The law of position revisited
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Anne Violin-Wigent
Abstract
One of the differences between northern and southern French is the distribution of mid-vowels: they are largely phonemic in northern French but allophonic in southern French, following the distributional law of position. This study explores the extent of deviations from the law of position in a town in the southeast of France and the leveling influence of Reference French. The analysis shows that there are fewer deviations from the law of position for /E/ than for /Œ/ and /O/, probably due to the instability of /E/ in northern French compared to the other two vowels, and to the negative attitudes associated with deviations for /Œ/ and /O/. Additionally, results according to age show that younger speakers deviate more than older ones.
Abstract
One of the differences between northern and southern French is the distribution of mid-vowels: they are largely phonemic in northern French but allophonic in southern French, following the distributional law of position. This study explores the extent of deviations from the law of position in a town in the southeast of France and the leveling influence of Reference French. The analysis shows that there are fewer deviations from the law of position for /E/ than for /Œ/ and /O/, probably due to the instability of /E/ in northern French compared to the other two vowels, and to the negative attitudes associated with deviations for /Œ/ and /O/. Additionally, results according to age show that younger speakers deviate more than older ones.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
-
Section I. Phonological variation and leveling
- Introduction 3
- Perception and production in French dialect leveling 9
- The sociolinguistic relevance of regional categories 25
- Prosodic style-shifting as audience design 43
- The immigrant factor in phonological leveling 63
- A prototype-theoretic model of Southern French 77
- The law of position revisited 95
-
Section II. Stylistic and syntactic variation
- Introduction 115
- Variation in first and second language French 121
- French preadolescents’ perceptions of stylistic variation 141
- Sociolinguistic variation in African French 159
- Register variation in the non-standard use of non-finite forms 177
-
Section III. Lexical variation and semantic change
- Introduction 195
- Discourse markers and regional variation in French 201
- Sociolinguistic factors and the pragmaticalization of bon in contemporary spoken French 215
- From ‘luck’ to ‘wealth’ 231
- Index 253
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
-
Section I. Phonological variation and leveling
- Introduction 3
- Perception and production in French dialect leveling 9
- The sociolinguistic relevance of regional categories 25
- Prosodic style-shifting as audience design 43
- The immigrant factor in phonological leveling 63
- A prototype-theoretic model of Southern French 77
- The law of position revisited 95
-
Section II. Stylistic and syntactic variation
- Introduction 115
- Variation in first and second language French 121
- French preadolescents’ perceptions of stylistic variation 141
- Sociolinguistic variation in African French 159
- Register variation in the non-standard use of non-finite forms 177
-
Section III. Lexical variation and semantic change
- Introduction 195
- Discourse markers and regional variation in French 201
- Sociolinguistic factors and the pragmaticalization of bon in contemporary spoken French 215
- From ‘luck’ to ‘wealth’ 231
- Index 253
