The voiceless epiglottal affricate ([ʡ͡ʜ] in IPA) is a rare affricate consonant that is initiated as an epiglottal stop [ʡ] and released as a voiceless epiglottal fricative [ʜ]. It has not been reported to occur phonemically in any language.
Features
Features of the voiceless epiglottal affricate:
Its manner of articulation is affricate, which means it is produced by first stopping the airflow entirely, then allowing air flow through a constricted channel at the place of articulation, causing turbulence.
Its place of articulation is epiglottal, which means it is articulated with the aryepiglottic folds against the epiglottis.
Its phonation is voiceless, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords. In some languages the vocal cords are actively separated, so it is always voiceless; in others the cords are lax, so that it may take on the voicing of adjacent sounds.
It is an oral consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the mouth only.
It is a central consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.
The airstream mechanism is pulmonic, which means it is articulated by pushing air solely with the intercostal muscles and abdominal muscles, as in most sounds.
