Acoustic Characteristics of Oral vs. Nasalized /a/ in Brazilian Portuguese

The object of this essay is to describe some of the current research in Luso-Brazilian (LB) phonology. Rather than build a bibliographic background, I shall introduce this topic by showing various techniques current analysts utilize to investigate Brazilian Portuguese nasality.' The reason for this unconventional approach is that more than at any other time, phonology, the study of speech sounds, is comprised of an extensive array of distinct academic specializations. It is quite revealing to see the many levels and angles of analysis which can be applied to such a topic. For example, linguists who adhere to generative theories approach the study of LB phonology as an opportunity to verify or develop claims regarding universal grammar. Sociolinguists study the same sound sequences; their focus, however, might be on which portion of a given population has a distinct pronunciation and what the social implications might be. Concurrently, phoneticians are interested in the aerodynamics of speech patterns independent of universal grammar or social implications. While in some circles these various branches of linguistics enjoy a certain level of autonomy, this luxury is not available to LB phonologists. In order to compile a complete picture, researchers in LB phonology need to draw from all sources. This will become evident as we investigate the nasalization of /a/ when followed by a tautosyllabic nasal consonant. I shall draw from experimental phonetics as the core element of this analysis and then add footnotes and commentary to show how related branches of phonology might approach this issue. Nasalization in Brazilian Portuguese

Acoustics · Art · Astrophysics · Audiology · Brazilian Portuguese · Duration (music) · Linguistics · Literature · Nasal vowel · Physics · Portuguese · Speech recognition · Timbre · Variation (astronomy) · Vowel · Computer Science · Linguistic Studies and Language Acquisition · Linguistic Variation and Morphology · Medicine · Philosophy · Phonetics and Phonology Research · Psychology