About the Book
Routledge English Language Introductions cover core areas of language study and are one-stop resources for students.
Assuming no prior knowledge, books in the series offer an accessible overview of the subject, with activities, study questions, sample analyses, commentaries and key readings—all in the same volume. The innovative and flexible `two-dimensional’ structure is built around four sections—introduction, development, exploration and extension—which offer self-contained stages for study. Each topic can also be read across these sections, enabling the reader to build gradually on the knowledge gained.
Revised and updated throughout, this third edition of Practical Phonetics and Phonology:
presents the essentials of the subject and their day-to-day applications in an engaging and accessible manner
covers all the core concepts of speech science, such as the phoneme, syllable structure, production of speech, vowel and consonant possibilities, glottal settings, stress, rhythm, intonation and the surprises of connected speech
incorporates classic readings from key names in the discipline including David Abercrombie, David Crystal, Dennis Fry, Daniel Jones, Peter Ladefoged, Peter Trudgill and John Wells
includes an audio CD containing a collection of samples provided by genuine speakers of 25 accent varieties from Britain, Ireland, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Singapore and West Africa
gives outlines of the sound systems of six key languages from around the world
contains over a hundred activity exercises, many accompanied by audio material
is accompanied by a brand new companion website featuring additional guidance, audio files, keys to activities in the book, further exercises and activities, and extra practice in phonemic transcription
New features of this edition include an additional reading on teaching pronunciation, phonetic descriptions of three more languages (Japanese, Polish and Italian), expanded material on spelling/sound relationships, more information on acquiring the pronunciation of a foreign language, additional suggestions for further reading and much new illustrative material.
Written by authors who are experienced teachers and researchers, this best-selling textbook will appeal to all students of English language and linguistics and those training for a certificate in TEFL.
Table of Contents:
A. INTRODUCTION
1. English worldwide
2. Phoneme and allophone
3. Connected speech and phonemic transcription
4. How we produce speech
5. Consonant possibilities
6. Vowel possibilities
B. DEVELOPMENT
1. Phoneme and syllable revisited
2. English consonants
3. English vowels
4. Features of connected speech
5. Stress and rhythm
6. Speech melody
C. EXPLORATION
1. Accent variation – General American
2. Accents of British Isles 3. Celtic-influenced varieties
4. World accent varieties
5. Pronunciation change
6. Teaching and Learning a foreign language
D. EXTENSION
1. RP – R.I.P? (David Abercrombie)
2. Attitudes to accents (Daniel Jones)
3. Pronunciation worries (David Crystal)
4. Helping the deaf to hear (Dennis Fry)
5. Making computers talk (Peter Ladefoged)
6. Covert associations of speech sound (Steven Pinker)
7. Using phonetics to fight crime (Maurice Varney)
8. The rise of `Upspeak’ (Barbara Bradford)
9. How children learn the meaning of intonation (David Crystal)
End matter
Glossary
Further reading
References
Index
About the Author :
Beverley Collins has held lectureships in phonetics at the universities of Lancaster and Leiden, and was Visiting Professor at Ghent University. He is presently a member of the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics.
Inger M. Mees is Associate Professor in the Department of International Business Communication at the Copenhagen Business School.
Review :
Praise for the Third Edition
"Practical Phonetics and Phonology keeps getting better! Our undergraduate students already valued its accessibility, clarity of description and detailed coverage of English accents. The addition of further descriptions of languages other than English and in-depth discussion of issues in pronunciation teaching make the book highly recommended reading for our postgraduate students in linguistics and English language teaching, too."- Leendert Plug, University of Leeds, UK
"Students often ask me for books about phonetics and phonology, and Practical Phonetics and Phonology is the first that I recommend. It is an excellent combination of theory and practice, with abundant resources and practice material both written and spoken, covering a large number of English accents and including outlines of some major languages. Presented in direct and easy-to-follow language, with first-rate diagrams and illustrations, it allows readers to study the subject as if they were attending a series of interesting lectures. This new edition is going to be a 'must' for all students of phonetics and phonology." - Masaki Taniguchi, Kochi University, Japan
"I liked the second edition and I like the third even more. The book is carefully planned, diligently structured and clearly written. The contents are up-to-date; they are geared to the needs of newcomers to phonetics and phonology. There is a strong emphasis on the practical side: the reader’s understanding is tested repeatedly throughout the book with more than 120 activities. Many sound samples are provided for close listening and analysis. A highly recommendable book!" - Petr Rösel, University of Mainz, Germany
"Practical Phonetics and Phonology is an outstanding practical coursebook on pronunciations for students of British English as an additional language." - Jack Windsor Lewis, Journal of International Phonetic Association
Praise for the Second Edition
"...one of the most successful introductory texts in the field, as it manages an ongoing seamless combination of phonetic and phonological theory and areas of practical application. As a textbook it covers a vast amount of material, but is consistently successful in presenting only what is immediately relevant for the undergraduate/ EFL level it is aimed at." - Linguist List, 2008
"I have used the first edition of Practical Phonetics and Phonology in my teaching with great success -- my students were very enthusiastic about it. So I am delighted to welcome this second edition, which contains many additional goodies." - John Wells, Emeritus Professor of Phonetics, UCL, UK
"An impressive combination of academic research and educational applications. The invaluable and updated resource for the students of phonetics and phonology." - Masanori Toyota, Kansai Gaidai University, Osaka, Japan
Praise for the First Edition
"...gathers together a far wider range of topics than other books on English phonetics. Many more accents of English are discussed, and we really learn about English as a world language. Experienced teachers of English and beginning students will all profit from this book." - Peter Ladefoged, University of California, USA
