Phoneme inventories
Matthew K. Gordon · Oxford University Press eBooks · 2016
This chapter provides an overview of the cross-linguistic distribution of phoneme inventories drawing on various typological databases. Results of a survey of phoneme frequency data within 34 languages suggest a parallel between cross-linguistic and intralanguage frequency. The distribution of phonemic length contrasts is also examined both across and within languages. Various explanations for the phoneme frequency patterns are introduced. These include accounts appealing directly to the phonetic notions of articulatory ease and/or perceptual distinctness (Dispersion Theory, Dispersion and Focalization Theory, and Quantal Theory) as well as theories that encode these physiological pressures indirectly via phonological features (Feature Enhancement Theory and Feature Economy Theory). The chapter concludes with an examination of the relationship between frequency and phonetic naturalness in shaping frequency biases diachronically.