English and Japanese Liquid Sounds; English /l/ and /r/ and the Japanese Liquid Sound

In this paper some characteristics of English /l/ and /r/ are discussed in conjunction with the equivalent sounds in Japanese. It is well known and accepted that English /l/ and /r/ are the most difficult sounds for the Japanese to pronounce and hear (Miyawaki et al. 1975, Goto, 1971, McKain, et al. 1981, Takagi & Mann, 1995 etc.). The reason is that no similar sound exists in Japanese, and in such cases a learner finds it more difficult to make a distinction (Yamada and Tohkura, 1992). The description of English /l/ and /r/, and the equivalent sounds in Japanese will be discussed to see whether there is any connection with difficulties that Japanese learners encounter when they learn English. Two issues are focused, namely, phonological description of English /l/ and /r/ and Japanese liquid sound are discussed, and the phonetic basis of English /l/ and /r/ and Japanese liquid