Language contact and phonological contrast
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Jason Shaw
Abstract
We analyze two generations of Japanese speakers’ productions of [twi] and [ti] as they occur in native Japanese words and in loan words. Analysis across speakers verifies that this contrast is neutralized in native Japanese words and preserved in loans. Analysis of generational differences reveals two distinct patterns of preservation. Generation one speakers in our study produced overlapping distributions of [twi] and [ti]. In contrast, generation two speakers distinguished these strings in all environments. Our data are consistent with the view that the first generation of borrowers mapped the foreign phonological contrast to an allophonic distinction in native Japanese and that the second generation of speakers promoted this weak phonetic distinction to phonemic status.
Abstract
We analyze two generations of Japanese speakers’ productions of [twi] and [ti] as they occur in native Japanese words and in loan words. Analysis across speakers verifies that this contrast is neutralized in native Japanese words and preserved in loans. Analysis of generational differences reveals two distinct patterns of preservation. Generation one speakers in our study produced overlapping distributions of [twi] and [ti]. In contrast, generation two speakers distinguished these strings in all environments. Our data are consistent with the view that the first generation of borrowers mapped the foreign phonological contrast to an allophonic distinction in native Japanese and that the second generation of speakers promoted this weak phonetic distinction to phonemic status.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction 1
- Ethnolects as a multidimensional phenomenon 7
- Applying language technology to detect shift effects 27
- Generational differences in pronominal usage in Spanish reflecting language and dialect contact in a bilingual setting 45
- Personal pronoun variation in language contact 63
- Turkish in the Netherlands 87
- The reflection of historical language contact in present-day Dutch and Swedish 103
- The impact of German on Schleife Sorbian 119
- Detecting contact effects in pronunciation 131
- Language contact and phonological contrast 155
- Translating cultures within the EU 181
- Name index 219
- Subject index 223
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction 1
- Ethnolects as a multidimensional phenomenon 7
- Applying language technology to detect shift effects 27
- Generational differences in pronominal usage in Spanish reflecting language and dialect contact in a bilingual setting 45
- Personal pronoun variation in language contact 63
- Turkish in the Netherlands 87
- The reflection of historical language contact in present-day Dutch and Swedish 103
- The impact of German on Schleife Sorbian 119
- Detecting contact effects in pronunciation 131
- Language contact and phonological contrast 155
- Translating cultures within the EU 181
- Name index 219
- Subject index 223
