The voiceless retroflex lateral fricative is a type of
consonantal sound, used in some
spokenlanguages. The 'implicit'
IPA letter for this sound, ⟨ꞎ ⟩,[1] is overtly supported by the
extIPA.[2]
Some scholars[who?] posit a voiceless retroflex lateral approximant distinct from the fricative. The approximant may be represented in the IPA as ⟨ɭ̊ ⟩.
Features
Features of the voiceless retroflex lateral fricative:
Its
manner of articulation is
fricative, which means it is produced by constricting air flow through a narrow channel at the place of articulation, causing
turbulence.
Its
place of articulation is
retroflex, which prototypically means it is articulated
subapical (with the tip of the tongue curled up), but more generally, it means that it is
postalveolar without being
palatalized. That is, besides the prototypical subapical articulation, the tongue can be
apical (pointed) or, in some fricatives,
laminal (flat).
Its
phonation is voiceless, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords.
It is an
oral consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the mouth only.
It is a
lateral consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream over the sides of the tongue, rather than down the middle.