In Defense of Implosives

Abstract

It is shown that implosives in Sindhi (an IE lang spoken in Northern India) involve ingressive airflow, unlike implosives previously described for Hausa (Ladefoged, P., Preliminaries to Linguistic Phonetics, Chicago: U of Chicago Press, 1971). Mingographic recordings, measurement of oral & nasal airflow, laryngographic recordings, & audiotape recordings were made during articulation of Sindhi implosives. Examination of the data supports the presence of ingressive airflow, & Ladefoged's claim that there are no true implosives is rejected. The findings raise the question whether implosives should be characterized in phonological theory as sounds involving suction, or as sounds involving the lowering of the larynx. Comparison of implosives in Sindhi & Kalabari with those of Hausa also demonstrates the need for including certain kinds of phonetic implementational phenomena in the domain of phonology. Modified HA.