Differences in the Duration of Constriction between Korean and English Glides

Abstract

The goal of this study is to investigate the duration of the labio-velar [w] and palatal [j] constriction of glides in English and Korean and attempt to provide an explanation for Koreansdifficulties in learning English glides reported in the literature. Production data from the two languages containing glide-initial words were collected for analysis. The results show that glides in English consistently exhibit a persistent constriction that is markedly prolonged compared to Korean glides that display only a brief constriction. It is suggested that differences in duration of constriction may also explain other linguistic phenomena.