ATLAS OF LANGUAGE

AT-NAV-G04-029 · ATLAS 259

Phonetics

This entry addresses phonetics in the spoken-language domain: the physical production, transmission and perception of speech sounds.

Part of the subject path Sound, Phonetics and Phonology

Why is this entry in the Atlas?

G · Foundational concept R2 · Necessary foundation

Phonetics is needed to distinguish material sound production and perception from functional contrasts. This spoken-language profile does not claim a complete theory of all expressive media.

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

This entry addresses phonetics in the spoken-language domain: the physical production, transmission and perception of speech sounds. Articulatory, acoustic and auditory approaches examine different aspects of the same speech event. A signal measurement is not already a phonological category, and a written character is no direct description of articulation. In the allophone context, phonetics establishes realisation differences whose systematic function requires further analysis. The boundary between phonetics and phonology is not impermeable: empirical observations and models of linguistic contrast can test and revise each other. What matters is the level to which a particular finding applies.

Movement of thought

1. Formulate a question about speech sound. 2. Choose an appropriate recording or measurement. 3. Describe production, signal and perception separately. 4. Test systematic variation. 5. Limit phonological inferences to the evidence.

Scientific use case

Research can align articulatory data, spectrograms and listener judgements for the same utterances.

Example

Two realisations of a sound may differ in duration without distinguishing words in the language concerned.

Counterexample

Two written variants of a character do not alone establish a sound difference.

Distinction

Distinguish phonetics from the study of writing, phonology alone and a list of sound symbols.

Effect on thought and perception

Phonetics makes linguistic sound accessible as an observable bodily and acoustic process.

Resonance

What appears to be one sound unfolds as movement, vibration and hearing.

Provenance

Parallel corpus 98f0950771ae4662f291d2f15f5c51b6797f3c20ba458a68615cdb177002ea18; case-bounded source review accepted; human specialist review not claimed.

Cite this entry

Reich, Michael (Hrsg./ed.): „Phonetics“. Atlas der Sprache, AT-NAV-G04-029. ATLAS 259, data model 1.6.0. https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-NAV-G04-029

https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-NAV-G04-029

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