Phonetics: The IPA

The IPA - the international phonetics alphabet - is the system of symbols that phoneticians use to transcribe (or write down) human speech sounds. It's a very large system, but usually, you won't need all of it, so don't despair! For this series, we will be using Bernd Kortmann's "English Linguistics: Essentials", published by Cornelsen, first edition (ISBN: 978-3-44-31162-2). It's a detailed but accessible introduction to linguistics. However, the book and series are intended to function independently - the videos should give you a short, entertaining summary of key concepts and add nicely to any book or lecture you're attending.