Biblical Hebrew Forum

[yochanan bitan <ButhFam AT compuserve.com>]

some have asked about `ayin.
some make a big plosive glottal stop.

for the record, a glottal stop is an ALEPH
physically, a glottal stop is a momentary block or catch in the air stream
at the glottis/epiglottis.
a big loud popping glottal stop is 
a big loud popping ALEPH.

so now on to `ayin and Het.

why do i mention `ayin and Het together? because they are made the same way

at the same spot in the throat.

where ?
in the pharynx cavity. 
that is the cavity inside the neck, 
that is below the chin and above the hollow spot of the rib-cage/collar
bone.
the neck muscles become noticeably tense when pronouncing either `ayin or
Het.

what?
the tongue root, the part of the tongue attached to the body and in the
neck/throat,
RETRACTS as far as possible, or reasonably so. 
it cannot stop the airflow, try as it may, 
but it can get things so tight that a distinct hollow hissing can be heard.
that raw hiss, without any voicing hum, is Het. 
[yes, it may sound like clearing one's throat, IF that is done correctly.
:-)]
[it is a world apart from the german "ach" or french "err" that euro/NA
students are taught. german "ach", no matter how far back in the mouth, is
a xaf, the soft fricative "k". xaf is made in the mouth, which is not the
throat]
[voicing is the difference between the different sounds of english "th" in 
"this" and "thistle". "thistle" is voiceless in all dialects i'm familiar
with.]
so Het is a VOIELESS, pharygeal fricative.

now for `ayin.
`ayin is a Het pronounced with voicing.

it is physically possible to extend both of these sounds over several
seconds, but it never happens in natural speech. it sounds like someone
dying or choking. i've demonstrated for classes, which is good for laughs.
[with physical instruments one could make further distinguishing
observations on Het and `ayin, but those are irrelevant for learners.
because of the simultaneous voicing performed with `ayin, `ayin seems to be
naturally shorter in duration than Het, perhaps due to the extra energy
needed. the voicing mechanism also feels like it pulls the `ayin lower in
the pharynx than the Het.]
[additional description of what Het and `ayin are NOT: 
`ayin is NOT the voiced counterpart to german "ach". 
such a voiced velar fricative, made in the back of the mouth, 
is like a fricative gimel and still exists in arabic as ghayin, 
a distinct letter from `ayin.]

so where again are Het and `ayin made?
not in the mouth. 
go back to the uvula and then turn down. 
go back to the thing that flaps at the back of the mouth when gargling or
pronouncing an israeli resh, and drop down the chasm toward the lungs.
quite below the uvula and just above the glottis is where the tongue root
can squeeze tight enough to make a 
delightful hollow/hissing Het
and an ear-satisfying `ayin.
[head diagrams available in ulpan le`ivrit miqrait]
[how to know which you're making? if the muscles bunch in front of the
uvula and seem to touch the roof or back of the mouth: it is xaf. 
if the muscles bunch in the throat and the mouth is "open/free-flowing" it
is Het or `ayin, depending on voicing.]

with practice you will correctly distinguish 
         ax "but"
from aH "brother" (this only works in hebrew, arabic says "ax" for
brother!)
[this often takes about a month for learners to smootly work into flowing
speech. 
it takes months to develop ears to hear this readily/automatically, and
then only if hearing it done correctly.]

braxot ("blessings", velar/german xaf)
Hagim smeHim ("happy feasts", nice Het's)
mo`adim lesimHa ("seasons for joy", both `ayin and Het)

randall buth