Omaha fricative set

[Rory M Larson]

Thanks, Bryan.  I appreciate your comments, and your good advice on the
proper linguistic terms to use!

Of course you are quite right to point out that the laminal /s/ is
dependent upon the part of the tongue that approaches the alveolar ridge,
not on what the tip is doing.  You mention Dutch and Finnish as having
laminal /s/.  Is it just these two languages, or is this an areal
phenomenon in northern Europe-- do you know?  Also, you say that their
laminal /s/ is "dark", like cross between /s/ and /s^/.  I think in Omaha
it's actually pretty sharp, and audibly very similar to English /s/.  But
that depends on exactly where against the roof of the mouth you put the top
of the tongue.  If what I seemed to work out with one speaker yesterday
afternoon is correct, both /s/ and /s^/ are laminal in Omaha.  I find a
laminal /s^/ a little more awkward to produce than a laminal /s/, but it
seems to work.  If I am doing it right, it seems to be something like
German ch in ich, but more forward, against the back of the alveolar ridge.

The term "uvular" occurred to me after I sent the posting yesterday.  It
seems to me like the /g^/ is made in about the same location as the
Parisian /r/, but mostly without the trill.

So to make sure I've got the "gutterals" straight:

  laryngeal    - Produced in the larynx, involving the vocal cords.  Also
"glottal"?

  pharyngeal   - Produced by pressure between the root of the tongue and
the top of the throat.

  uvular       - Produced between the back of the tongue and tonsils?
Uvula?

  velar        - Produced a little further forward, between back of tongue
and velum.

  palatal      - Produced between the tongue and the hard palate.

Is there a term for the /s^/ series?  It's sort of front of palate, back of
alveolar ridge.  Alveolo-palatal?

Thanks again,
Rory
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