Voice onset times and burst frequencies of four velar stop consonants in Gujarati

Voice onset times (VOT) and burst frequencies of two aspirated (i.e., /k(h) /, /g(h)/) and two unaspirated (i.e., /k/, /g/) Gujarati velar stop consona nts were investigated in an effort to provide characteristic acoustic infor mation. Stop consonants in a monosyllabic vowel-consonant-vowel (VCV) produ ction were obtained from eight native speakers of Gujarati. Differences in mean VOT and burst frequency as a function of voicing and aspiration were e xamined. A significant voicing by aspiration effect was found for VOT (p = 0.026). The two voiced stops, while not significantly different from each o ther (p = 0.278), had significantly shorter VOTs than voiceless stops. The aspirated /kh/ had a significantly longer VOT than the unaspirated /k/ (p = 0.0013). With respect to burst frequency, voiced stops had significantly h igher burst frequencies than voiceless stops (p = 0.002). There was no sign ificant difference between mean burst frequencies of aspirated and unaspira ted stops (p = 0.058). (C) 1999 Acoustical Society of America. [S0001-4966( 99)00312-4].