T
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- For other uses, see T (disambiguation).
The letter T is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, preceded by s and followed by u. Its name in English is tee /tiː/. It is the most commonly used consonant, and the second most common letter, in the English language. Indeed, the most common letter for beginning a word is t. However, it ranks fifth for ending words (behind e, s, n, and d).
One reason for t's frequency is that it represents several sounds, including the /θ/ of thanks and the /ð/ of this. Another possible reason is that people like how it sounds. Phonoasthetically, t is the sixth most liked sound in English, behind r and ahead of n. People like /θ/ much less, however, and /ð/ is possibly the least-liked sound in English.<ref>The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language (1995) p. 414</ref>
Contents |
[edit] History
| Egyptian heiroglyph | Proto-Semitic T | Phoenician taw | Etruscan T | Greek tau |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image:EtruscanX-01.png | Image:Proto-semiticT-01.png | Image:PhoenicianT-01.png | Image:EtruscanT-01.png | Image:Tau uc lc.svg |
Tâw was the last letter of the Western Semitic, Hebrew, and (at an early stage, Greek) alphabets. It still is the last letter in Hebrew. It probably represented a cross. Thus, in early Greek manuscripts the letter was written +. Its name in Semitic meant simply "mark" or "sign" (although in Greek, its name was meaningless, and "sign" was represented by τó). In Ezekiel 9:4 (written around 590 B.C.), God places a thau (as the ancient Hebrew version is transcribed) on the foreheads of the faithful. Later, in Revelations 7:3, 9:4, and 14:1, God expresses his preference for those with the mark. The symbol was probably taken from an Egyptian hieroglyph (X) used as a check mark. The Egyptians had a uniliteral sign for t, but it was represented by a loaf: <hiero>t</hiero> The use of hieroglyphs died out around 390 A.D.. Demotic (used from the early 7th century B.C., to around 476 A.D.) was a cursive form of hieroglyphic writing and used ∠. Coptic (an extinct language representing the final evolution of Egyptian used from about 100 until the 14th century) replaced this letter with a Hellenic tav (Image:Coptic Tav.GIF), although it was pronounced /d/ before m. They also had tee (Image:Coptic Tee.GIF), representing /ti/.
By about 1000 B.C., the Phoenicians and other Semitic tribes were using a variety of crossed forms to represent the letter. In Punic inscriptions at Carthage, we find it converted into Image:Early Aramaic T.jpg, Ⴕ, and T. The sound value of Semitic taw, Greek alphabet Tαυ (Tau), Old Italic and Latin T has remained fairly constant, representing IPA /t/ in each of these; and it has also largely kept its original basic shape in all of these alphabets. The first known inscription of the Hebrews (the 10th century B.C. Gezer Calendar) shows the wholesale adoption of the Phoenician alphabet, including taw. On the tomb of Bene Hezir, dated around 100 B.C., thau (as transcribed from Old Hebrew) has obtained its modern form of ת.
T was the nineteenth letter in the ancient Roman and Greek alphabets. Previously, the Greeks used an unrelated alphabet called Linear B, in which t was grouped into several CV syllables, [ta] being Image:Linear-B ta.GIF, [te] being Image:Linear-B te.GIF, [ti] being Image:Linear-B ti.GIF, [to] being Ŧ, etc. These were replaced with a letter borrowed from the Old Phoenician alphabet. The first incriptions in this newer Greek date from the eighth century B.C. After the introduction of the Ionian Greek alphabet in Athens (403 B.C.), there was a tendency to simplify the letters a great deal, and letters often were confused with one another. Tau was written |, meaning it could easily be confused with the simplified γ, ε, η, ι, π, and φ. Ιn the Greek found at Cadmea, T is confused with M, as well. The Greek theta (θ) aspirate was a voiceless stop followed by a strong expiration: τ^{h} as in hothouse, (though here h is in a different syllable from the stop). Thus, θέλω was τ̔έλω, Cp. ἐφ' ᾧ for ἐπ(ὶ) ̔ῷ, etc. Thus, thelô was telô. After a.d 300 (probably) θ became a spirant, as th in theatre. T later passed from the Western Greek alphabet into Etruscan. In Italy during Etruscan times, T took several unique forms, including X and ↑ in Venetic (the latter also a form found in Novilara). There were also イ, and \| in Etruscan, and even ⊥ in Pre-Sabellic and Siculian. The Iberians and Tartessians used the forms x and M.
The Etruscans adopted the Greek theta as Image:Etruscan Theta.gif to represent an aspirated /tʰ/. The letter was often substituted in Etruscan for t. The Romans later rejected the letter. Although /θ/ and /ð/ are represented by th in modern English, in Latin there was no such sound. In Greek loanwords into Latin, TH was used to represent theta but most Romans pronounced it /t/. (See also th below.)
In combinations such as Gratian, and Dalmatian, the Latin /t/ became /ts/, and then /s/. This was represented in orthography as in Latin gratia, Italian grazia, French grâce, Latin nationem, Italian nazione, Old French and Spanish nacion. In French and English spelling the Latin t in most cases has been restored, e.g. nation; but the sound was not. This has since changed in English to /sj/, and then /ʃ/. After s, the original sound of t has remained, as in bestial, Christian, Erastian.
A much more recent change, "as yet scarcely recognized by orthoepists" (N.E.D., 1910), is the development of the sound ch /tʃ/ from t followed by u with its diphthongal or name sound /juː/, in such combinations as -tual, -tue, -tuous, and especially -ture, as in nature /ˈneɪtʊə(ɹ)/.
[edit] Codes for computing
| NATO phonetic | Morse code | ||
| Tango | |||
| Image:ICS Tango.svg | Image:Semaphore Tango.svg | Image:ASL Tango.png | Image:Braille T.svg |
| Signal flag | Semaphore | ASL Manual | Braille |
In Unicode the capital T is codepoint U+0054 and the lowercase t is U+0074.
The ASCII code for capital T is 84 and for lowercase t is 116; or in binary 01010100 and 01110100, correspondingly.
The EBCDIC code for capital T is 227 and for lowercase t is 163.
The numeric character references in HTML and XML are "T" and "t" for upper and lower case respectively.
[edit] Form
There are two types of letters: arched and round. Round letters, like p, q, or c, are similar to o, but narrower. T is an arched letter, like m, n, or a.
Spacing between a t and another letter is generally equivalent to the space within the letter. This is called a counter in typography and negative space in drawing circles.
[edit] Manuscript
[edit] Majuscule
Around 275 B.C., sans-serif t's in Athens (e.g., T and τ) began to be furnished with serifs (as T, τ). The Romans later adopted the capital T largely unaltered. The capital T, unlike B or O, is an asymmetric letter. It is also rectangle-based, like U, V, or X. This means that it can be contained within a rectangle ¾ the width of a circle (like the one to the right). Circular letters like C, Q, and D fill the circle. Its cross stroke can be symmetrical, as in Century Old Style, or slightly longer on one side, as in such calligraphic designs as Hiroshige. When writing a Roman capital T, the top crossbar is drawn first, then the downstroke, and then the bottom serif (if used). The serif is a separate stroke so the letter retains its straight lines. All horizontal strokes are written left-to-right and the pen is held at a horizontal angle of 30 degrees. Capital letters are the easiest to modify because they are more balanced, and large enough to still be readable. But, a Roman capital cannot be modified without changing the style. Once a letter related to t is modified, t can be changed with more ease.
To measure the proportions of T, construct first a square ABCD, and bisect AC at E, BD at F, AB at G, and CD at H. Using a diameter of one-ninth the distance AB, describe from the center H a circle IHJ; from the center G a circle KGL; on AK a circle AMN; and on LB a circle OPB. Draw now the straight lines KI and LJ. Draw also a straight line tangential to the circles M and P, and produce it to intersect ae at X and BF at Y. Bisect XE at Q and YF at R. Bisect AQ at T and BR at U. Draw the straight line TU. Bisect AT at V and BU at W. Draw the straight line VW. Bisect BF at s. From the center s, describe an arc tangential to the circle M and intersecting the line NK, thereby establishing on VW a point h. From the center A, describe an arc tangential to the circle P and intersecting the line lo, thereby establishing on VW a point i. Draw a straight line za tangential to the apexes of the circles M, G, and P. Using the radius AM, describe on za a circle b tangential to the circle M and to the line NK; a circle c tangential to the circle P and to the line LO; a circle d tangential to the arc s and to the line hi within the area VWDC; a circle e tangential to the arc A and to the line hi within the area VWDC; a circle tangential to the lines ki and CI; and a circle g tangential to the lines LJ and JD.
Rustic capital Ts were first seen in the first century A.D. and remained popular until the sixth century, after which they persisted in titles until the twelfth century. The process of writing a rustic capital was more laborious than a Roman capital, even though majority opinion holds them to be less elegant:
The word cursive can mean one of two things: "connected" or "informal." As an informal letter, the cursive majuscule T used by the Romans was the first T to have a curled downstroke: Image:Roman Cursive Majuscule T.gif.
Versal capital Ts were often used in illuminated manuscripts as initial letters. Their name comes from their use as the first letters of verses. They are built up over many strokes. The sides are drawn first with a pen, and then the middle is filled in with a brush. The sides of the stem are slightly bent, bending inward, then out again. It uses hairline (very thin) serifs. On the far right is an example of an initial T from a sixteenth-century French manuscript.
Image:Versal Capital T.gif Image:Completed Versal Capital.gif Image:Initial Versal T.jpg
Gothic capital Ts, popular from the early 800s until the 1400s (and in Germany until the 1900s), are written differently. For one, the top crossbar is drawn last. The downstroke comes first, then the bowl flourish:
Image:Gothic Majuscule T (Sharpened, version 2).gif
Gothic letters have been criticized as being hard to read. Nevertheless, they are more compact, saving space and reducing time spent measuring space between letters. When written. The pen is held at an angle of 30 degrees. Here are some other ways a majuscule capital Gothic T was drawn:
Image:Gothic T 2.GIF Image:Gothic T 3.gif Image:Kelly Ann Gothic T.gif Image:Linotext Gothic T.GIF
The following initial Gothic T was drawn in the early 1200s. Woven petals were drawn inside the bowl. Because of its complexity, outlining is heavy and was done early in the drawing with a pen (not a brush). The pen was moved quickly to keep the lines thin. A size (base) was added with a thin sable brush. Color was added using a wash (dilute ink). Then, thicker colors were used:
The Italic style was greatly influenced by Niccoli Niccolò's (1364 – 1437) antica corsiva script. His style lent itself to flourishes for initial letters at the top of pages. Here are some examples:
Image:Italic Flourished Majuscule Ts.gif
Aldus Manutivus, born in Rome, erected a printing office in Venice, 1496 and later designed the Italic letters we are familiar with today. The Italic capital T (together with F, V, and W) when followed by an ascending letter, as in Thames, raises the risk of a clash. Printers thus often follow the capital with a hairline space. Printers also kerned the letter quite a bit for the same reason.
| Image:Janson T.GIF Janson. Netherlands, late 1600s | Image:Caslon T.GIF Caslon. England, ca. 1720 | Image:Baskerville T.GIF Baskerville. England, ca. 1750 |
| Image:Bodoni T.GIF Bodoni. Italy, 1790 | Image:Scotch Roman T.gif Scotch Roman. England, ca. 1790 | Image:Goudy Old Style T.GIF Goudy Old Style. United States, ca. 1920 |
Image:Times New Roman T.GIF Times New Roman. England, ca. 1930 | Image:Palatino T.GIF Palatino. Germany, ca. 1950 | Image:Sabon T.gif Sabon. England, ca. 1965 |
The ends of the horizontal cross stroke in roman types may terminate with diagonally structured serifs, as they do in ITC Bookman or Caslon, or strictly vertical ones, like those in Bodoni. And sometimes the T's cross stroke serifs can be vertical on one side and diagonal on the other, as they are in ITC Garamond. This style was merged in the late 1800s with Italic by William Morris in his Chaucer font: Image:Chaucer T.GIF. The Bodoni type above was unique for its unbracketed serifs (i.e., forming a 90-degree angle).
The Italic, Roman, and black-letter font families were the only styles in use until 1816, when a fourth--sans serif--was introduced. These letters are without serifs and stand upright. The first such font was Two Lines English Egyptian. The style was unpopular for some time.
Certain 20th-century artistic movements, such as Dada and Bauhaus, had an influence on the design of new fonts. Paul Renner of Germany's futura typeface (1927) was closely associated with Bauhaus principles: Image:Futura T.GIF. Eric Gill of England designed the Gill Sans typeface (1927), which was also identified with this movement, although it is more ornate:Image:Gill Sans T.GIF. The unique Metro T was designed by the American designer William Addison Dwiggins in the late 1920s: Image:Metro T.GIF. The art-deco-inspired Industria T, designed by Neville Brody in 1984 for the graphically daring English magazine The Face was also new: Image:Industria T.gif. The Lithos T designed by Adobe Systems in 1989 was unique for the thinness of its lines:Image:Lithos T.GIF. The Shadow T, Image:Shadow T.gif, was designed by Herbert Bayer (1900-1985).
[edit] Minuscule
The Roman cursive (informal) minuscule t (used from ca. 300 to 600 A.D.) was often drawn with the crossbar below the top of the letter: Image:Roman Cursive Miniscule T.gif.
The half uncial originated in the 500s and was popular in England from 600 to about 1150. It marked a departure from the uncial version (used from the second century on), which looked much like a small capital T. It closely resembled a lower-case t, but it was not written together with capitals. Instead, a letter beginning a sentence was enlarged (though not always). The first script to use true upper- and lower-case forms together was Carolingian minuscule (used from the A.D. 700s on). Likewise, Greek used only upper-case Ts until the A.D. 800s.
Normally, a manuscript, lowercase t is written in two strokes. The half-uncial and the Gothic t are exceptions to this, both of which are written in three. The half-uncial t's downstroke was also much more curved. Below is a Gothic t:
Image:Standard Manuscript T.gif Image:Gothic Miniscule T.gif
Some write a simplified Gothic with two strokes, although this version can lead to the mistake of waiting too long to turn the pen's nib, resulting in a downstroke that is too long. Some also added hairlines apparently with a crow quill afterward (as shown in the first diagram above). When writing Gothic letters, the pen is held at a horizontal angle of 40 degrees. A softer script was in use in southern Europe around the same time, called Rotunda: Image:Rotunda T.gif. Germany developed another type of black letter, called Fraktur, which remained popular from the mid-1400s: Image:Fraktur T.gif; Image:Fraktur T 2.gif.
The Carolingian minuscule t looks like a small-capital t with a curved tail. It was a combination of the half uncial and cursive ts: Image:Carolingian Miniscule t.gif. A variation of this had a crossbar below the top of the letter.
Insular minuscule ts look similar to this, except that the tail tapers off, and then grows again at the very end. This is called a fishtail serif.
Some writers have used terminal stroke flourishes to fill in lines at the end of paragraphs. These have been used on all letters, including t. These are avoided for very large gaps.
Image:T with Terminal-Stroke Flourish.gif
Today, ts are drawn with the crossbar aligned with the script's x-height, although it is considered acceptable to place the bar slightly below it. The top and base of the t can be handled in a number of different ways. In many typefaces the t's top ends in a point with bracketing back to the crossbar on the left side, in others it is clipped at a pronounced angle, and in still others it is simply flat. The base of the t can also appear flat, as it does in Americana; as a soft curve, as in Garamond; or as a very tight hook, as can be seen in Clarendon's t.
[edit] Cursive
Connected ts are crossed after each word (rather than each letter) is written. Below are some common cursive ts.
Image:Cursive T (version 2).jpg Image:Cursive lowercase t.jpg
The ts above are written much like copperplate letters (popular in the 18th century), except that uppercase copperplate crossbars are usually more curved on the left. The ascenders on lowercase copperplate ts don't rise so high, either. (They usually rise midway between the x height and the cap height.) Finally, copperplate ts have different thicknesses for the downstroke versus the crossbar and connectives (connecting lines). The latter two are thin and the former is thick and squared at the top (called a shade). Copperplate letters are also very slanted --about 36º (Image:Script T.gif).
The German cursive form used from 1915 to 1941 is called sütterlin: Image:Sütterlin letter T.png. In the modern Greek running hand, a capital tau is written just as any other script T: Image:Script T.gif.
In cursive scripts, the t is drawn with a thin-pointed pen, unlike most of the earlier examples, which are drawn with wider nibs. Thus, the pen angle can be changed to face the direction of each stroke. In cursive scripts such as these, connectives are at the bottom of each side of a letter. In Italic cursive, they (called joins here) are often heavier and at the top:
Image:Italic Cursive T.gif
Unlike copperplate, Italics usually slant by only about 10º, so it is easy to exaggerate the angle. When such letters are written, the pen is held at an angle of 45º.
[edit] Other styles
The forms t can take are numberless. Here is a small sample:
[edit] English pronunciation
In English, the letter t represents a voiceless alveolar stop, produced by the release of breath blocked by the tongue being placed against the roof of the mouth behind the front teeth. Specifically, first, the front and sides of the tongue contact the alveolar ridge anteriorly and laterally. Lip configuration may vary depending on phonetic context. The velopharyngeal port remains closed. The vocal folds are abducted. Air pressure built up behind the obstruction is released by lowering the tongue, producing a noise burst.
The aspiration of /t/ is slight after s, the t in stub being less forceful than in tub and resembling /d/ (to native speakers) if produced in isolation. Before another stop, or /m/ or in syllable-final position, /t/ may occasion no audible release of breath, or be glottalized, as in hatpin, atmosphere, Wait! Before syllabic /l/, and /n/ as well as before /ɚ/ (in rhotic accents) the breath may be released nasally (bitten) or past the sides of the tongue (little) or its tip (falter). Because of ts curt sound, the letter is often used as a final consonant in swearwords.
Kenneth Pike in 1943 proposed a formula for the phoneme /t/:
MaIlDeCVvelcAPpaatdtltnransfsSiFSs
The key to the first of these features is: M mechanism, a air stream, I initiator, l lung air, D direction, e egressive, C controlling mechanism, V valvate stricture, A acme, P primary, p point of articulation, a alveolar, a articulator, t tongue tip, etc.
A different principle of iconicity has been the basis for the design of organic alphabets, which have been proposed in a tradition from Francis Lodwick (1686, Essay towards an Universal Alphabet), and so on until the Shaw alphabet (Shaw 1962). In organic alphabets, the letters are composed of graphic elements which are an arbitrary representation of the articulatory features of the sound which they represent. But there is a diagrammatic iconicity in the systematic combination of these elements into letters: related articulatory features are represented by graphic elements of similar shapes. The alphabet is thus a code with first and second articulation.
In the case of t, this means that its shape is closely related to d (it's voiced equivalent). Compare the Shaw 
, /t/, to 
, /d/; and the Jones-Passy (1907) Image:Jones-Passy T.GIF/t/, to Image:Jones-Passy D.gif /d/.
Moriz Thausing (1838-1884) developed a pyramid of sounds with a at the top (as what he called the "natural sound"). T is on the third side, preceded by /s/ and followed by /d/.<ref>Moriz Thausing, Das natürliche Lautsystem der menschlichen Sprache (1863)</ref>
[edit] Glottalized t
In some accents, especially in Britain, the tongue may not touch the roof of the mouth, the t being spoken as a glottal stop, as for example in London and Glasgow working-class pronunciations of a bit of butter.
[edit] Flapped t
In American and Australian English, /t/ may be voiced and flapped, between a stressed vowel and another vowel, sounding a lot like /d/ (which is also flapped in this position). This makes virtual homophones of such pairs as atom/Adam, latter/ladder, waiting/wading. It is also heard sporadically in British English, especially in certain rapid colloquial expressions, such as I'd better go, get out, and not a hope.
[edit] Palatalized t
(1) When /t/ palatalized before u, it represents the affricate otherwise spelled ch as in church: before -ure (capture, culture, fracture, legislature, picture, temperature), before -ual (actual, intellectual, perpetual), and in some other environments (century, fortune, statue, virtue). Compare palatalized d, s, z in verdure, closure, seizure. (2) This affricate value also occurs before i in the ending -stion (question, digestion, combustion) and in Christian, and before e in righteous. However, in precise, conservative speech, the value of t in such words may be /t/ followed by a y-sound rather than /tʃ/. (3) Elsewhere, when followed by unstressed i and another vowel, t is commonly palatalized to produce the voiceless palato-alveolar fricative sh- sound. This value of ti is found in such words as inertia, patient, ratio, nasturtium, and the proper names Domitian, Horatio, Titian, but particularly in the endings -tial (palatial, essential, initial, partial, potential, presidential, substantial), -tious (conscientious, superstitious, vexatious), and the hundreds of -tion words (association, completion, discretion, ignition, motion, solution). Some of these also have a preceding consonant: action, infarction, mention, adoption. In words ending in -tiate, etc., the i usually remains syllabic: negotiate, substantiate. (4) Uniquely, equation may be heard with zh, rhyming with invasion. Occasionally, some of these words are pronounced carefully with non-palatalized t heard as /s/: inertia, negotiate.
[edit] Silent t
(1) In word- and syllable-final position in loans from French, both early and recent: ballet, beret, bouquet, buffet, cabaret, chalet, crochet, croquet, depot, mortgage, parquet, potpourri, trait, valet. (2) Elided after s following a stressed vowel: before /l/, especially in the terminal syllable -le, in castle, nestle, pestle, trestle, wrestle, bristle, epistle, gristle, mistletoe, thistle, whistle, apostle, jostle, throstle, bustle, hustle, rustle; before /n/, especially the terminal element -en, in chasten, hasten, fasten, christen, glisten, listen, moisten; and in isolated words such as Christmas, postman, waistcoat. (3) Elided after f in soften and often in often. (4) In boatswain, the elision is reflected in such alternative spellings as bo 's'n, bosun. (5) The historical function of t before ch, typically after short vowels as in match, fetch, pitch, botch, hutch, is the equivalent of doubling a simple letter, but is in present-day English redundant. The redundancy is particularly apparent in ditch/rich, hutch/much.
[edit] Voiced and voiceless th
This digraph is regularly used to represent a common, characteristically English phoneme, the dental fricative, both voiced /ð/ as in this and voiceless /θ/ as in thin. The former is a sound between d and t, and the latter between t and s; so that foreigners whose native language does not contain these sounds, often say "dis" and "sing" for this and thing, or nossing for nothing. The tongue lies very flat during pronunciation.
Of the two th-sounds, the sonant (i.e., the voiced consonant) is much the more frequent, owing chiefly to the constant recurrence of the pronominal words, particularly the, in which it is found; it is nearly 4 per cent of our utterance, while the surd (voiceless) is less than two thirds of one per cent.
In Old English, the sounds were represented interchangeably by the runic letter Thorn (þ) and Eth (ð), a modification of the letter d. In the earliest known Old English writings in the Roman alphabet thorn was represented by th, the voiced spirant being often represented by d /д/ (sometimes by th). Before 700 probably, the character ð, formed by a bar across the stem of д, was introduced; it appears in a charter of Wihtræd, king of Kent, 700-715.<ref>Henry Sweet, The oldest English texts [Early English Text Society: 1885], p. 428</ref> In the 8th century apparently, the thorn, Þ, was adopted from the Runic futhorc, the earliest charter showing it being one of Coenwulf, king of Mercia, of 811;<ref>Sweet, op. cit. 456</ref> but it was not much used until late in the 9th century. In later times its manuscript form approached, and at times became identical with, that of y (the latter being sometimes distinguished by having a dot placed over it). As the continental type used by William Caxton had no Þ, its place in print was usually supplied by th for both sounds and in all positions. But in Scotland, the early printers, especially in the demonstrative and pronominal words, continued the Þ as y, as in ye, yis, yat, you--"thou," a practice also common in England in manuscripts, and hardly yet extinct.
In a few compounds, as anthill, outhouse, lighthouse, Chatham, Wytham, Yetholm, etc.,t and h come together but do not form a digraph. In a few proper names and other words derived from or influenced by French, as Thomas, Thompson, thyme, th is pronounced as t.
[edit] Pronunciation difficulties
The first sounds babies learn after 2 months are vowels and dorsals. Dorsals disappear during babbling (6 months on). Coronals like /t/ appear after about 7 or 8 months simultaneously with labials when the mouth is more developed. Because they are more difficult, fricative sounds such as /θ/ and /s/ are often replaced by plosive sounds such as /p/ and /t/: for example, shoe as /tu:/ and fish as /pɪ/. /θ/ and /ð/ (along with /ʒ/) are the last sounds that children learn. It can take up to 4 ½ years to learn them. Less commonly, /n/, /m/, /g/ and /k/ are replaced by /t/. Even less common, but known to occur, is the substitution of labials with /t/. /θ/ is at times replaced by /t/, as they both involve the tip of the tongue in articulation. Likewise, /θ/ often takes the place of /ð/ as the former is less complex (i.e., it does not involve voicing).
In adults, substitution patterns reverse themselves. T is rarely substituted for other sounds. /ʔ/ at times replaces /t/. T is also more likely to be mis-pronounced as /p/, /k/, /d/, or /tʃ/ than the other way around.
Lisping involves the incorrect pronunciation of certain sounds, chiefly s and z, in ordinary speech. The most common type of error involves the substitution of a surd (voiceless) th sound for s and a sonant (voiced) th for z. Similar sound substitutions may occur for sh and ch.
In the condition of a tongue-tie (ankyloglossia), the only limitation of articulation to be expected is the decreased ability to protrude the tongue tip between the teeth for the English th and the trilling lingual r in southern German, Latin, and Slavic languages. Lingual-alveolar sounds such as /t/ are produced with the top of the tongue tip and therefore, they can be produced with very little tongue elevation or mobility. The most the tongue needs to protrude is to the back of the maxillary incisors for production of /θ/.
In evaluating the effect of ankyloglossia on speech, therefore, it is important to focus on lingual-alveolar sounds (particularly /l/) and interdental sounds (voiced and voiceless th). Tongue-tie could be considered a contributing factor if the child cannot produce these sounds, even with the alternate placement noted above, and all other speech sounds are produced normally. Tongue tie may also be a bigger problem if there is oral-motor dysfunction as well.
[edit] English lexis
[edit] Morphology
[edit] Double t
(1) Syllables containing a stressed short vowel double a final t before a suffix that begins with a vowel: mat/matted/matting, bet/betting, fit/fitted/fitter/fittest, rot/rotted/rotting, cut/cutting/cutter, regret/regretted/regretting (contrast wait/waited/waiting, visit/visited/visiting). Format commonly has formatted/formatting, while benefit is found with benefited/benefiting and, less commonly, benefitted/benefitting. (2) Disyllables commonly have medial tt following a stressed short vowel: batter, better, bitten, bottle, butter. (3) t is doubled when the Latin prefix ad- is assimilated to a stem beginning with t: attain, attend, attract. (4) Some cognate words vary in their doubling: Britain/Brittany, catty/caterwaul, letter/literate, matter/material. (5) Few words other than proper names end in tt: watt originated in the proper name Watt; matt, nett are alternatives for mat (not shiny), net (not gross); mitt is a clipped form of mitten; putt originated as a Scottish variant of put; butt (noun) may have retained double t so as to be distinguished from but.
[edit] Inflectional t
(1) Regular verbs form their past tense with -(e) d, but many irregular verbs use t: deal/dealt, feel/felt. (2) Some have alternative forms, especially in British English (burnt/burned, learnt/learned, spoilt/spoiled), the t-versions often being favoured as adjectival forms (burnt papers, badly learnt lines, spoilt food). (3) Some reduce a doubled consonant before t: smelt/smelled, spelt/spelled, spilt/spilled, and formerly also past/passed. (4) Some shorten their stem vowel (but not its spelling) before t: dreamt/dreamed, leant/leaned, leapt/leaped. (5) Many shorten sound and spelling before t: cleave/cleft, creep/crept, feel/felt, keep/kept, kneel/knelt, leave/left, lose/lost, shoot/shot, sleep/slept, sweep/swept, weep/wept. (6) Some substitute -t for final -d in their root: bend/bent, build/built, gild/gilt (also gilded), gird/girt (also girded), lend/lent, rend/rent, send/sent, spend/spent. (7) Some make more substantial changes to the vowel and/or final consonant of the stem in adding -aught or -ought: beseech/besought, bring/brought, buy/bought, catch/caught, seek/sought, teach/taught, think/thought. (8) Some have stems with final -t which is preserved without inflection in all tenses: burst, cast, cost, cut, hit, hurt, let, put, quit, set, shut, slit, split, thrust. (9) Some change their stem-vowel, but not final t: fight/fought, light/lit, meet/met.
[edit] Epenthetic t
(1) The letter t and sound /t/ have sometimes intruded in words originally without them: peasant, tapestry (from French paysan, tapisserie). (2) In against, amidst, amongst, betwixt, whilst, t has arisen parasitically, perhaps by analogy with the superlative inflection of adjectives.
[edit] Variations
Some variation occurs between t and other letters in related words, as between benefit/beneficial, space/spatial, extent/extend/extension (contrast retention).
[edit] Morphological th
The ending -th was formerly a present-tense verb inflection (for example, maketh for Modern English makes), and occurs as the ordinal ending for numerals (fourth, fifth, twentieth, hundredth, thousandth, but with written assimilation of preceding t in eighth, from eight). It creates abstract nouns from several common adjectives often suggesting measurement: breadth, depth, length, strength, warmth, width (but only t after gh in drought, height, sight).
[edit] Contractions
[edit] ’t
(1) A shortened form of it, initially or finally, as in ’tis, ’twas, ’twere, ’twill, ’twould; do’t, see’t, on’t. It was formerly often written without apostrophe as one word. (2) A dialectal shortened form of the relative pronoun or conjunction that. The first recorded usage of this is in March, 1867 in the Our Young Folks, page 130.
[edit] t’
(1) a shortened form of to, before a vowel, formerly in use, often combined with the following word, as tabandon "to abandon," tabyde "to abide"; so taxe "to ask," tescape, t’attempt; also, with omission of h, tave, tafe, "to have," ta to hae, "to have"; tadwellyd "to have dwelt," talyved "to have lived," etc. The first recorded usage of this is around 1200 in The Ormulum. Before a vowel, t' is usually written and pronounced as if appended to the following word. In "He can't make up his mind if he wants one or t'other" (= He can't make up his mind if he wants one or the other) t'other is pronounced as if spelled "tother". Sometimes it is pronounced as a glottal stop. Before a consonant, t' is pronounced as a glottal stop following the preceding word. In I'm going down t' road to see me mam ( = I'm going down the road to see my mother), down t' is pronounced as down followed by a glottal stop. (2) North England dialectal form of the, before a vowel or consonant: as in t’airm, t’bairn, t’bottle, t’faarm, t’heart, t’man, t’measter; sometimes also written without apostrophe: tman, tnail, trasps, twasp.
[edit] Frequency
T is the most commonly used consonant, and the second most common letter, in the English language. The most common letter beginning a word is t. But it ranks fifth in ending words (behind e, s, n, and d).
Nevertheless, its frequency varies by setting. In religious, political, and physical-science texts, it is the second most frequent letter. In literary criticism, it is the fourth most common, and in chemistry, it is the fifth most common. The sound /t/ is the fourth most common in English, after /ə/, /ɪ/, and /n/; with a frequency of about 6.42%. Oddly, the sound represented by th /θ/ is the 39th most common, but it's voiced conterpart /ð/ ranks eighth.
In the case of consonants, T is usually followed by h, r, or w (as in three, track, or twice).<ref>The Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics vol. 6. (Pergamon Press, 1994) p. 3140.</ref> T is never followed by j, q, or x; or preceded by j, k, q, v, or z. It is very rarely followed by b, f, j, k, n, v, or p; or preceded by k, d, or w. In terms of vowels, it is commonly followed by e or i. It is most frequently preceded by a, or less so by i or n. The usual consonant cluster beginning a word in which t is allowed to participate is st.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Followed by | 36.6 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 76.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 161.4 | 76.0 | 0.03 | 0.3 | 6.4 | 1.3 | 0.5 |
| Preceded by | 77.3 | 0.5 | 25.5 | 0.4 | 24.1 | 8.2 | 1.4 | 6.7 | 65.1 | 0.01 | 0.1 | 7.5 | 0.8 | 57 |
| O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | space | ||
| Followed by | 51.7 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 31.8 | 21.0 | 8.8 | 17.7 | 0.1 | 4.8 | 0.03 | 12.6 | 0.50 | 187.6 | |
| Preceded by | 17.8 | 5.1 | 0.0 | 23.2 | 18.2 | 17.7 | 18.6 | 0.02 | 0.4 | 2.8 | 1.1 | 0.05 | 100.6 |
[edit] In other languages
Image:LSF LettreT.jpg In general, /t/ is a very common sound outside of English, but /θ/ is rare. Several varieties of a t-sound occur in different languages, according as the flow of the breath is stopped by bringing the tip or front of the tongue into contact with different points between the edge of the upper teeth and the roof of the palate. On account of the hardness of this letter, it is used to separate liquids or vowels, as in the German words kennt-niss, öffentlich, and the French fera-t-il, y-a-t-il. The contact of the tip of the tongue with the teeth gives the true dental t, which is common in continental European languages, and very distinct in Anglo-Irish. The Indian languages, Aryan as well as Dravidian, distinguish two kinds of t, the dental, and the retracted or "cerebral" (mūrdhanya), in Sanskrit त and ट, of which the latter is formed by contact of the retracted tip of the tongue with the roof of the palate. The English t is formed between these two extreme positions, the contact being with the back of the gum or the front margin of the palate; its sound is much closer to the cerebral than to the dental, and in representation of English words, the cerebral is regularly put for English t. In the Roman transliteration of Indian words it is usual to write t for the dental, and to distinguish the cerebral as . The Semitic languages also distinguish two t-sounds, one, the Hebrew tau (ת), and Arabic taa (isolated and final, ت, medial and initial, ﺜ) is dental; the other, Phoenician and Hebrew teth (Ⓧ and ט), Arabic a (ط), said to be formed by contact of the blade of the tongue with the palate; this also has been romanized as , though distinguished in Urdu from the cerebral . Hebrew also has ד (daleth) and ז (zayin), which can easily be confused with ts, but are pronounced /d/ and /z/, respectively. Arabic also has ث (thah), pronounced /θ/.
| Phoneme | Phoenician | Early Hebrew | Early Aramaic | Late Aramaic | Modern Hebrew |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| /t/ | Image:PhoenicianT-01.png | Image:Early Hebrew T.jpg | Image:Early Aramaic T.jpg | Image:Late Aramaic T.jpg | ת |
| /t̪/ | 
| Image:Early Hebrew .jpg | ⊕ | Image:Late Aramaic .jpg | ט |
In Greek, the Phoenician dental teth (Ⓧ) was adopted as ⊕. During the Classical Greek period (5th century on), it became Image:Sun symbol.svg. After around 275 B.C. it became θ. During this evolutionary period, this θ aspirate was a voiceless stop followed by a strong expiration: τ^{h} as in hothouse, (though here h is in a different syllable from the stop). Thus, θέλω was τ̔έλω, Cp. ἐφ' ᾧ for ἐπ(ὶ) ̔ῷ, etc. Thus, thelô was telô. After a.d 300 (probably) θ became a spirant, as th in theatre. The neglect of the h in Latin representations of θ possibly shows that this sound consisted of a stop + h. Thus, tus = θύος. In late Laconian θ passed into ς (σηρίον ̂ θηρίον "wild beast"). τ become θ when the next word began with rough breathing: τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ̂ θἠμέρᾳ, the day. Attic has ττ for σς of Ionic and most other dialects: πρά̄ττω "do" for πρά̄σσω, θάλαττα, "sea" for θάλασσα, κρείττων "stronger" for κρείσσων. ττ is used for that σς which is regularly formed by κ or χ and ι (sometimes by τ, θ, and ι). βτ, φτ become πτ: (τετρῑβ-ται) τέτρῑπται "has been rubbed" from τρί̄β-ω "rub"; (γεγραφ-ται) γέγραπται "has been written" from γράφ-ω "write." γτ, χτ become κτ: (λελεγ-ται) λέλεκται has been said from λέγ-ω "say"; (βεβρεχ-ται) βέβρεκται "has been moistened" from βρέχ-ω "moisten." πθ, βθ become</i> φθ: (ἐπεμπ-θην) ἐπέμφθην "I was sent" from πέμπ-ω "send"; (ἐτρῑβ-θη) ἐτρί̄φθη "it was rubbed" (τρί̄β-ω "rub"). κθ, γθ become χθ: (ἐπλεκ-θη) ἐπλέχθη "it was plaited" (πλέκ-ω "plait") (ἐλεγ-θη) ἐλέχθη it was said (λέγ-ω "say"). ττ, τθ remain unchanged in ̓ Αττικός, ̓ Ατθίς "Attic," and in κατθανεῖν "die." δ and θ become τ before ς: ποδ-σι, ὀρνῑθ-σι become ποτ-σι, ὀρνῑτ-σι. κ[ιγλιδε], χ[ιγλιδε] become ττ (= σς 78): φυλάττω "guard" for φυλακ-[ιγλιδε]ω (cp. φυλακή "guard"), ταράττω "disturb" for ταραχ-[ιγλιδε]ω (cp. ταραχή "disorder"). τ[ιγλιδε], θ[ιγλιδε] after long vowels, diphthongs, and consonants become ς; after short vowels τ[ιγλιδε], θ[ιγλιδε] become σς (not = ττ), which is simplified to ς. In the above cases τ[ιγλιδε] passed into τς. Thus παντ-[ιγλιδε]α, παντσα, πανσσα, πάνσα (Cretan, Thessalian), πα̂σα. τ[ιγλιδε], θ[ιγλιδε] become ττ: μέλιττα bee from μελιτ-ια (cp. μέλι, -ιτος honey), κορύττω "equip" from κορυθ-[ιγλιδε]ω (cp. κόρυς, -υθος "helmet"). χαρίεσσα "graceful" and other feminine adjectives in -εσσα are poetical, and therefore do not assume the native Attic prose form in ττ. ττ from τ[ιγλιδε], θ[ιγλιδε] is due to analogy, chiefly of ττ from κ[ιγλιδε]. τ before final ι often becomes ς. Thus, τίθησι "places" for τίθητι; also in πλούσιος "rich" for πλουτ-ιος (cp. πλου̂τος "wealth"). ντ before final ι becomes νς, which drops n: ἔχουσι "they have" for ἔχοντι. Ioric often retains τ (τίθητι, ἔχοντι). σέ is not from (Dor.) τέ (cp. Lat. te), no is σοί from τοί. A smooth stop, as τ, brought before the rough breathing by elision, crasis, or in forming compounds, is made rough, becoming an aspirate (θ). New Ionic generally leaves τ before the rough breathing: ἀπ' οὑ̂, μετίημι, τοὔτερον. But in compounds θ may appear: μέθοδος "method" (μετά "after" + ὁδός "way"). In reduplication initial θ is changed to τ. Thus, πέφευγα for φε-φευ-γα, perfect of φεύγω "flee," τί-θη-μι "place" for θι-θη-μι, κέ-χη-να for χε-χη-να perf. of χάσκω "gape." In the first aorist passive imperative -θι becomes -τι after -θη-, as in λύ-θη-τι for λυ-θη-θι; elsewhere -θι is retained (γνω̂θι). In the aorist passive, θε- and θυ- are changed to τε- and τυ- in ἐ-τέ-θην was placed (τίθημι) and ἐ-τύ-θην was sacrificed (θύ̄ω).<ref>Smyth, Herbert Weir. A Greek Grammar for Colleges, 7. ISBN 0674362500.</ref> In print, taus are sometimes flourished: Image:Flourished Tau.gif.
In Russian, the letter тэ (te) (T, lowercase т) is the twentieth letter, preceded by С and followed by У. It is pronounced /t/, except before b, where it becomes /tʲ/. The t of a Russian word like tam “there” differs from English in its dental articulation, in other words, in being produced by contact of the tip of the tongue with the upper teeth, not, as in English, by contact of the tongue back of the tip with the gum ridge above the teeth; moreover, it differs from the t of teem also in the absence of a marked “breath release” before the following vowel is attached, so that its acoustic effect is of a more precise, “metallic” nature than in English. The sound /ts/ is represented by Ц (tse)--a letter of unknown origin. These two letters are easily written as a ligature: Ҵ, ҵ. In Cyrillic cursive the letter is written as Т; т. In the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, т is the twenty-second letter. Its name is т and it has the sound of the English t. It is preceded by С and followed by Ћ. In Slavic languages such as these /k/ became /ts/ in their period of common evolution. Abkhaz, Ҭ and ҭ represent /t/, while Т and т represent /t'/. Roman Catholic slavs used the Glagolitic tverdo--
--for /t/ and tsi--
--for /ts/ until the 17th century. These symbols probably share the same origin as the Cyrillic ones.
Celtic as spoken in the British Isles was sometimes written with runes, but usually in the ogham alphabet from 300 A.D. or so on. T was represented in ogham by the letter tinne: Image:Ogham letter tinne.svg. Oghams began to fall out of use with the coming of Christianity in the A.D. 400s, and became extinct in the 600s. In Irish Gaelic, there are /t/ and /t'/, the apostrophe in the latter representing an ejective sound (that is, produced on a flow of air initiated by an upward movement of the larynx).
Of East-Asian languages, the Thai, ฏ (to patak) and ต (to tao) are pronounced /t/. ฐ, ฒ, ท, and ธ are pronounced /tʰ/ (a voiceless alveolar plositive). In the Korean Hangul alphabet, ᄃ (tikeut), is pronounced /t/, ㅌ (thieuth) is /tʰ/, and ㄸ (ssangtikeut) is /'t/, having more emphasis and muscular tension during pronunciation. There is also ㅜ, which represents /u/. T in Chamorro is pronounced /t/, and there is no /θ/ in that language.
As for other languages, in Albanian, th is considered a distinct letter, and given the 29th position in the alphabet, between T and U. It represents a voiceless dental fricative (/θ/). In Eastern Armenian, there is Ե--in lowercase ե--but they represent /e/ (In Western, /ε/). տ and Տ represent /t/. /tʰ/ is represented by Թ, թ. /tz/ is ծ, Ծ. In Western Armenian, /t/ is represented by Դ--in lowercase, դ--and թ--in lowercase, Թ. ձ, Ձ is /ts/. ը and Ը are /ut/, and ց and Ց are /tz/. In other words, Western Armenian alphabet has five t-like sounds. In Finnish, t is pronounced /t/, and there is no /θ/ sound.
[edit] Germanic languages
In German, t is the seventh most common letter, with a frequency of 6.15%.<ref>German Wikipedia article on "T"</ref> Although the English ts of hats is merely a t followed by a functionally independent s, the ts of the German word Zeit has an integral value equivalent, say, to the t of the English word tide. At the end of a syllable, the d is pronounced like a t: Leid [lait] or like the last d in Deutschland [doitʃ-lant]. The Latin tu has its equivalent in German as du, while gott and tag of this language begot the god and day of English. The Germans wrote their own language successively as Teutsch and Deutsch. One of the main differences between Upper and Lower German is that the Lower German, almost invariably, puts a d where the Upper German has a t. It is not known whether there existed a /θ/ in ancient German dialects, pronounced with a lisp, like our th; but it seems, nevertheless, that they were sensible of a sound between t and d, and made various attempts to express it. The unknown translator of a piece of Isidorus, considered the most ancient German writer, uses erdha for erde, earth; dhuo for da, there; dhanne for dann, then; dher for der, the masculine article; dhiz for dies, this. Yet he does not add an h to every d, and writes ahgrunidiu, mittungardes, herduuovi, &c. The th appears more rarely in his works; yet he writes anthlutte for antlitz, face. The next writer in the order of time, Kero, uses neither dh nor th, and writes teil for theil, part; tuan for thun, to do; tat for that, deed. Yet Otfried, who seems to have reflected more deeply on his language, revived the th. However this may be, it is certain that the ancient pronunciation of the German th is lost; and there exists, at present, in that idiom, no middle sound between t and d, though the Germans use the th in writing.<ref> Encyclopædia americana.</ref>
In Dutch, ’t is used as a contraction of het, "the."
In Icelandic Þ and ð were used promiscuously in the older manuscripts, the very oldest using Þ almost exclusively. In Modern Icelandic Þ is written initially to express the sound of a hard th, ð medially and finally to express that of soft th; and there can be no doubt that this usage corresponds with the old pronunciation: Þing "parliament," faðir "father," við "against." In such combinations as pð the ð must of course be pronounced /Þ/. Z often stands for ðs as well as ts, as in Þer Þykkizk "ye seem" = *Þykkið-sk, Vest-firzkr (belonging to the West Firths) = -*firðskr (forðr, "firth"). Inflectional t is generally doubled after a long accented vowel: far "few" neuter fatt (compare allr "all," neut. allt), sa "I saw," satt "thou sawest". There are two classes of verbs in Icelandic: strong and weak. Strong verbs are conjugated partly by means of gradation, weak verbs by adding ð (d, t). The ð of the plural is dropped before Þit (ye two) and Þer (ye): gefi Þer, gafu Þit. There is a middle voice, which ends in -mk in the first person singular and plural, the resulting ts and ðs being written z. There are three conjugations of weak verbs. All those of the first conjugation have mutated vowels in the present, and form their preterite with ð (d, t). The preterite often has an i before the ð. The inflectional ð becomes d after long syllables ending in l or n: sigla "sail," siglda; nefna "name," nefnda, nefndr. Unlike most Germanic countries, Iceland didn't use runes very often before 1200. The runic letter tiwaz, Image:Runic letter tiwaz.png, was used from A.D. 200 to about 1200 in Germanic writing. The oldest inscriptions are in Denmark. It was probably derived from either the Eruscan or Greek t. Like all runes, its thickness is consistent throughout. The letter remained unchanged until it was replaced by t. In England, it has been found from between the mid-6th and the mid-10th centuries. In Scandinavia, no runic manuscript writings exist beyond the 1200s, although runic inscriptions from as recently as the 1600s.
[edit] Italic languages
As an initial, t is, in pure Latin words, followed by no consonant except r: traho, tremo, tribuo, etc.; the combinations tl and tm are found only in words borrowed from the Greek: Tlepolemus, tmesis, Tmolus. Hence an initial t occurring in the ancient language before l (like an initial d before v,) is rejected in classical Latin: lātus (participle of fero) for tlatus, from root tol- of tollo, tuli; compare with TLAÔ, tlêtos; even when softened by a sibilant, the combination of t and l in stlata (genus navigii), stlembus (gravis, tardus), stlis, stlocus, was avoided, and, except in the formal language of law, which retained stlitibus judicandis, the forms lis, locus remained the only ones in use, though the transitional form slis occurs twice in very old inscriptions. Before a vowel or r, the original Indo-European t always retained its place and character. Between two vowels t and tt were frequently confounded, and in some words the double letter became established, although the original form had but one t; thus, quattuor, cottidie, littera, stand in the best manuscripts and inscriptions.
The aspiration of t did not come into general use till the golden age; hence, CARTACINIENSIS, on the Columna Rostrata; whereas in Cicero we have Carthago, like Cethegus, etc.
T is assimilated to s in passus from patior, quassus from quatio, fassus from fateor, missus from mitto, equestris from eques (equit-), etc. It is wholly suppressed before s in usus, from utor; in many nominatives of the third declension ending in s: civitas (root civitat, genitive civitatis), quies (quiet, quietis), lis (lit, litis), dos (dot, dotis), salus (salut, salutis), amans (amant, amantis), mens (ment, mentis), etc.; and likewise in flexi, flexus, from flecto, and before other letters, in remus, compare ratis; Greek eretmos; in penna; root pat-, "to fly"; Greek petomai, etc. In late Latin the vulgar language often dropped t before r and before vowels; hence such forms as mari, quaraginta, donaus, are found for matri, quatriginta (quad-), donatus, in inscriptions; compare the French mère, quarante, and donné.<ref>Smyth, Herbert Weir. “Table of Contents”, A Greek Grammar for Colleges. ISBN 0674362500.</ref> As d is no more than a voiced t, we find in some manuscripts set in place of sed, quot for quod, haut for haud, and adque for atque.
T is the most common consonant--and second most common letter--in English. In French, it is the second most common consonant, and the fifth-commonest letter. In that language, t (té) is pronounced as in English. Linked ds are pronounced the same (as in vendil). The té euphonique forms a link between the verbal endings -a, e, and the pronouns il, elle, and on (e.g., Va-t-il?; Ira-t-elle?; Donne-t-on?). In French, t’is a clitic form of te, "you". (e.g., Je t’ai vu "I saw you"). It is also used improperly as an enclitic form of tu: T’as vu mon frère? "You seen my brother? [sic]."
In Spanish, te (pronounced /te/) is the seventh most common consonant, and the 11th most common letter. In that language, as in Italian, t is pronounced /t̪/, with the tip of the tongue touching the back of the top row of teeth, rather than the alveolar ridge above the top row. The tongue also slightly touches the bottom row and in this way, stops air from flowing. Like all Spanish plositive consonants, t is pronounced with slightly less force in the middle of a word than as an initial. This has caused it to disappear in certain cases (e.g., Latin tantum > Spanish tan, "such";) and change into its softer relative, d, in others (Latin pratum > prado, "field"; acutem > agudo, "sharp"). Where it has changed into a d in Spanish, it has been dropped in French (L. rotam > Sp. rueda > Fr. roue; L. setam > seda > soie; L. acutem > Sp. agudo > Fr. aigu). This phenomenon is still occurring today at the end of a syllable in flowing speech, where it is pronounced as a sonorant d (e.g., atmósfera, "atmosphere," ritmo, "rhythm"). Likewise when ending words, as in vermut, pronounced [veɾmu]. The pair ct in Latin largely became ch /tʃ/ in Spanish (e.g., noctem > noche "night"; lactum > leche, "milk"; etc.) The letters t and h, are not found together in Spanish, except in some proper nouns and foreign words (mainly Greek). Even this practice, however, is dying out. TT is usually changed to t, even when writing foreign words. Further, it is rare for a word to end in t in Spanish. In Catalan, the opposite is true. Words that do end in t are scientific (e.g., cénit, "zenith" azimut, "azimuth"), or proper names from other languages, like Calmet, or Montserrat. Likewise, it is rare for a syllable to end in t (examples include at-las, and ist-mo, "isthmus"). The only liquid that is normally used with t is r (e.g., trabajo, "work" trinar, "to trill" tresillo, "ombre" trono, "throne"). Sometimes l is used with it in foreign terms (e.g., tlascalteca, ahuatentle).
The Sicilian dialect of Italian has a unique t, difficult to reproduce, indicated in writing with tr; pronounced by leaning the anterior part of the tongue against the alveolus and the anterior palate, and is the surd of the cerebral consonant d. If the tongue is in a more retracted position it is the palatalized t’ of the Slavic and Hungarian languages (where it is written ty) that acoustically is much closer to the palatal k'.
Romanian has T, t (te) and Ț ț (țe), which represents /ts/.
[edit] Amerindian languages
Among the American-Indian, Inuktitut (a language in the Inuit branch of the Aleut-Inuit family) has a soft t sound close to d. There is no /θ/ sound in that language. Tutelo (a Siouan language) has /t/, although to the exclusion of /b/, /d/, /g/, and /θ/. In Chippeway (an Algonquian language), there is /t/, although /r/, /x/, /v/, and /f/ are absent.
In Nootka, there is a sound peculiar to the language, and very predominant in it, which has been noticed by other writers, particularly by Mr. Anderson, surgeon under Captain Cook's command, in 1778. It has been greatly misrepresented by the use of too many letters in a vain attempt to give its full force. The test of all such attempts is to pronounce the word so written to a native, and see if it is recognized by him. The sound — which has one or two of what may be called cognate forms — may be spelt most correctly, although still inadequately, by tl, tlh, or lh. In pronouncing, care must be taken not to introduce a vowel; and in giving the l sound the breath must be prolonged between the tongue and roof of the mouth, thus introducing the h with almost, but not quite, a hissing sound. Instances of these sounds are presented in the words Moolshitl, in which the tl is not to be pronounced [tel] Hahquatlh, and Hisoolh.<ref>http://www.canadiana.org/cgi-bin/pimg/6af452d383348a74/0700/15389/0016.pdf</ref>
If we compare the t-sounds of Haida, the Indian language spoken in the Queen Charlotte Islands, we find that precisely the same difference of articulation has a real value. In such a word as sting “two,” the t is pronounced precisely as in English, but in sta “from” the t is clearly aspirated, like that of time. In other words, an objective difference that is irrelevant in English is of functional value in Haida; from its own psychological standpoint the t of sting is as different from that of sta as, from our standpoint, is the t of time from the d of divine. Further investigation would yield the interesting result that the Haida ear finds the difference between the English t of sting and the d of divine as irrelevant as the English ear finds that of the t-sounds of sting and time.<ref>Sapir, Edward (1921). “III. The Sounds of Language”, Language: An Introduction to the Study of Speech.</ref>
In Nahuatl, /t/ is represented orthographically by the letter t. This sound corresponds closely to English t as in tick. The Nahuatl tl sound (a lateral affricate) is really one sound. It served also as a suffix.
In Quechua, the simple t is joined to vowels and pronounced dentally. Th replaces d, as in thanta, tamposo, in which the h after t, as if they were separate. In this language, the letters t, th, t’ or tt (double); tanta, meeting; thanta, cheating; tlanta or t'anta, bread. In Araucanian there is a simple t and /th/. The pronunciation of t in Guaraní is dental.
[edit] Abbreviations and symbols
[edit] References
<references/>
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
az:T bs:T ca:T cs:T sn:T co:T da:T de:T arc:T tr:T el:T es:T eo:T eu:T fr:T (lettre) gd:T gl:T ko:T hr:T ilo:T id:T it:T he:T kw:T la:T hu:T nl:T (letter) ja:T no:T nn:T pl:T pt:T ro:T ru:T (латиница) simple:T sk:T sl:T fi:T sv:T tl:T vi:T yo:T zh:T
