English Phonology; Definition of English Consonant

Before, we explain about English consonant. We must know about English language. What is that English?   English is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England and is now a global Lingua Franca. It is anofficial language of almost 60 sovereign states, the most commonly spoken language in the United Kingdom, the United States,Canada, Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand, and a widely spoken language in countries in the Caribbean, Africa, and South Asia.

It is the third most common native language in the world, after Mandarin and Spanish. It is widely learned as a second language and is an official language of the United Nations, of the European Union, and of many other world and regional international organizations.

After that, what is consonant? What do you think about consonant?

In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract.

Examples are;

a.       [p], pronounced with the lips;

b.      [t], pronounced with the front of the tongue;

c.       [k], pronounced with the back of the tongue;

d.      [h], pronounced in the throat;

e.       [f] and [s], pronounced by forcing air through a narrow channel (fricatives); and

f.       [m] and [n], which have air flowing through the nose (nasals).

"There are 21 consonant letters in the written alphabet (B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, V, W, X, Y, Z), and there are 24 consonant sounds in most English accents. . . . Because of the erratic history of English spelling, there is no neat one-to-one correlation between letters and sounds." (David Crystal, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Cambridge University Press, 2003).

So, English consonant is 21 consonant letters in the written alphabet and there are 24 consonant sounds or more.