Voiceless labialized palatal approximant

Voiceless labialized palatal approximant
ɥ̊
j̊ʷ

The voiceless labialized palatal approximant is a type of consonantal sound, used in a few spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is ⟨ɥ̊⟩, the voiceless homologue of the voiced labialized palatal approximant. There may sometimes be phonological reasons to transcribe it ⟨j̊ʷ⟩.

It is found as a phoneme in Iaai and perhaps other languages.

Features

• Its manner of articulation is approximant, which means it is produced by narrowing the vocal tract at the place of articulation, but not enough to produce a turbulent airstream.
• Its place of articulation is called labio-palatal, which means it is labialized palatal, accomplished by raising the body of the tongue toward the palate while rounding the lips.
• Its phonation is voiceless, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords. In some languages the vocal cords are actively separated, so it is always voiceless; in others the cords are lax, so that it may take on the voicing of adjacent sounds.
• It is an oral consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the mouth only.
• It is a central consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.
• The airstream mechanism is pulmonic, which means it is articulated by pushing air solely with the lungs and diaphragm, as in most sounds.

Occurrence

Language		Word	IPA	Meaning	Notes
Chinese	Shanghainese	[pɥ̊ɥo̽ʔ¹]		'to float'	The sequence /pʰj/ is realized as [pɥ̊ɥ].
Iaai					Contrasts with the voiced /ɥ/.