72 



widest open position may be supposed lo occur at the formation 

 of the aspirated consonants just mentioned, always in the case 

 of the Orst four [py^Å^], and often in the case of the aspirated 

 tenues [qktp]. 



Since all of tliese sounds are common in Greenlandic, and 

 since they are frequently long, the language is characterized 

 by a continual succession af voiced sounds and voiceless pauses. 

 In the case of qktp these pauses are absolute; in the case 

 of the voiceless fricatives the soft whistling of the aspiration 

 indicates audibly that the organs of speech are in activity and 

 that expiration is not taking place without impediment. 



The next widest opening of the glottis probably takes place 

 frecjuently at the formation of the slightly aspirated tenues 

 and also as a transition between a voiced and a following 

 aspirated sound, as for instance between the vowel and the 

 aspirated sound in words like [а/)чг ik'o i(fit\. It corres- 

 ponds to the h-sound, which, as remarked, is of rare occurrence 

 in Greenlandic, and also to the light vowel-aspiration with which 

 the interjection [a"h] and similar expressions of emotion may 

 terminate. 



The smallest possible opening of the glottis (si) is the one 

 which is used in the formation of the voiced sounds ; we shall 

 return to this subject in g 4. 



The complete collapse of the vocal chords with closure of 

 the glottis — (Sweet: the glottal stop, the Danish "stød", the 

 6 of Jespersen ; indicated by an apostrophe before or after the 

 vowel) — occurs once in a while in Greenlandic, though only 

 occasionally. I once heard a mother say ['a- 'ä-\ to her little 

 child when it wanted to eat something that was too dirty. 

 [udJ 'a-h\ is an ordinary exclamation of pain when one hits or 

 burns oneself. Likewise [ajüs-üse''a\\) (Arq.i, how terrible it is! 

 (seil, the cold). 



*) From ajus-use- (i.e. its terribleness) -r ". ;>" iiilerjectinn. 



