Phonological processing in diglossic Arabic
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Elinor Saiegh-Haddad
Abstract
Arabic native speaking children are born into a unique linguistic context called diglossia (Ferguson 1959). In this context, children grow up speaking the specific spoken variety of Arabic used in their immediate environment (hereafter, Spoken Arabic, SpA). At school, they are formally exposed to a different, yet linguistically related variety, Standard Arabic (hereafter, StA) which is the variety encoded in print. SpA and StA are phonologically distant, with some phonemes used only in StA but not in SpA. This paper reviews recent research examining the effect of the phonological distance between StA and SpA on children’s phonological processing. The results obtained from a series of studies indicate that phonological processing among children is directly affected by the phonological distance between the two varieties. This effect emerges even in the presence of accurate articulation of distant phonemes; it surfaces in phonological production as well as phonological recognition tasks, and it persists across the early grades. The effect of the phonological distance on phonological processing in Standard Arabic is argued to be attributed to low-quality phonological representations.
Abstract
Arabic native speaking children are born into a unique linguistic context called diglossia (Ferguson 1959). In this context, children grow up speaking the specific spoken variety of Arabic used in their immediate environment (hereafter, Spoken Arabic, SpA). At school, they are formally exposed to a different, yet linguistically related variety, Standard Arabic (hereafter, StA) which is the variety encoded in print. SpA and StA are phonologically distant, with some phonemes used only in StA but not in SpA. This paper reviews recent research examining the effect of the phonological distance between StA and SpA on children’s phonological processing. The results obtained from a series of studies indicate that phonological processing among children is directly affected by the phonological distance between the two varieties. This effect emerges even in the presence of accurate articulation of distant phonemes; it surfaces in phonological production as well as phonological recognition tasks, and it persists across the early grades. The effect of the phonological distance on phonological processing in Standard Arabic is argued to be attributed to low-quality phonological representations.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Editors’ Introduction ix
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Part I. Phonetics & phonology
- Empirical evidence 3
- Regressive voicing assimilation in Cairene Arabic 21
- The phonology–syntax interface: 35
- Leading, linking, and closing tones and tunes in Egyptian Arabic – what a simple intonation system tells us about the nature of intonation 57
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Part II. Morphology & syntax
- Arabic agree, silent pronouns, and reciprocals 77
- Mood feature as case licenser in Modern Standard Arabic 127
- Extraction and deletion in Palestinian Arabic comparatives 149
- The verb kan ‘be’ in Moroccan Arabic 167
- Against the split-CP hypothesis 187
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Part III. Language acquisition, learning & contact
- Probability matching in Arabic and Romance morphology 205
- Gender differences in VOT production of Arabic/English bilingual children 245
- Phonological processing in diglossic Arabic 269
- Early acquisition of SVO and VSO word orders in Palestinian Colloquial Arabic 281
- Index 293
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Editors’ Introduction ix
-
Part I. Phonetics & phonology
- Empirical evidence 3
- Regressive voicing assimilation in Cairene Arabic 21
- The phonology–syntax interface: 35
- Leading, linking, and closing tones and tunes in Egyptian Arabic – what a simple intonation system tells us about the nature of intonation 57
-
Part II. Morphology & syntax
- Arabic agree, silent pronouns, and reciprocals 77
- Mood feature as case licenser in Modern Standard Arabic 127
- Extraction and deletion in Palestinian Arabic comparatives 149
- The verb kan ‘be’ in Moroccan Arabic 167
- Against the split-CP hypothesis 187
-
Part III. Language acquisition, learning & contact
- Probability matching in Arabic and Romance morphology 205
- Gender differences in VOT production of Arabic/English bilingual children 245
- Phonological processing in diglossic Arabic 269
- Early acquisition of SVO and VSO word orders in Palestinian Colloquial Arabic 281
- Index 293
