration noise, and of what to take as the consonant’s release. How best to characterize laryngeal timing around the release of segments not followed by a vowel or voiced sonorant will also be considered.