Re: Universally Pronounceable Phonology

li [Rick Harrison] mi tulis la ...

> On 2007-09-18 15:02:47 -0400, "X. Rayburn" <none@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> said:
> 
> > You will probably think I am joking here but I am serious. In many
> > parts of the world modern dentistry has not become available yet and
> > people lose a lot of their teeth as they become elderly. Thus any
> > phonemes dependent on teeth are questionably universal.
> 
> It's not limited to elderly third-worlders. I'm a forty-something 
> American who has lost most of his upper teeth due to poverty and a 
> Coca-Cola addiction. I can no longer pronounce English correctly 
> without a denture in place. However, I *can* pronounce Japanese 
> correctly without the denture, which makes me admire the design of 
> Japanese even more. (I believe Japanese started out as a conlang.)

Also forty-something, but still have 32 (well, 31.5 plus a
crown. yes, still have the wisdom teeth).  Anyway, this brings
up something I've been curious about for a long time.  I've
always wondered if there are certain phonological qualties that
are tied to climate and other environmental factors.  For
example, maybe nasal sounds tend to occur more in warmer or
cooler climates?  Or maybe the general lack or availability of
dental care as mentioned above.  Have there been any studies?

-------------------------------------------------
deinx nxtxr

LI SASXSEK LATIS. (http://www.nutter.net/sasxsek)