Abstract: Speech may be analyzed digitally and recognized in real time by a system which includes a spectrum analyzer which determines the frequency content of successive segments of speech. Each speech segment is logically analyzed to identify the class of phonemes of which it is a part, and then the frequency spectrum of the segment is analyzed to uniquely identify the specific phoneme within the type. Sequences of phonemes with transitions excluded can then be compactly stored, transmitted to remote locations, synthesized into voice and translated logically into English or other natural language.