Abstract

The degrees of aspiration in Korean [ㅅ] and [ㅆ] were measured in terms of VOT. The measurements were compared to the aspiration in Korean stops and affricates. It was shown that [ㅅ] should be classified as an 'aspirated' sound with Korean aspirated stops and affricates [$p^h, {\;}t^h, {\;}k^h, {\;}t{\int}$], contrary to the traditional classification of the sound as unaspirated. [ㅆ] was confirmed to be in the same group as other Korean 'tense' sounds. It was pointed out that there was a gap in the typology of Korean consonants. The gap was created by the lack of the unaspirated counterpart of [ㅅ]. It was suggested that an extinct Korean sound [$\triangle$] be considered as a possible candidate for the gap. Also a perception test was suggested for the further acoustical analysis of Korean [ㅅ] and [ㅆ].

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