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Speech rhythm as naturally occurring and culturally transmitted behavioral patterns
Author(s) -
Ordin Mikhail
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/nyas.14234
Subject(s) - rhythm , articulation (sociology) , speech production , motor theory of speech perception , psychology , communication , cognitive psychology , biology , speech perception , computer science , speech recognition , neuroscience , perception , medicine , politics , political science , law
Rhythm is fundamental to every motor activity. Neural and physiological mechanisms that underlie rhythmic cognition, in general, and rhythmic pattern generation, in particular, are evolutionarily ancient. As speech production is a kind of motor activity, investigating speech rhythm can provide insight into how general motor patterns have been adapted for more specific use in articulation and speech production. Studies on speech rhythm may further provide insight into the development of speech capacity in humans. As speech capacity is putatively a prerequisite for developing a language faculty, studies on speech rhythm may cast some light on the mystery of language evolution in the human genus. Hereby, we propose an approach to exploring speech rhythm as a window on speech emergence in ontogenesis and phylogenesis, as well as on diachronic linguistic changes.