In the phonetics post I did a very quick explanation of what a place of articulation was, but I think that each one deserves a little more love. In this post, reference the diagram below:
The exolabial and endolabial places of articulation, formed by pursing or touching the lips together, are collectively called labial, and are never distinguished as separate sounds. However, languages or even particular sounds may have a tendency to be pronounced one way or the other. The distinction is the same as that between two types of rounding in vowels - protrusion (endo) and compression (exo). The essence is that endolabial sounds are pronounced with the lips slightly forward and exolabials with the lips drawn tightly together. Don't worry about it too much. Labial sounds in English include "m", "b", "p", and "w". The similar labiodentals, formed by touching the upper teeth to the lips, include "f" and "v".
The dental, alveolar, postalveolar, and retroflex sounds, collectively called coronals, are pronounced with the tip of the tongue touching the teeth or roof of the mouth. The dentals are the furthest forward, with the tongue touching the teeth themselves. The alveolars are slightly more retracted, with the tongue on the alveolar ridge immediately behind the teeth. The retroflex sounds are pronounced with the tongue curled back against the hard palate. Lastly, the postalveolars are a messy categorization of sounds that usually involve the tongue being somewhere behind the alveolar ridge, but usually mostly in front of the palate. Coronals are unique because the tongue's flexibility in this region allow them to take on additional distinctions. They may be distinguished between laminal (tongue blade) and apical (tongue tip or apex) sounds, though only a few languages, such as Basque, make a distinction between the two. They are also distinguished by sulcalization, a phenomenon in which the center of the tongue is grooved to direct airflow quickly. Sulcalized sounds are commonly called sibilant, and have a distinct hissing sound. Sulcalization is the difference between "s" and "th" sounds. Other English coronals include the alveolar "t", "d", and "n" sounds and the postalveolar "sh" and "ch" sounds.
The velar sounds are pronounced with the dorsal (back) region of the tongue against the soft velum. Dorsal sounds in English include "g", the "ng" in "king", and hard "k" sounds.
Palatals are pronounced with the dorsal region of the tongue against the hard palate, though the front of the tongue is usually fairly close to the roof of the mouth. Palatal sounds may sound like coronals being pronounced at the same time as a "y" sound, and indeed "y" and "ee" sounds are pronounced with the tongue near the palate. Palatals are odd in that they are sometimes considered more like coronals, and sometimes lumped in with velars as dorsal sounds, depending on the phonological context. Palatal sounds in English include "y" and the hissing "hy" sound at the beginning of "huge".
Past the dorsals are regions generally unexplored by English tongues. The uvulars are pronounced further back in the throat than velars, against the uvula, like Arabic "q". Pharyngeals go further back still, with the pharynx (throat) constricted. The glottals are pronounced with the glottis, the opening to the lungs themselves, and include the "h" sound and the catch in the middle of "uh-oh".
Languages tend to have between three and five major places of articulation, at which multiple stops, nasals, or fricatives are found. Almost every language has a major labial, dental or alveolar, and velar place of articulation. It's also common to add one or occasionally two from among postalveolar/palatal, uvular, and glottal. Uvulars, pharyngeals and glottals are less common to see as full developed sets of sounds. More often, languages will include only one or two sounds from them, if any.
The exolabial and endolabial places of articulation, formed by pursing or touching the lips together, are collectively called labial, and are never distinguished as separate sounds. However, languages or even particular sounds may have a tendency to be pronounced one way or the other. The distinction is the same as that between two types of rounding in vowels - protrusion (endo) and compression (exo). The essence is that endolabial sounds are pronounced with the lips slightly forward and exolabials with the lips drawn tightly together. Don't worry about it too much. Labial sounds in English include "m", "b", "p", and "w". The similar labiodentals, formed by touching the upper teeth to the lips, include "f" and "v".
The dental, alveolar, postalveolar, and retroflex sounds, collectively called coronals, are pronounced with the tip of the tongue touching the teeth or roof of the mouth. The dentals are the furthest forward, with the tongue touching the teeth themselves. The alveolars are slightly more retracted, with the tongue on the alveolar ridge immediately behind the teeth. The retroflex sounds are pronounced with the tongue curled back against the hard palate. Lastly, the postalveolars are a messy categorization of sounds that usually involve the tongue being somewhere behind the alveolar ridge, but usually mostly in front of the palate. Coronals are unique because the tongue's flexibility in this region allow them to take on additional distinctions. They may be distinguished between laminal (tongue blade) and apical (tongue tip or apex) sounds, though only a few languages, such as Basque, make a distinction between the two. They are also distinguished by sulcalization, a phenomenon in which the center of the tongue is grooved to direct airflow quickly. Sulcalized sounds are commonly called sibilant, and have a distinct hissing sound. Sulcalization is the difference between "s" and "th" sounds. Other English coronals include the alveolar "t", "d", and "n" sounds and the postalveolar "sh" and "ch" sounds.
The velar sounds are pronounced with the dorsal (back) region of the tongue against the soft velum. Dorsal sounds in English include "g", the "ng" in "king", and hard "k" sounds.
Palatals are pronounced with the dorsal region of the tongue against the hard palate, though the front of the tongue is usually fairly close to the roof of the mouth. Palatal sounds may sound like coronals being pronounced at the same time as a "y" sound, and indeed "y" and "ee" sounds are pronounced with the tongue near the palate. Palatals are odd in that they are sometimes considered more like coronals, and sometimes lumped in with velars as dorsal sounds, depending on the phonological context. Palatal sounds in English include "y" and the hissing "hy" sound at the beginning of "huge".
Past the dorsals are regions generally unexplored by English tongues. The uvulars are pronounced further back in the throat than velars, against the uvula, like Arabic "q". Pharyngeals go further back still, with the pharynx (throat) constricted. The glottals are pronounced with the glottis, the opening to the lungs themselves, and include the "h" sound and the catch in the middle of "uh-oh".
Languages tend to have between three and five major places of articulation, at which multiple stops, nasals, or fricatives are found. Almost every language has a major labial, dental or alveolar, and velar place of articulation. It's also common to add one or occasionally two from among postalveolar/palatal, uvular, and glottal. Uvulars, pharyngeals and glottals are less common to see as full developed sets of sounds. More often, languages will include only one or two sounds from them, if any.
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