Germanic Laryngeal Phonetics and Phonology

Abstract

Drawing from a wide range of standard and nonstandard Germanic varieties past and present, this chapter examines the contrast between sounds traditionally written as etc. and those written as , etc. Following ‘Laryngeal Realism’, two main systems within Germanic are identified: [spread glottis] or Glottal Width languages like Icelandic, German and English on the one hand and [voice] or Glottal Tension languages like Dutch, Frisian and Yiddish on the other. The two differ phonetically — notably by aspiration of /p, t, k/ in the former and robust glottal pulsing of /b, d, g/ in the latter — but more importantly in terms of phonological activity. For instance, [spread] languages show progressive laryngeal assimilation while [voice] ones show regressive assimilation. Both types can neutralize the distinction in coda or word-final position. A few Germanic varieties have lost a laryngeal distinction and others have transformed the distinction into a contrast based on length.

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