Frikativerna

Frikativerna are a class of speech sounds in phonetics, specifically consonants, produced by constricting the vocal tract so that the air is forced through a narrow channel. This constriction causes turbulence, which is the characteristic audible noise associated with fricatives. The sound is created by the friction of air passing through the narrow opening.

The production of fricatives involves the interaction of the airstream from the lungs with an articulator, such as the tongue, lips, or teeth, which creates the narrowing. The specific type of fricative depends on the place of articulation, which is where in the mouth the constriction is made, and the manner of articulation, which describes how the air is forced through.

Common fricatives in many languages include sounds like 'f' (labiodental fricative), 's' (alveolar fricative), 'sh' (postalveolar fricative), and 'th' (dental fricative). These sounds can be voiced, meaning the vocal cords vibrate during their production (like 'v', 'z', 'zh', and 'dh'), or voiceless, where the vocal cords do not vibrate (like 'f', 's', 'sh', and 'th'). The distinction between voiced and voiceless fricatives is phonemic in many languages, meaning it can change the meaning of a word. For example, in English, 'fan' and 'van' are distinct words due to the voicing of the initial fricative.