phonemic analyses of yongning na in comparative perspective
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Phonemic analyses of Yongning Na in comparative perspective. Journées de Linguistique d’Asie Orientale 28-29 juin 2007 Alexis Michaud. Work in progress. Illustrates the method used in fieldwork. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
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Phonemic analyses of Yongning Na
in comparative perspective
Journées de Linguistique d’Asie Orientale28-29 juin 2007
Alexis Michaud
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Plan
1. Brief presentation of the language2. Palatalisation and some of its consequences+ (time allowing)3. and 4. Two cases of neutralisation: /kʰ/ vs. /kʶ/,
retroflexes vs. coronals5. A glimpse of the pool of phonetic variation
• Work in progress. Illustrates the method used in fieldwork.
• Tone: key issue, but synchronically independent of segments. Not addressed here. (In preparation; talk given at the Société de Linguistique de Paris on June 16th, 2007)
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1. The Na (Naxi) language
• Sino-Tibetan; Burmic subgroup• Simple syllabic structure: (C)(G)V• Tones: not described here• For a phonemic account of Western Na:
Michailovsky, B.; Michaud, A.: Syllabic inventory of a Western Naxi dialect, and correspondence with Joseph F. Rock's transcriptions. Cahiers de linguistique - Asie Orientale 35(1): 3-21 (2006).
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Fieldwork on Western Na (top) and Eastern Na Fieldwork on Western Na (top) and Eastern Na (bottom)(bottom)
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AS
(W
est
ern
d
iale
ct o
f N
a)
LD (
East
ern
d
iale
ct o
f N
a)
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AS
(W
est
ern
d
iale
ct o
f N
a)
LD (
East
ern
d
iale
ct o
f N
a)
i ɯ uvK
ɤ ɻ
æ ɑ
i y ɯ uvK
e ɤ o ə˞
a ɑ
+ after /h/: nasals / i /, / u /, / vK /, / wU ɤ /
Vowels, not including glides
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First glance at correspondences
AS (Western Na) LD (Eastern Na)pi pvpv pvmi mimi mvmv mv
ly lɯly lili lɯlɯ lv, ʐv, ʐɯlv lvPreliminary work: taking a closer look at individual
correspondences, to understand the changes. Perspective: dynamic synchrony (Martinet 1955, 1975).
Comparable phonemic inventory; correspondences point to earlier contrasts, but do not provide answers on the phonetic nature of these oppositions.
8gɯ
ɟi
2. PalatalisationLD: palatalisation process completed, empty slots filled.
« Water » in Western dialects (e.g. AS): /gi˩/; somewhat palatalised phonetically: [ ɟi˩]. In LD (an Eastern dialect): [dʑi˥]. Regular correspondence: AS /gi/, LD /dʑi/
… and the empty slot [gi] is now occupied: regular correspondence: AS /gɯ/, LD /gi/. (Ex.: « brother », /gɯ˧ zɯ˧/ vs. /gi˧ zɯ˧/)
gi dʑi
Initial consonant
Vow
el
Hypothesis on the historical development in LD:
gi
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Consequences on affricates:
Alveolar-palatal affricate + /u/: what is its history? [dʑu], [tɕu], [tɕʰu]
LD dʑu˧ AS /gy˧/ (phonetically: ɟy˧) verb of existenceLD lo˩ dʑu˥ AS /lɑ˩gy˧/ « bracelet »
/gy/ ɟy ɟju (dʑju) /dʑu/palatalisation diphthongisation
further palatalisation:
becomes alveolar
reinterpretation of rhyme?
Not all correspondences are straightforward:LD mvK˩ tɕu˧LD mvK˩ tɕu˧ AS mɯAS mɯ ᅴ ᅴ tʰa˧ tʰa˧ « under, « under, down(wards) »down(wards) »
Pressure of Chinese? Also ongoing in Western Na(xi) (AS dialect):
[dɯ˧ mə˞˩ tɕʰi˧ tɕʰu˧ be˧ lu˧] Unlikely to be /kʰi˧ kʰju˧/.
(AS) (FK)
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Further consequences on affricates?Alveolo-palatals + /i/, dentals + /ɯ/: continuity from consonant to vowel. Both sets of syllables become acoustically close.
(Mandarin Chinese: zi, ci + zhi, chi; alveolo-palatals: xi, ji, qi)
Notations, e.g. for Pinyin « zhi »: / ʈʂʅ /, for « zi »: / tsɿ /. IPA equivalent: /ʈʂʐK/, /tszK/. In Na(xi), for the voiced counterparts: /dzɯ/: realised as /dzɿ/ i.e. /dzzK/; simplest notation: /dzK/?
Issue: how strong is the tie with the original rhyme? Allophone of /i/ in Mandarin, of /ɯ/ in Na(xi), but similar realisation. In borrowings: Na /tsɯ/ for Mandarin /tsi/ (« zi »).
Relates to a general phenomenon in (phonologically) monosyllabic languages: cf. Henderson 1985, and Matisoff 1973: ‘tightly structured nature of the syllable in monosyllabic languages’ (Matisoff 1973).
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/tɕi˩/ « set (down), put »
/njæ˧ tsɯ˩/ « eyebrow »
formants:
28001450590
formants:
31502080410
/tɕi/ /tsɯ/spectral peak for friction: about 7,000 about 10,000F2 - F1 (frequency) 1670 860vowel: /tsɯ/ more open and more posterior than /tɕi/.Well distinguished acoustically.
(data from speaker F5)
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In numerous cases: distinction less obvious.
/dʑi/ and /dzɯ/: phonetically close
/dʑi˥/ « water »
/sɯ˧ dzɯ˩/ (speaker F5)« tree »
/tsʰɯ˥ zɯ˥/ « barley »
[speaker F4; said twice]
A correction by speaker F4: ‘don’t say dʑi, say dzɯ’
Vowel: as for /tɕi˩/; friction: centre at 8,000
/dzɯ˥/ « chisel »
Vowel: as for /tɕi˩/; friction: centre at 8,000
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/dʑi˥/ « water »
/dzɯ˥/ « chisel »
first three formants:
31001800360
first three formants:
31001950410
F2 - F1 1540 1440/ɯ/: neither more open nor more posterior.Acoustically tenuous distinction.
(speaker F5)
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Conclusion on palatalisation
Completed. Empty slots filled. Influence on neighbouring consonants – or neighbouring syllables. Distinction threatened although both the initial and the rhyme differ. (Similar to issue in Vietnamese: Michaud and Vu-Ngoc 2004, Michaud 2004.)
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3. A marginal opposition: /k/, /kʰ/, /kʶ/
Almost complementary distribution. Phonetically, the syllables written as /kʶ/+vowel also have a degree of
aspiration: [kʶʰ].
vK æ ɑ wɑ i o u
k kvK kæ kɑ kwɑ ki ko ku
kʰ kʰvK n.a. n.a.
n.a. kʰi kʰo kʰu
kʶ kʶvK kʶæ
kʶɑ kʶwɑ
n.a.
n.a.
n.a.
Two-term opposition, except before /vK/. Neutralisation, similar to observations on Western Na: Michaud 2006./kʰv/: corresponds to AS /kʰv/ (e.g. « year »); cognates of /kʶv˧/ « hole »: /kʰo˧/ (AS), /kʰɑ˧/ (NL), /kʰə˞˧/ (FK)
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4. Another marginal opposition: dental and retroflex initials
Retroflexion: not on same lexical items as in AS. In AS: only before vowel /o/, which is not present in LD.
vK æ i ɑ u wæ
ɤ
t tvK tæ ti tɑ tu
ʈ ʈvK ʈæ ʈi ʈwæ
ʈɤ
Opposition before /æ/, /i/ and /v/. Examples of attested combinations:
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5. Phonetic variability(pool of variation)
/lvK/, /lɯ/: variation in the initialRealisation of initial /l/: weakens to an approximant before /ɯ/, as opposed to its lateral realisation before /v/.The friction of /v/ is very weak.
Weakening of the friction of /vK//mvK/: tends to be realised as [m].Example: /mvK˩ tɕu˧ ʂu˩/
(brief demonstration of recordings)
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/hi/ realised as nasal, homorganic with following stop/hi/: ‘subordinating’ particle. Example: [ɖwæ ᅴ fv˧ hi˧ ɖɯ˧ v˧ ŋi˩] « serious, reliable »[ɖwæ ᅴ fv˧ ɳɖɯ˧ v˧ ŋi˩]
Devoicing of /ɯ/ after unvoiced initial fricative/ affricate/sɯ/ can be realised as [s].Example: /nu˥ sɯ˧ kv˩/ (2nd pers. pl.)
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As a conclusion:
Progress of documentation and of analysis: hand in hand.
‘Field experiments’: cf. forthcoming article in Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 3rd issue of 2007. (Western Na data.)
Providing a basis for the study of phonetics/phonology: verification of data; cross-language comparison; typology.
Typology of language change: ‘panchronic phonology’.