The European languages with ‘th’ that you will probably be familiar with are English, Spanish, Greek and Albanian. There are other languages too (Icelandic, at least one variety of Frisian, etc.), but this is a balanced sample on WALS for the purpose of reliable comparison of languages around the world.
Considering this, What languages have a th sound?
The European languages with ‘th’ that you will probably be familiar with are English, Spanish, Greek and Albanian. There are other languages too (Icelandic, at least one variety of Frisian, etc.), but this is a balanced sample on WALS for the purpose of reliable comparison of languages around the world.
Also, Why does English have a th sound?
From a Latin perspective, the established digraph ⟨th⟩ now represented the voiceless fricative /θ/, and was used thus for English by French-speaking scribes after the Norman Conquest, since they were unfamiliar with the Germanic graphemes ð (eth) and þ (thorn).
Regarding this, Why can’t foreigners pronounce th?
And it is an unusual sound which requires you to press your tongue against your teeth. Most languages do not have these ‘th’ sounds, so most “foreigners” cannot hear the difference between a ‘th’ and a ‘t’/’d’ or an ‘s’/’z’ as effortlessly as you do.
Does Greek have the th sound?
Consonants. Like English (but unlike most languages), Greek had a TH sound. In Greek it was written with the letter theta (Θ θ). In English it is always spelled TH, just as you would imagine.
16 Related Question Answers Found
How do you sound Greek?
Do Americans pronounce th?
In the International Phonetic Alphabet the /th/ sounds are called “interdental fricatives” but Americans with good speech very rarely put their tongue between the teeth and very often don’t even use a fricative! They stop the sound instead.
Does Greek have a th sound?
Consonants. Like English (but unlike most languages), Greek had a TH sound. In Greek it was written with the letter theta (Θ θ). In English it is always spelled TH, just as you would imagine.
How do you pronounce voiced th?
Does Spanish have the th sound?
Since Spanish speakers don’t have the TH consonant sound in their language, they tend to keep the tongue inside for words with TH. … The /th/ in ‘they’ (voiced) will be replaced with a /d/ and the word will sound like ‘day’.
Does Arabic have the th sound?
Sounds in both English and Arabic The counterpart of r (ر) in Arabic, known as raa, is very different from English r. … -Thâ (ث) makes the sound “th” (voiceless) as in thin or thick or through. -Dhâ (ذ) makes the sound “th” (dh) (voiced) as in them or there or the.
Is θ voiced?
The phoneme /θ/ is very well known to speakers of Peninsular Spanish. … It’s the voiced counterpart of /θ/, so it is produced in the same place an manner, with the tongue behind the upper teeth or, in a more careful pronunciation, between the upper and the bottom teeth.
Why is the th sound so rare?
The sounds are made phonetically by placing the tongue before the teeth. The only difference is that “dh” is voiced and “th” unvoiced. In other words: as b is to p and as d is to t, so dh is to th. For whatever reason, dhe two “th” sounds, which I shall write as “dh” and “th”, are very rare.
Why did English keep the th sound?
This sound goes back all the way to Proto-Germanic. It originated via a process known as Grimm’s law , which converted a “t” sound in Proto-Indo-European into the voiceless dental fricative we know and love. However, this sound has subsequently been lost in most other Germanic languages, usually becoming a “d” or “t”.
What languages have the th sound?
The European languages with ‘th’ that you will probably be familiar with are English, Spanish, Greek and Albanian. There are other languages too (Icelandic, at least one variety of Frisian, etc.), but this is a balanced sample on WALS for the purpose of reliable comparison of languages around the world.
Where should my tongue be when I say th?
Whether it is a soft (voiceless) “th” or a hard (voiced) “th” sound, the positioning of the tongue is the same. Specifically, the tip of the tongue protrudes slightly between your front teeth with the tip of the tongue touching the lower edge of the center front teeth.
Which languages have a th sound?
The European languages with ‘th’ that you will probably be familiar with are English, Spanish, Greek and Albanian. There are other languages too (Icelandic, at least one variety of Frisian, etc.), but this is a balanced sample on WALS for the purpose of reliable comparison of languages around the world.
Is θ voiced or voiceless?
In the International Phonetic Alphabet, the voiceless interdental fricative, theta, is written θ, and the voiced interdental fricative, eth, is written ð.
Last Updated: 4 days ago – Co-authors : 16 – Users : 10
