LESSON I
I. The Organs of Speech
The organs of speech are the parts of the body that are used to produce the sounds of speech. Study the chart below.
DIAGRAM OF THE ORGANS OF SPEECH
28The sounds of any language are produced by air which comes from the lungs into the throat and then passes through the mouth or the nose. Contraction of the lungs expels the air. The other organs of speech modify this stream of air in order to produce sounds. The organs of speech are as follows:
1. Movable Speech Organs
Lungs (L in the diagram)
Contraction of the lungs expels air.
Vocal Cords (VC in the diagram)
The vocal cords are in the throat. They consist of two membranous cords similar to the lips. During breathing and during the production of voiceless sounds p, t, th, tr‚ ch, k, ph, x‚ s, kh, and h, the vocal cords are apart or open.
Place your hands over your ears and pronounce the sounds p, t, th, tr, ch, k, ph‚ x, s, kh, and h. Notice that the vocal cords do not vibrate.
During voicing, the vocal cords vibrate rapidly. Their vibrations make voicing. Pronounce the following voiced sounds: đ v‚g‚l‚ m‚ n‚ nh‚ ng‚ r‚a‚ i‚ u‚ and notice how the vocal cords vibrate.
During a whisper the back part of the vocal cords remains open, but the front part is frequently closed. Do not whisper when practicing pronunciation, even by yourself, since it is difficult to distinguish voiceless and voiced sounds.
Lower Jaw (J in the diagram)
The lower jaw moves up and down, thus decreasing and increasing the size of the mouth cavity (M in the diagram).
Tongue (tongue in the diagram)
a. The tip of the tongue (tt in the diagram) may turn up and back in the mouth as in r sounds.29
b. The front of the tongue (ft in the diagram) is the flat part of the tongue just behind the tip. It may touch the back of the front teeth as in the sound t or it may form a small groove as in the sound s.
c. The middle of the tongue (mt in the diagram) may be raised as in i‚ or it may touch the top of the mouth as in ch.
d. The movement of the back of the tongue (bt in the diagram) is similar to the movement of the middle of the tongue. It may be raised as in u, or it may touch the back of the mouth as in k.
Lips (l in the diagram)
The lips may close as in the sound p; they may form a rounded opening as in the sound u, or an unrounded opening is in the sound ư.
Velum (v in the diagram)
The velum may be lowered so that the air passes through the nose (N in the diagram) as in m; or it may be raised in order to close the nasal passage (np in the diagram) as in b.
Glottis (g in the diagram)
The glottis is the opening and closing mechanism in the throat. It is where the h is normally pronounced.
2. Immovable Speech Organs
Teeth (t in the diagram)
The teeth often affect the position of the tip of the tongue or the lower jaw.
Alveo-dental Point (a in the diagram)
The alveo-dental point is the upper gum. Both the alveo-dental point and the back part of the front teeth are touched by the tip of the tongue in pronouncing the Vietnamese t‚ th, đ‚ n‚ l‚ and x.30
Alveo-palatal Point (ap in the diagram)
The alveo-palatal point is between the alveo-dental point and the palatal point. The sounds produced at this point, namely tr, s, r, are at the same time retroflexed, that is, the tip of the tongue is curved back.
Hard Palate (p in the diagram)
The hard palate is the upper middle part of the mouth. It is used in the production of many sounds in Vietnamese. (See Consonant Chart below).
II. Consonant Contrasts
Listen carefully to the following contrast:
| 1. | ta | we (inclusive) |
| 2. | tha | to forgive |
Keeping in mind that accurate recognition precedes accurate production, listen to and identify the following words by the number:
| 1. | ty | service | to | big | tô | bowl |
| 2. | thi | examination | đo | to measure | trô | to protrude |
| 1. | ba | three | tro | ash | chê | to belittle |
| 2. | đa | excessive | cho | to give | kê | to wedge up |
| 1. | thu | autumn | ta | we | tri | to know |
| 2. | chu | to protrude | cha | father | chi | section |
| 1. | tra | to interrogate | đi | to go | tre | bamboo |
| 2. | tha | to forgive | ti | section, office | che | to hide |
| 1. | pha | to mix | phu | husband | xa | far |
| 2. | xa | far | xu | cent | sa | to fall down |
| 1. | khi | when | kho | warehouse | ghe | boat |
| 2. | ghi | to record | ho | cough | khe | crack31 |
| 1. | ni | measure | no | full | ngu | stupid |
| 2. | nghi | to doubt | nho | grapes | nhu | to be soft |
| 1. | la | to scream | nghi | to doubt | Nga | Russia |
| 2. | nha | directorate | nhi | infant | nha | directorate |
| 1. | qua | to cross | ra | to go out | khi | when |
| 2. | ca | to sing | da | skin | di | to move |
III. Consonant Formation in General1
Pronounce a-a-a-a continuously with alternate loud and soft sections. Observe the movement of the lungs caused by the pulse of the chest or the abdominal muscles. Each such pulse is called a syllable.
Repeat the word pha, pha, pha, ‘to mix’, and concentrate on whether there is any obstruction in the stream of air coming from the lungs. The sound ph is a partial obstruction.
Repeat the words đi ghe, đi ghe, đi ghe, ‘to go by boat’, and notice which sounds obstruct the stream of air from the lungs. The sound đ is a complete obstruction, whereas the sound gh is a partial obstruction.
In Vietnamese, whenever there is a vowel or a diphthong, there is a syllable. Vowels and diphthongs are more prominent than consonants; they are syllabic sounds. In the formation of vowel sounds, there is no audible friction in the mouth. Prominence in syllables and absence of friction distinguish vowel sounds from consonant sounds.
In the production of the majority of Vietnamese consonants, the stream of air from the lungs is obstructed by the organs of speech in the mouth and nose. In some consonants the air is interrupted completely. In others it is obstructed so that friction occurs in the mouth. In others it is forced over the sides of the 32tongue. Consonants are obstructions of the air stream. They are less prominent in syllables than vowels; they are non-syllabic in Vietnamese.
Take a look at the Consonant Chart again (below). In this chart all the consonants of Vietnamese are arranged according to the point and manner of articulation. Actual Vietnamese spelling is used in the chart whenever possible.
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IV. Stops and Continuants
As explained above, consonants are produced by the interruption of the air stream in different manners. The consonants in which the air stream is completely interrupted are called Stops. The sounds in which the air stream continues to flow out of the mouth or nose are called Continuants. All vowels are continuants. All consonants other than stops are continuants.
Listen as your instructor pronounces words at random from the following two groups of words. Identify the consonants as to Stops or Continuants.
| Group 1 (Stops) | |||||
| ba | three | ta | we (inclusive) | tha | to forgive |
| đa | omni- | tra | to interrogate | ||
| cha | father | ca | to sing | ||
| Group 2 (Continuants) | |||||
| pha | to mix | va | to bump into | xa | far |
| sa | to fall down | khi | when | ga | train station |
| la | to scream | ma | ghost | no | full (not hungry) |
| nha | directorate | nghi | to doubt | ra | to exit |
| hoa | flower | da | skin | ||
Consonants which are continuants are of several different types. Following is a description of those which occur in Vietnamese.
1. Fricatives
Consonants which are produced with audible friction in the mouth or throat are called Fricatives. Pronounce the following words and notice the frictional noise of the initial consonants:
| phi | to fly | vô4 | to enter | xe | vehicle34 |
| sen | lotus | khu | region | ghe | boat |
| hên | lucky |
2. Nasals
Consonants in which the air stream passes through the nose are called Nasals. Pronounce the following words and notice the air coming out of the nose:
| mang | to bear | nam | south | nhung | velvet |
| nghe | to hear |
3. Lateral
In the consonant l the air stream comes out of the mouth over the sides of the tongue. This is called a Lateral consonant. Pronounce the following words:
| ly | glass | lên | to go up | lu | jar |
4. Trill5
In some Southern regions the r sound is pronounced when the tip of the tongue alternates very quickly between touching and not touching the palate. This sound is called a Trill. Pronounce the following words and listen to the consonant r:
| ra | to go out | ru | to lull | run | to tremble |
5. Semi-Consonants
The initial semi-consonants /w/6 and /j/6 are formed like vowels. During the pronunciation of these sounds there is no obstruction of the air stream. These vowel-like sounds glide from a consonant position to the vowel which follows them. That is why they are 35called Semi-consonants. Pronounce the following words and notice the semi-consonants:
| oai | imposing | da | skin |
| oanh | rumble | dung | to tolerate |
| oan | condemned unjustly | di | to move |
1 This is a general introductory presentation of the consonants. Mastery of the consonants and their formation is not the purpose of this lesson. Each consonant problem is presented and practiced in other lessons. This introductory section can serve as a reference in the description of individual consonants later. Do not give too much emphasis to this section in any one class.
2 This phonemic symbol is spelled o, u in written Vietnamese.
3 This phonemic symbol is spelled d, gi in written Vietnamese.
4 In some southern regions this fricative has changed to a semi-consonant (an English y-type sound).
5 In some southern regions, this r is pronounced like the middle consonant in the English word ‘measure’.
6 The slash marks / / indicate that this phonemic symbol does not occur in written Vietnamese.