Articulatory Phonetics

Articulatory phonetics is a branch of phonetics concerned with describing how physiological processes, movements, and structures produce speech sounds. Much of the terminology used in this branch comes from anatomy and physiology. Articulatory phonetics also provides the basis for the classification system used in the International Phonetic Alphabet.

Research in this branch concerns how movement of the articulators is planned, which aspects of movement belong to all human language and which are specific to the particular language one learns, and to what extent articulation planning is related to the perceptual and acoustic outcome. Instrumental techniques have been developed to aid in this investigation, such as the use of electromyography to track muscle movement and ultrasound to track tongue position and movement during speech.

Articulatory phonetics classifies speech ...