Multi-dimensional Anal Perception, Acoustics,

Sonority is an important notion in phonology, but its definition has been controversial. Our analysis showed that sonority can be located in a multi-dimensional perceptual space, and that the dimensions of the space have correspondence to both acoustic parameters and phonological features. In the experiment, a confusion matrix was calculated from the results of consonant perception test for LPC residual signals made from /Ca/ syllables. It is considered that LPC residual signals contain only suprasegmental information and thus the confusion pattern for the signals indicates the consonants’ similarities in suprasegmental domain. This confusion matrix was analyzed with MDS. The result showed that the consonants can be modeled in a 3dimensional perceptual space according to their sonority. Its dimensions could be related to acoustic measurements (length, pitch, RMS, HNR) and phonological features ([voice], [sonorant], [continuant]). The result also showed that sonority can be mostly defined within the suprasegmental domain.