대한언어학회 전자저널

Pearl, Jennifer. A comparative study on lateral /l/ of English and tamil. The Linguistic Association of Korea Journal, 32(4), 131-149. This study investigates the lateral /l/ in English and Tamil, chosen due to its varying articulation across languages and its role in pronunciation challenges for Tamil speakers learning English. The lateral /l/ is articulated differently across languages, and Tamil has multiple lateral variants, including dental, retroflex, and palatal forms, which contrast with the English clear and dark /l/. These differences make it difficult for Tamil speakers to acquire native-like pronunciation in English, often leading to phonetic interference. The study aims to compare the phonetic and phonological properties of the /l/ sound in both languages. Using acoustic analysis, speech samples from native Tamil speakers were recorded and analyzed for formant frequencies, duration, and place of articulation. The perception tests assessed how Tamil speakers recognize and produce the English /l/ sound in different phonetic environments. Results indicate that Tamil speakers often pronounce the Tamil palatal /l/ and sometimes retroflex /l/ similar to the English alveolar /l/, affecting intelligibility. Acoustic data reveal distinct formant transitions, demonstrating phonetic interference in second-language acquisition. These findings provide insights into cross-language phonetic variations and inform pronunciation training for Tamil learners of English. Understanding these articulatory differences can enhance teaching strategies, improving pronunciation accuracy and communication effectiveness in multilingual settings. This study also contributes to linguistic diversity research and second-language acquisition.

# lateral /l/ # formants # formant values # formant frequencies # clear l # dark l # vowels # consonants

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