Discovering the phoneme inventory of an unwritten language: A machine-assisted approach

•A phonemic analysis is essential for unwritten languages.A machine-assisted approach is shown to make a measurable contribution to a phonemic analysis.•Phonetic similarity is the most important piece of evidence for the analysis.•Minimal pairs are the least effective method in the analysis

There is a consensus between many linguists that half of all languages risk disappearing by the end of the century. Documentation is agreed to be a priority. This includes the process of phonemic analysis to discover the contrastive sounds of a language with the resulting benefits of further linguistic analysis, literacy, and access to speech technology. A machine-assisted approach to phonemic analysis has the potential to greatly speed up the process and make the analysis more objective.It is demonstrated that a machine-assisted approach can make a measurable contribution to a phonemic analysis for all the procedures investigated; phonetic similarity, complementary distribution, and minimal pairs. The evaluation measures introduced in this paper allows a comprehensive quantitative comparison between these phonemic analysis procedures. Given the best available data and the machine-assisted procedures described, there is a strong indication that phonetic similarity is the most important piece of evidence in a phonemic analysis.