Uvular flap

Updated on Nov 07, 2023

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IPA number 112 505 Unicode (hex) U+0262 U+0306		Entity (decimal) ɢ̆

The uvular flap is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. There is no dedicated symbol for this sound in the IPA. It can specified by adding a 'short' diacritic to the letter for the uvular plosive, ⟨ɢ̆⟩, but normally it is covered by the unmodified letter for the uvular trill, ⟨ʀ⟩, since the two have never been reported to contrast.

The uvular flap is not known to exist as a phoneme in any language.

More commonly, it is said to vary with the much more frequent uvular trill, and is most likely a single-contact trill [ʀ̆] rather than an actual flap [ɢ̆] in these languages. (The primary difference between a flap and a trill is the airstream, not the number of contacts.)

Features

Features of the uvular flap:

Its manner of articulation is flap, which means it is produced with a single contraction of the muscles so that one articulator (usually the tongue) is thrown against another.

Its place of articulation is uvular, which means it is articulated with the back of the tongue (the dorsum) at the uvula.

Its phonation is voiced, which means the vocal cords vibrate during the articulation.

It is an oral consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the mouth only.

It is a central consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.

The airstream mechanism is pulmonic, which means it is articulated by pushing air solely with the lungs and diaphragm, as in most sounds.

References

Uvular flap Wikipedia

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