Labials

Exercise

One of the best exercises to improve your pronunciation of Sanskrit is to consciously articulate all sounds produced at one place of articulation. Watch how similar the vibration of individual letters in the mouth feels and how you can easily move from one letter to the next. In this exercise, the phonation space becomes closer and closer:

u: vowel - Round your lips, almost as if for a kiss. A short breath of air makes the lips vibrate.
ū: vowel - The phonation space is completely open with the lips rounded as described above. There is a longer vibration between the lips which resounds in the phonation space.
v: semivowel - The phonation space is slightly narrowed down. The vibration only occurs with the succeeding vowel.
p: plosive - The lips are closed. The airstream creates pressure which is then released and the air bursts out.
ph: plosive, aspirated - followed by a breath of air.
b: plosive, voiced - with voice.
bh: plosive, voiced, aspirated - again followed by a breath of air.
m: nasal - The closure remains, the air streams out through the nose.

Sanskrit Pronunciation

Vowels

On the articulation of a vowel, air streams out almost unimpededly. In Sanskrit, vowels oscillate, either as long or short vowels, from guttural (a,ā), palatal (i,ī), retroflex (r̥,r̥̄) and dental (l̥,l̥̄) to labial (u,ū). The umlauts (vowel On the articulation of a vowel, air streams out almost unimpededly. In Sanskrit, vowels oscillate, either as long or short vowels, from guttural (a,ā), palatal (i,ī), retroflex (r̥,r̥̄) and dental (l̥,l̥̄) to labial (u,ū). The umlauts (vowel mutations) (o,au,e,ai) are always long.

Labial vowels

u / ū: Round your lips, almost as if for a kiss. The short u is sounded only briefly while the long ū lingers. Both vowels vibrate directly at the lips.

Examples:

u: Mutter, kurz
ū: Mut, Kuhle

Sanskrit Pronunciation

Plosives

On the articulation of a plosive, built up pressure is released by a sudden release of air. In Sanskrit, plosives are ideally pronounced sonant and aspirated from guttural (k,kh,g,gh), palatal (c,ch,j,jh), retroflex (ṭ,ṭh,ḍ,ḍh), and dental On the articulation of a plosive, built up pressure is released by a sudden release of air. In Sanskrit, plosives are ideally pronounced sonant and aspirated from guttural (k,kh,g,gh), palatal (c,ch,j,jh), retroflex (ṭ,ṭh,ḍ,ḍh), and dental (t,th,d,dh) to labial (p,ph,b,bh).

Labial plosives

pa: The lips are closed. The contact is released after slight pressure.
pha: The analogue sound with more air.
ba: The analogue sound with vibration or voice.
bha: The voiced sound with more air.

Examples:

pa: Papier
pha: Pavillon
ba: Bach
bha: Sanskrit: Bhagavad Gītā
Again, the aspirated version can be a challenge to German speakers.

Sanskrit Pronunciation

Nasals

On the articulation of nasal sounds, the closure at the place of articulation is not released. Most of the air streams out through the nose. The closed back part of the oral cavity thus becomes a variable resonance chamber for ṅ,ñ,ṇ,n and m.

Labial nasal

ma: The sound is nasalised.

Examples:

ma: Mutter, Mandel

Sanskrit Pronunciation

Semivowels

Phonetically, a semivowel lies between a vowel and a plosive. In contrast to a vowel, a semivowel does not represent a syllable on its own when articulated. Neither is the vocal tract blocked for the pressure characteristic of a plosive. The tongue Phonetically, a semivowel lies between a vowel and a plosive. In contrast to a vowel, a semivowel does not represent a syllable on its own when articulated. Neither is the vocal tract blocked for the pressure characteristic of a plosive. The tongue moves in the direction of the place of articulation to produce an approximant. In contrast to a fricative, though, the approximation does not go so far as to produce the friction necessary for a fricative. In Sanskrit, there are semivowels for four of the five places of articulation (y, r, l, v).

Labial semivowel

va: produced by bringing the tongue closer to the lips (labial).

Examples:

va: Wasser, wann
Not like the German v as in Vogel but like the German w.

Sanskrit Pronunciation

Fricatives and Aspirates

On the articulation of a fricative, a confined space is created. The air streaming out is swirled and creates a fricative. Compared to semivowels, which also count as approximants, the tongue moves closer to the confined space, though without the On the articulation of a fricative, a confined space is created. The air streaming out is swirled and creates a fricative. Compared to semivowels, which also count as approximants, the tongue moves closer to the confined space, though without the contact necessary for a plosive. In Sanskrit, there is a semivowel for four of the five places of articulation (h, ś, ṣ, s).

Labial fricative - only a Visarga (ḥ) pronounced as an Upadhmānīya

In Sanskrit, there is no guttural semivowel.

However, a Visarga (ḥ) is pronounced as a labial fricative in front of unvoiced labial sounds (p or ph). This pronunciation of the Visarga is called Upadhmānīya. We come close to this sound when we pronounce a German fh or ph as in ''Dor-f-Platz".

Examples:

vṛttayaḥ pañcatayyaḥ (five types of waves) is pronounced as vṛttaya-fh-pañcatayya-hā .