Forensic Linguistics and Forensic Phonetics: An Introduction

Communication is the essence of human civilization. Life would not have been possible without this cognitive faculty. However, with evolution in civilization instances of criminal activities are also on the increase. This paper introduces one such scientific discipline which has the potential to provide an authentic framework for such identifications. It is called Forensic Linguistics. Each individual is unique and is endowed with a unique “voiceprint”. This voiceprint can be obtained by the application of various paradigms and levels of linguistic knowledge. The paper provides a basic understanding of what this field is all about tracing its development down the ages. It also highlights a subfield within Forensic Linguistics, viz., Forensic Phonetics/ Speech Forensics which is widely being used by Phoneticians to investigate such criminal cases. It tries to invoke interest among its readers with an aim to arouse zeal for research in this field.