A subapical consonant is a consonant made by contact with the underside of the tip of the tongue. The only common subapical articulations are in the
postalveolar
Postalveolar or post-alveolar consonants are consonants articulated with the tongue near or touching the ''back'' of the alveolar ridge. Articulation is farther back in the mouth than the alveolar consonants, which are at the ridge itself, but no ...
to
palatal
The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity.
A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly sepa ...
region, which are called "
retroflex
A retroflex ( /ˈɹɛtʃɹoːflɛks/), apico-domal ( /əpɪkoːˈdɔmɪnəl/), or cacuminal () consonant is a coronal consonant where the tongue has a flat, concave, or even curled shape, and is articulated between the alveolar ridge and the ha ...
".
Most so-called retroflex consonants are more properly called
apical. True subapical retroflexes are found in the
Dravidian languages
The Dravidian languages (or sometimes Dravidic) are a family of languages spoken by 250 million people, mainly in southern India, north-east Sri Lanka, and south-west Pakistan. Since the colonial era, there have been small but significant i ...
of
Southern India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...
.
Occasionally, the term "sublaminal" is used for "subapical", which might be better used for sounds pronounced between the underside of the tongue and the floor of the mouth, such as
sucking-teeth
Gestures are a form of nonverbal communication in which visible bodily actions are used to communicate important messages, either in place of speech or together and in parallel with spoken words. Gestures include movement of the hands, face, or ...
and the
slapped clicks of Sandawe.
References
* Peter Ladefoged; Ian Maddieson. ''The Sounds of the World's Languages.'' Oxford: Blackwell 1996. .
* Sanford B. Steever (ed.). ''The Dravidian Languages.'' Routledge. New edition 2006. .
Retroflex consonants
{{phonetics-stub