A preliminary study of wh-questions in German and Spanish child language
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Conxita Lleó
Abstract
This article presents a preliminary study of L1 acquisition of wh-questions in German and Spanish. According to traditional descriptions, neutral informationseeking wh-questions show similar contours in both languages, although there are cross-linguistic differences in scaling and alignment as well as different pitch accents, formalized in the Autosegmental-Metrical model of intonation. Whquestions uttered by two 3-year-old German-Spanish bilinguals are compared to those produced by monolingual children, and adults. Analyses show that most aspects of such utterances seem to already be acquired at the age of 3;0. However, bilinguals exhibit much variation, which reveals cross-linguistic interaction. Moreover, 3-year-olds produce many rising contours in German, only a few of which can be characterized as non-neutral.
Abstract
This article presents a preliminary study of L1 acquisition of wh-questions in German and Spanish. According to traditional descriptions, neutral informationseeking wh-questions show similar contours in both languages, although there are cross-linguistic differences in scaling and alignment as well as different pitch accents, formalized in the Autosegmental-Metrical model of intonation. Whquestions uttered by two 3-year-old German-Spanish bilinguals are compared to those produced by monolingual children, and adults. Analyses show that most aspects of such utterances seem to already be acquired at the age of 3;0. However, bilinguals exhibit much variation, which reveals cross-linguistic interaction. Moreover, 3-year-olds produce many rising contours in German, only a few of which can be characterized as non-neutral.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
- Foreword xiii
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Part I. Intonation, variation and contact
- Task-related effects in the prosody of Spanish heritage speakers and long-term immigrants 3
- Pitch accent tonal alignment in declarative sentences in the Spanish of the Basque Country 25
- Stylistic variation in the intonation of European Portuguese teenagers and adults 45
- Focus and prosody in Spanish and Quechua 69
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Part II. Intonational modeling, syntax and pragmatics
- Cost of the action and social distance affect the selection of question intonation in Catalan 93
- Intonation modeling in cross-linguistic research 115
- Prosody and Emotion in Brazilian Portuguese 135
- The Relation between Prosody and Syntax: The case of different types of Left-Dislocations in Spanish 153
- The intonational meaning of polar questions in Manchego Spanish spontaneous speech 181
- Declarative utterances in Buenos Aires Spanish 207
- Towards automatic language processing and intonational labeling in European Portuguese 227
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Part III. Intonation, acquisition and special populations
- Prosodic and gestural features distinguish the intention of pointing gestures in child-directed communication 251
- Prosody in Portuguese Children with HighFunctioning Autism 277
- Early Prosodic Development 295
- A preliminary study of wh-questions in German and Spanish child language 325
- Assessment of Spanish prosody in clinical populations 351
- Intonation and grammar in the visual-gestural modality 369
- Index 387
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
- Foreword xiii
-
Part I. Intonation, variation and contact
- Task-related effects in the prosody of Spanish heritage speakers and long-term immigrants 3
- Pitch accent tonal alignment in declarative sentences in the Spanish of the Basque Country 25
- Stylistic variation in the intonation of European Portuguese teenagers and adults 45
- Focus and prosody in Spanish and Quechua 69
-
Part II. Intonational modeling, syntax and pragmatics
- Cost of the action and social distance affect the selection of question intonation in Catalan 93
- Intonation modeling in cross-linguistic research 115
- Prosody and Emotion in Brazilian Portuguese 135
- The Relation between Prosody and Syntax: The case of different types of Left-Dislocations in Spanish 153
- The intonational meaning of polar questions in Manchego Spanish spontaneous speech 181
- Declarative utterances in Buenos Aires Spanish 207
- Towards automatic language processing and intonational labeling in European Portuguese 227
-
Part III. Intonation, acquisition and special populations
- Prosodic and gestural features distinguish the intention of pointing gestures in child-directed communication 251
- Prosody in Portuguese Children with HighFunctioning Autism 277
- Early Prosodic Development 295
- A preliminary study of wh-questions in German and Spanish child language 325
- Assessment of Spanish prosody in clinical populations 351
- Intonation and grammar in the visual-gestural modality 369
- Index 387
