In this thesis, I provide the first acoustic description of Ecuadorian Siona phonemic vowels, six oral vowels and six corresponding nasal vowels. Two phonetic dimensions – vowel height, measured...Show moreIn this thesis, I provide the first acoustic description of Ecuadorian Siona phonemic vowels, six oral vowels and six corresponding nasal vowels. Two phonetic dimensions – vowel height, measured through the first formant frequency (F1), and vowel backness, measured through the second formant frequency (F2) – are taken as the descriptors of vowel quality. These dimensions are used to illustrate the target vowels in their acoustic space. Vowel quantity, which refers to vowel duration, is also measured. For each target vowel, the mean frequencies of F1 and F2, as well as the durational means, are presented. In addition, the effects of different phonological environment on the realization of target vowels are investigated. Ultimately, I construct the acoustic vowel space for oral and nasal vowels, and I compare the acoustic properties of the two types of vowels. The results for oral vowels demonstrate six distinct qualities, similar to the ones described by Bruil (2014), with the back vowels appearing consistently lower in the vowel space. Nasal vowel space shows more variability and a general shrinking effect of vocalic contrasts. The findings also demonstrate a nasalization effect whereby all nasal vowels are on average lower than their oral counterparts. Finally, the analysis revealed that the vowels /i, ɨ̃/ are phonetically long, at least in the context that they appeared.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
under embargo until 2025-01-31
2025-01-31T00:00:00Z
Vilela is a language isolate from El Chaco (Argentina) with just one semi-speaker left. Prof. Dr. Golluscio directed its documentation within the DOBES Programme (2003-2006) and is involved in its...Show moreVilela is a language isolate from El Chaco (Argentina) with just one semi-speaker left. Prof. Dr. Golluscio directed its documentation within the DOBES Programme (2003-2006) and is involved in its grammatical description. However, its phonology is understudied, and only a few observations (Llamas, 1910; Viegas Barros, 2001; Lozano, 1970/2006) and specific studies (Grawunder & Golluscio, 2014) have been made so far. In addition, and despite its endangerment level, only one article has focused on how language attrition affected the retrieved data (Golluscio & González, 2008), and only scarce mentions of phonological processes were made. Investigations of phonetics and phonology represent a relatively late arrival within the otherwise well-established field of language attrition studies (ca. the second half of the 2010s). Therefore, this thesis has a double aim. I will first describe the Vilela's (segmental) phonological system, analyzing the available acoustic and phonological information and my fieldwork data (bibliographic research and elicitation sessions in Resistencia). Next, I study how phonological and phonetic attrition has affected and is still affecting Vilela and what this can bring to current language attrition research.Show less
In this thesis, I analyse and discuss palatalisation of the consonant sequence /tj/, particularly within the context of Dutch diminutives. First, an overview is provided of Dutch diminutive...Show moreIn this thesis, I analyse and discuss palatalisation of the consonant sequence /tj/, particularly within the context of Dutch diminutives. First, an overview is provided of Dutch diminutive allomorphy, palatalisation in general, and about frequency and productivity and their possible effects on sound change. Based on a detailed review of the literature within this topic, the expectation was that frequency would be a major influencing agent of this palatalisation process. In respect of the specific sequence of /tj/, data was elicited by means of a small-scale production experiment, in which I used beetje (a very frequent diminutive) and weetje (a low-frequency diminutive) as target words. The findings indicate that the alternation of what was perceived as the unmarked [tɕ] and the frequency-conditioned, palatal [ç] is no longer sensitive to frequency, and that [ç] is more recurrent than it was expected to be.Show less
