浊音起始时间研究述评

An Overview of Voice Onset Time

浊音起始时间(简称VOT)通常是指塞音除阻到声带振动起始点之间经历的时间。不同的语言可能区分不同的VOT对立。对听话人来说,VOT是极其重要的声学音征,用它来把听到的塞音归为清塞音或浊塞音。该文主要综述了VOT以及影响VOT值的因素。这些研究对语音感知和语音习得都具有重要意义。

Voice onset time, often shortened as VOT, refers to the interval between the release of a plosive and the beginning of vocal fold vibration. It is usually measured in milliseconds. Short as it is, VOT is a very important acoustic cue to listeners who are usually very sensitive to it and use it to categorize plosives that they hear as voiceless or voiced. It has been proven to be a reliable acoustic measurement of phonetic differences in plosives. This paper introduces VOT, and goes on to review the literature on the factors that could affect VOT. These studies have great implications both on speech perception and phonological acquisition.