Latest proposed changes to the IPA consonant chart
In 2024 Marc Garellek, Matthew Gordon and I proposed a new version of the consonant chart at the SST conference in Melbourne:
Tabain, Marija, Marc Garellek & Matthew Gordon. (2024). A consideration of the consonant chart in the International Phonetic Alphabet. 19th Australasian International Conference on Speech Science and Technology. Melbourne: Australia, 1–6. ISSN 2207-1296 link
Following discussions at that conference, we subsequently modified the chart to include three further modifications. The newest chart is available here and contains the latest changes in pink font.
The laryngeal column has been modified to make it even more explicit that the symbols in this column represent a continuum of constriction, while also capturing the fact that these symbols are associated with the other consonants/manners in some ways
Separate symbols have been created for the dental consonants. Dentals should be explicitly characterized as laminal, and alveolars as apical, for two reasons: firstly, this provides for maximum acoustic distinction; and secondly, it reflects the situation for the passive articulator in languages where a dental/alveolar contrast exists (e.g. Australian Aboriginal languages).
The dental symbols are taken from the (Ashoka) Brahmi tradition, since we thought it important to include symbols from languages not in Europe. Ashoka is the oldest Brahmic script (and thus thought to be the ancestor to all present-day Indian ones). It was chosen because it is an alphabetic system that is relatively easy to write, and does not have the horizontal line above each letter (like the Gujarati script, for example). This use also acknowledges the contribution of Indian languages (and the general Sanskrit tradition) to modern phonetic understanding.
The label “pre-palatal” has been used for /ɕ ʑ/ and “pre-palatal (labial)” has been used for /ʃ ʒ/ (replacing the terms “alveolo-palatal” and “palato-alveolar”, which were deemed too confusing). The inclusion of /ɕ ʑ/ in the main consonant chart was well-received by the SST 2024 audience, given how frequent these sounds are in the world’s languages, especially in the languages of China.
Note that one point that was raised in the post-keynote discussions is not included in the current proposed chart. This is the possibility of extra approximant symbols, for e.g. the dental and the bilabial (as in Danish and Spanish respectively). This topic remains for further discussion.
Finally, please note that the voiceless~voiced distinction is not properly encoded in this version of the chart, due to my poor Word skills!