Keywords
phonology
phonological units
phonetic units
non-related languages
phoneme
syllable
stress
tone
intonation
linguistic typology
How to Cite
Abstract
The formation and organization of phonetic and phonological units represent fundamental problems in comparative linguistics and phonological typology. Although human languages employ broadly comparable articulatory and perceptual resources, individual languages organize these resources into phonological systems in different ways. This article examines the formation of phonetic and phonological units in non-related languages, focusing on segmental units, syllables, phonological words, stress, tone, and intonation. The study is based on a comparative analysis of theoretical and typological literature in phonetics and phonology. Particular attention is given to the relationship between phonetic substance and phonological structure, the role of distinctive features, and the influence of language-specific organization on the formation of linguistic units. The analysis demonstrates that phonetic units arise from articulatory and acoustic properties of speech, whereas phonological units emerge through the categorization and functional organization of these properties within a particular language system. Cross-linguistic comparison shows that languages may employ similar phonetic resources but assign them different phonological functions. Consequently, the study of non-related languages provides important evidence for distinguishing universal tendencies from language-specific structures and for understanding the interaction between phonetics and phonology.References
1. Babinski, S. (2026). Stress in Australian languages: A phonetic typology. Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 56, e5. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0025100325100832 (Cambridge University Press)
2. Chodroff, E. (2025). Phonetic universals. Annual Review of Linguistics, 11, 251-273. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-linguistics-011724-121511 (Annual Reviews)
3. Dixon, R. M. W., Aikhenvald, A. Y. (Eds.). (2002). Word: A cross-linguistic typology. Cambridge University Press. (Cambridge Assets)
4. Gussenhoven, C. (2004). The phonology of tone and intonation. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511616983 (Cambridge University Press)
5. Hyman, L. M. (2006). Word-prosodic typology. Phonology, 23(2), 225-257. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0952675706000893 (Cambridge University Press)
6. Ladefoged, P. (2009). Phonological features and their phonetic correlates. Journal of the International Phonetic Association. (Cambridge University Press)
7. Ladefoged, P. (2026). Articulatory features for describing lexical distinctions. Language. Cambridge University Press. (Cambridge University Press)
8. Ladefoged, P. (2026). What are linguistic sounds made of? Language. Cambridge University Press. (Cambridge University Press)
9. Ladefoged, P., Maddieson, I. (1996). The sounds of the world’s languages. Blackwell.
10. Trubetzkoy, N. S. (1939). Grundzüge der Phonologie. Travaux du Cercle Linguistique de Prague.
11. Chomsky, N., Halle, M. (1968). The sound pattern of English. Harper Row.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.