Glossogenetics

The study of the origins and the development of language is called glossogenetics. The term
comes from Greek words glossa (tongue) and genesis (origin). Glassogenetics focuses on the
biological basis of the development and functions of human language. There is a concentration
on the evolution of man and the evolution of organs such as lyrnx and vocal cords.

Organs of Speech

Organs of speech can be defined as any part of the body, as the tongue, diaphragm, or lungs
that particiipates actively or passively, voluntarily or involuntiraly, in the production of
speech. Speech organs can also be referred to as “The Articulators.”
Speech, according to one view, is only the secondary function of these organs, their primary
functions being chewing, smelling, tasting, breathing, and so on.
Groups of organs of speech

The organs of speech and their speech functions, can best be described under three systems:
respiratory system, the phonatory system, the articulatory system.

1. The Respiratory System Organs - lungs, chest muscles, wind pipe (trachea)

2. The Phonatory System Organs - larynx (Adam's apple)

3. The Articulatory System Organs - mouth, nose, teeth, tongue, lips

Speech is produced by bringing air from the lungs to the larynx (respiration), where the vocal
folds may be held open to allow the air to pass through or may vibrate to make a sound
(phonation). The airflow from the lungs is then shaped by the articulators in the mouth and
nose (articulation).
Respiratory System
In phonetics, the airstream mechanism is the method by which airflow is created in the vocal
tract. Along with phonation and articulation, it is one of three main components of speech
production.

The movement of the diaphgram expands the lungs sucking in air through the nasal and oral
cavities. The air travels through trachea, or the windpipe, to the lungs.

During speech, air is expelled from the lungs by the contraction of the diaphragm and other
respiratory muscles. This airflow is essential for generating sound.

Expiratory lung air - basis for speech sounds

the parts involved in the airstream mechanism:

 diaphgram
 lungs
 oral cavity
 nasal cavity
 trachea

Phonatory System
The phonatory system includes the larynx, vocal folds, and related muscles. Its main function
is to provide voice with the help of airstream coming from the respiratory system.

The larynx houses the vocal folds, which are two elastic bands of tissue. When air from the
respiratory system passes through the vocal folds, they vibrate, producing sound. The pitch and
loudness of the sound are controlled by the tension and position of the vocal folds.
Larynx
The larynx is known as the voice box.

The larynx is responsible for phonation— the production of the voice.

It is a box-like small structure situated in the front of the throat where there is a protuberance.

That how the larynx is popularly called the Adam's apple

Articulatory System
The articulatory system involves the movement and coordination of various speech organs.
Parts Of the Organs of Speech
The organs of speech are:

• Pharynx
• Lips
• Tongue
• Alveolar ridge
• Teeth
• Hard palate
• Velum (Soft Palate)
• Uvula
• Glottis

Articulators above the larynx

All the sounds we make when we speak are the result of muscles contracting. The muscles in
the chest that we use for breathing produce the flow of air that is needed for almost all
speech sounds; muscles in the larynx produce many different modifications in the flow of
air from the chest to the mouth. After passing through the larynx, the air goes through what
we call the vocal tract, which ends at the mouth and nostrils. Here the air from the lungs
escapes into the atmosphere. We have a large and complex set of muscles that can produce
changes in the shape of the vocal tract, and in order to learn how the sounds of speech are
produced it is necessary to become familiar with the different parts of the vocal tract.
These different parts are called articulators, and the study of them is called articulatory
phonetics.

Fig. 1 The articulators

Pharynx
The pharynx is a tube which begins just above the larynx. It is about 7 cm long in women and
about 8 cm in men, and at its top end it is divided into two, one part being the back of the
mouth and the other being the beginning of the way through the nasal cavity. If you look in
your mirror with your mouth open, you can see the back of the pharynx.
Velum
The velum or soft palate is seen in the diagram in a position that allows air to pass through the
nose and through the mouth. The other important thing about the velum is that it is one of the
articulators that can be touched by the tongue. When we make the sounds k and g the tongue
is in contact with the lower side of the velum, and these sounds are called velar
consonants/sounds.
Hard palate
The hard palate is often called the “roof of the mouth”. It is the concave part of the roof of the
mouth.
Alveolar ridge
The alveolar ridge is between the top front teeth and the hard palate. Its surface is really much
rougher than it feels, and is covered with little ridges. Sounds made with the tongue touching
here (such as t and d) are called alveolar sounds.
Tongue
The tongue is a very important articulator and it can be moved into many different places and

different shapes. It is usual to divide the tongue into different parts, though there are no clear
dividing lines within the tongue; tip, blade, front, back and root. The shape and the position of
the tongue are especially crucial for the production of vowel sounds.

Teeth
The teeth are also very much helpful in producing various speech sounds. The tongue is in
contact with the upper side teeth for many speech sounds. Sounds made with the tongue
touching the front teeth are called dental sounds.
 Lips
The lips are important in speech. They can be pressed together (when we produce the sounds
p, b) brought into contact with the teeth (as in f, v), or rounded to produce the lip-shape for
vowels like uù. Sounds in which the lips are in contact with each other are called bilabial
sounds, while those with lip-to-teeth contact are called labiodental sounds.

Active and Passive Articulators

The seven articulators described above are the main ones used in speech, but there are three
other things to remember.
Firstly, the larynx could also be described as an articulator - a very complex and
independent one. Secondly, the jaws some phoneticians consider the jaws as articulators,
since we move the lower jaw a lot at the time of speaking. But it should be noted that the jaws
are not articulators in the same way as the others. The main reason is that they are incapable
of making contact with other articulators by themselves
Finally, although there is practically nothing that we can do with the nose and the nasal
cavity, they are a very important part of our equipment for making sounds (what is
sometimes called our vocal apparatus), particularly nasal consonants such as m, n. Again,
we cannot really describe the nose and the nasal cavity as articulators.
Speech organs are not created solely (only) for speech; they have other function as well. The
nose and the mouth, for example are breath passages, the teeth and the tongue for chewing.
Most of Speech organs are in the Chest, throat and head. Speech organs are those organs that
take part in the speech act or speech process whether directly or indirectly.
Some organs are articulator such as (Lower Lip and five part of tongue):
1- Lower Lip
• Moves upward to touch the upper lip as in /b, p/
• or touch the upper teeth as in /f, v/
• takes part in rounding process with the upper lip as in /w/.
2- The Tongue
a. It located directly above the pharynx
b. It is a major speech organ.
c. One of the meaning of "tongue" is Language
d. The Tongue have five parts
1- The Apex
It's also called "Tongue tip.
It touches the alveolus as in / t /
Come between the upper and lower teeth as in / θ / think
Curves back as in the American / r /
2- The front
It is the part of the tongue between the apex and the middle of the tongue.
It touches or approaches the parallel part of the palate when producing
some sound like /y /.
3- The Center
Between the front of the tongue and the dorsum
4- The dorsum
Back of the tongue. It usually touches or approaches the back part of the palate, i.e., the velum
as with / k, g /.
5- The root /tongue back
The farthest part of the tongue.
It has a role in producing pharyngeal sound like /q/ in Arabic but it has no role in
English.
1- Apex
3- Center
4- Dorsum
5-Root
2- Front
Lower Lip
Some organs are Point of Articulator such as (the Upper lip, upper teeth, lower teeth,
alveolus, alveopalate, hard palate, velum and velum):
3- Upper Lip
4- Upper Teeth
The upper teeth are used more than the lower teeth as a point of articulation (POA)
5- Lower Teeth
The lower teeth co-operate with the upper teeth to make a point of articulation for sound
called interdentals such as / θ, ð / when the apex comes between the two sets of teeth.
6- The Alveolus (gum ridge) It is the area easily touched by the apex to produce several
sounds called alveolar such as / n,
I, s, z /
It also called the gum ridge or the alveolar ridge.
7- The Alveopalate
The front of the tongue may touch or approach this alveopalatal area to produce sound like
/cˇ, jˇ, sˇ, zˇ / which called alveopalatals.
8- The Palate
It consists of three parts
1- Hard Palate (called the Roof of the mouth), it touched or approached by the front of
the tongue to produce sound called palatals such as / y / as in yes.
2- Soft Palate or Velum: it touched or approached by the dorsum to produce sound calls
velars /k, g, ŋ/
3- Uvula if touched the dorsum to produce sound called uvular such as
Arabic / q /
Some organs are breath-stream (passages) such as (trachea, larynx, pharynx mouth and
nose):
9 - The Trachea
It is an air passage between the lungs and the larynx.
It also called "Windpipe"
10- The larynx
At the top end of the
trachea. It also called the
Voice Box. It consists of
four parts:
1. The Base
2. Adam’s Apples
3. Vocal Cords (Most essential organ in the Larynx)
4. The Glottis
Vocal Cords
a) Man's cords are longer and thicker than the women's.
b) Responsible for voice and voicelessness of speech sound.
c) If the vocal cords vibrate, the sound is Voiced
d) If the vocal cords not vibrate, the sound is Voiceless
• The Glottis
a) The glottis may have one of these positions:
1- Opening with voiceless sound e.g., /p/.
2- Narrowing /, with whispered sound.
3- Repeated opening and closing with voiced sound e.g., /b/.
4- Closing, with glottal sound, e.g., the Arabic hamza‫ء‬
11- The Pharynx or (Throat)
• Is a cavity between the larynx and the mouth.
• It is one of the resonance cavities.
13- The Cavities
There are four cavities or chambers related to the speech process:
1. The lung Cavity.
2. Pharyngeal Cavity.
3. Oral Cavity.
4. Nasal Cavity
Some organs are energy source
14- The Lungs
The Lungs are the source of energy, without which no speech can occur.
Some organs are merely auxiliary organs (the abdomen, diaphragm and chest muscles)
15- Abdominal Muscles
• Speech is essentially dependent on the inhalation and exhalation
• It is located below the Diaphragm.
16- The Diaphragm
The (most) speech usually happens during exhalation
Above the abdomen, and between it and the chest.
17- Chest Muscles
There is no speech without exhalation, the longer exhalation is, the longer speech continues.
Classification of Speech Organs
1. Articulator
It is a movable speech organ; it moves to touch or approach another static organ
The Articulator are the tongue and the lower lip.
2. Point Of Articulation (POA)
It is an immovable organ whose function is to receive the articulator such as (the upper lip,
upper
teeth, lower teeth, alveolus, alveopalate, hard palate, velum and uvula).
3. Stream source is the lung
lungs can be called energy source.
Vibrator
The only vibrator in the speech system is the vocal cords.
5- Auxiliary Organ do not directly take part in speech
Such as (abdominal muscles, diaphragm and chest muscles)
□ Nose, mouth and pharynx have double or multiple functions a passage and resonator.