ATLAS OF LANGUAGE

AT-NAV-G02-015 · ATLAS 259

Place of articulation

Place of articulation identifies the location of a constriction or closure relevant to a speech sound.

Part of the subject path Sound, Phonetics and Phonology

Why is this entry in the Atlas?

G · Foundational concept R2 · Necessary foundation

Place of articulation supplies the spatial basis for comparing speech sounds and sound changes. It identifies the constriction location rather than independently specifying manner or acoustic effect.

Colours and admission grounds

The rectangular label identifies the entry function: F – linguistic figure or procedure; A – analytical concept; G – foundational concept; E – selected concrete case. The rounded badge indicates the admission ground: R1 – distinctive contribution; R2 – necessary foundation; R3 – justified illustrative case. This editorial rationale explains the current selection rather than claiming an undocumented original selection history.

Explanation

For consonants, place of articulation describes where a relevant constriction or closure is formed. It is specified alongside manner of articulation and voicing, but does not replace them. Some sounds have more than one relevant place. The link from debuccalisation particularly concerns loss of an oral constriction. In a gestural analysis, this does not mean that the oral tract stops moving altogether: neighbouring vowels can still determine tongue movements. Place descriptions, sound correspondences and the theoretical framework must therefore be kept distinct.

Movement of thought

1. Locate the relevant constriction. 2. Describe the active and passive articulators. 3. Separate place from manner of articulation. 4. Account for contextual or additional gestures. 5. Check a sound change against systematic correspondences.

Scientific use case

A study can combine articulatory recordings with sound correspondences; the recording method, language, position and variety are specified.

Example

The isolated sounds [p] and [t] are both voiceless stops, but differ in place: bilabial versus alveolar.

Counterexample

[p] and [b] differ in voicing, not in their bilabial place. A different letter does not establish a different place of articulation.

Distinction

Distinguish manner, phonation, spelling and general weakening. Accounts of oral place loss depend on the framework and cannot be established from one auditory impression.

Effect on thought and perception

Place analysis can explain which articulatory property is retained or lost in a sound change.

Resonance

A sound gains its contour where airflow meets a shaping resistance.

Provenance

Parallel source review reconciled 2026-10-07; human specialist review not claimed.

Cite this entry

Reich, Michael (Hrsg./ed.): „Place of articulation“. Atlas der Sprache, AT-NAV-G02-015. ATLAS 259, data model 1.6.0. https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-NAV-G02-015

https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-NAV-G02-015

The address remains stable; editorial content may evolve. Editorial reading state: 2026-10-15. Include your access date for precise references.