Avoiceless upper-pharyngeal plosive orstop is a rare consonant.
According tolaryngoscopic studies,pharyngeal and epiglottal consonants are both pronounced in thepharynx, being separated into the upper and lower regions, respectively.[1] This has led some phoneticians such asJohn Esling to propose the merging of epiglottal consonants into the pharyngeal column in theInternational Phonetic Alphabet chart.[2] If the distinction is maintained between pharyngeal and epiglottal consonants inplace of articulation due to their position within the pharynx, then ⟨ʡ⟩ remains a lower-pharyngeal plosive (without a voicing distinction), while the pair ⟨ꞯ⟩ and ⟨𝼂⟩ are provided by theextIPA for a voiceless and voiced upper-pharyngeal plosive, respectively.[3][4]
No language is known to have a phonemic upper pharyngeal plosive. TheNǁng language (Nǀuu) is claimed to have an upper pharyngeal place of articulation among itsclick consonants— clicks in Nǁng have a rear closure that is said to vary between uvular or upper pharyngeal, depending on theclick type.[5] However, if the place were truly pharyngeal, they could not occur asnasal clicks, which they do.[5]
Otherwise, upper pharyngeal plosives are only known from disordered speech. They appear for example in the speech of some children withcleft palate, as compensatory backing of stops to avoid nasalizing them.[note 1] The extIPA provides the letter ⟨ꞯ⟩ (asmall capitalQ), equivalent to IPA ⟨q⟩ or ⟨q̠⟩ (aretracted ⟨q⟩) to transcribe such a sound.
Itsmanner of articulation isocclusive, which means it is produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract. Since the consonant is also oral, with nonasal outlet, the airflow is blocked entirely, and the consonant is aplosive.
Itsplace of articulation isupper pharyngeal, which means it is articulated with thetongue root against the back of the throat (thepharynx) and then retracting the root of the tongue to the mid to high part of the pharynx.
Itsphonation is un-voiced, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords.
It is anoral consonant, which means that air is not allowed to escape through the nose.
It is acentral consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.
^abMiller, Amanda L., Johanna Brugman, Bonny Sands, Levi Namaseb, Mats Exter, and Chris Collins. 2009a. 'Differences in airstream and posterior place of articulation among Nǀuu clicks.'Journal of the International Phonetic Association 39(2): 132.
