A Cross-Linguistic Analysis of Vowel Epenthesis: A Phonetic Study

Abstract

Epenthetic vowels, or vowel sounds added into consonant clusters to enhance the pronunciation, have significant effects on understanding spoken language. This research investigates the procedures involved in the insertion of an epenthetic vowel. It provides a phonetic analysis of vowel epenthesisin English, Kurdish, and Arabic languages. This study explains the occasional addition of extra vowel sounds to syllables. It explores how these vowels conform to the phonetic system of the language and how they contribute in speaking, particularly when combined with other consonants. The researcher uses an acoustic analysis, using the Praat software, to determine the formants (F1 and F2) of these vowels and how these vowels are varied across the studied languages. Moreover, the goal of this study is to examine the factors that determine the insertion of these vowels. The study evaluates the acoustic properties of epenthetic vowels and their impact on speech fluency using phonetic methods. The findings reveal that epenthetic vowels at the coda position have higher F1 values than those at the onset. Conversely, larger F2 values at the onset in all three languages indicate a more fronted articulation in that particular position. Furthermore, the study found that syllable position has a significant effect on vowel duration. Finally, the mid-central nature of these vowels shows that they serve as structural restoration assists rather than independent lexical constituents, reflecting a cross-linguistic trend toward lower default vowel quality.