Acoustic Analysis of Post Alveolar Voiced Fricative Consonant / Ʒ / in Pakistani English

Maria Fatima Dogar, Ansa Hafeez, Gull Sarfraz

Abstract

This study analyzed the acoustic properties of post alveolar voiced fricative /Ʒ/ consonant. It investigated how Pakistani English is a separate variety from BBC English on the basis of different pronunciation patterns of /Ʒ/ consonant. Pakistani English had been considered as a distinct variety from standard English for the last two decades. This qualitative research depicted the inclusive picture of /Ʒ/ consonant in BBC and Pakistani English by considering the recordings on PRAAT software. Acoustic parameters such as center of gravity (COG), harmonic to noise ratio (HNR), F2 transition of the following vowel and spectrogram were used to determine the voicing, place of articulation and manner of articulation of the consonant. COG and HNR in Pakistani English /Ʒ/ consonant, showed that there was more voicing because of the vibration of vocal cords. F2 transition of the following vowel explained that the position of tongue is more back to post alveolar position and contact of the tongue is less with the palate. Spectral analysis indicated that there is no friction and air passes along the sides of the tongue which are the properties of approximants. The result of the acoustic analysis showed that Pakistani speakers pronounced /Ʒ/ consonant like English /j/ consonant. So, this investigation assisted in proving that Pakistani English is a separate variety because Pakistani English speakers realized /Ʒ/ consonant differently from BBC speakers.