foneetische

Fonetische is a term used in Dutch- and Afrikaans-speaking contexts to refer to phonetics, the science of speech sounds. It covers the physical properties of sounds, their production by the vocal tract, their transmission through air, and their perception by the ear and brain. The term functions as both a noun and an adjective for analyses related to speech sounds.

Fonetische comprises three main subfields: articulatory phonetics (production), acoustic phonetics (sound waves), and auditory phonetics (perception). It also covers phonetic transcription, typically using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), to document sounds across languages.

In contrast to phonology, which studies abstract sound systems and patterns, foneetische focuses on concrete realizations and physical constraints of speech. Researchers use articulatory measurements, spectrographic analysis, and perceptual experiments to describe and compare sounds.

Methods include spectrograms, palatography, ultrasound, and MRI for visualizing articulation, along with acoustic analysis software. Applications span language teaching, speech therapy, forensic linguistics, and speech technology such as text-to-speech and automatic speech recognition.

Phonetic transcription represents sounds regardless of spelling, e.g., [p], [b], [t], [k], [s], [ʃ], [i], [a]. The field remains attentive to variation across speakers, dialects, and contexts.

See also: phonetics, phonology, IPA.