584 6. Comparison of speech between younger and older speakers
In summary, the older and younger person’s speech is very similar, with differences lying mainly in complex and lengthened vowels.
6.1.9. Zhenning Shitouzhai
In studying the speech of the older and younger speaker of Zhenning Shitouzhai, we found the following differences:
1. In both the older and younger person’s speech, Chinese is used for certain lexical items, such
as ‘grandmother maternal’, ‘expensive’, ‘why’, etc. 2.
With regard to initials, for z the older speaker sometimes produced the allophone [Y], whereas the younger speaker produced this phone only once ‘pretty’ [
fht4 Ytn5] Examples:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘water’ yCM2 yCM2
‘building’ y?_m1 ym1
‘root’ YC5 y`5
There is free variation between [w] and [v], with the older speaker producing [w] more frequently and the younger speaker producing [v] more frequently:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘day’ pCm1 uCm1
‘iron’ vC1 u`1
‘tree’ vC:h1 u`h2
‘firewood’ u=m1 u=m1
The labialization of [kw] in the older person’s speech was fairly strong, but not in the younger person’s speech:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘to ride’ jvdh5 jt=h5
‘to pass over’ jvC4 jt`4
‘to cut grass’ jvCm1 jtCm4
‘first’ jv`m4 jtCm4
There is random variation with the phones [n] and [ ¯] between the older and younger
person’s speech:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘roof’ ¯t4 mht4
‘to sew’ ¯Hj7 mhj7
‘mosquito’ mhCM1
¯hCM1 ‘slanted’
mhCM4 ¯hCM4
6. Comparison of speech between younger and older speakers 585
Palatalization on the glottal initial was more apparent in the older person’s speech:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘drunk’ fhM4 fihM4
‘to livestay’ fit4 fht4
‘to blink’ fiCj6 fiCj6
‘hard’ fiC4 fhC4
‘pretty’ fit4Yn5 fht4Ytn5
In addition, x in the older person’s speech has an allophone, but the younger person’s speech does not. Both the older and younger speaker produced allophones for
G. 3.
With regard to the nucleus, on words that the older speaker produced [C], the younger speaker produced either [
C] or [a], the variation seeming to be random. Examples:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘thunder’ o’C2 o’`2
‘river’ sC5 s`5
‘leaf’ faC0 faC0
‘river’ yCM2 yCM2
The older speaker produced [ =:] and [a:] on a few items, but the younger speaker did not:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘wind’ y=:M1 y=M1
‘moon’ st0jC:t1 st0j`t1
‘early’ srC:t2 sr`t2
‘dirt’ mC:M5 m`M5
On items where the older speaker produced [ D], the younger speaker sometimes produced
[e]:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘afternoon meal’ MD1 Md1
‘water buffalo’ vD1 ud1
For diphthongs with [i] in the secondary position, there is variation on the initial vowel between the older and younger person’s speech:
586 6. Comparison of speech between younger and older speakers
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘dry field’ Gh5 Gdh5
‘navel’ o’n=2kh5 ot=2kDh5
‘claw’ iHj7kh1 ihj7kDh1
‘good’ fc=h0 fch0
‘gift’ kdh5 kDh5
‘to peel’ fah5 faDh5
‘to yawn’ fC2sr’dh4 f`2sr’Dh4
‘to ride’ jvdh5 jt=h5
‘older sibling’ oDh2 odh2
‘fire’ udh1 uDh1
‘this’ mh2 mDh3
‘NEG’ lDh1 lh1
The older person produced [ h] most frequently, and the younger person produced [Dh] most
frequently. On words which the younger speaker produced the final [
tCM], the older speaker produced either [
nM] or [tnM]:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘moon’ YtnM5fcT=m0 ytCM5fct=m0
‘table’ srnM1 srtCM1
‘younger sibling’ mnM2 mtCM2
‘bow’ jnM0 jtCM0
There is also variation between the older speaker’s [ nM] final and the younger speaker’s [tM]
final:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘goat’ YtnM1 ynM1
‘spider’ jnM4jn0 jtM4jn0
‘hand’ unM1 utM1
‘to mend’ enM0 etM0
‘all’ snM0 stM0
‘slow’ rnM4 rtM4
Vocalic length occurred more frequently and more clearly in the younger person’s speech than in the older person’s.
6. Comparison of speech between younger and older speakers 587
In the older person’s speech [ H] occurs more often than in the younger person’s speech.
When occurring in the older or younger person’s speech, it does so before a voiceless stop. Examples:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘broom’ iHj7oCs6 ihj7oCs6
‘claw’ iHj7kh1 ihs7kDh1
‘to sew’ ¯Hj7 mhj7
‘ten’ sb’Hj7 sb’hj7
‘lazy’ sbHj6 sbhj6
[ T] also occurs in the older person’s speech, but not in the younger person’s speech:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘moon’ YtnM5fcT=m0 ytCM5fct=m0
‘blood’ kT=s7 kt=s7
‘name’ srT=5 srt=5
‘straight’ KT=5 Kt=5
There are a few instances of variation in the occurrence of final nasals:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘umbrella’ khM2 khm2
‘rod, stick’ s=M2 s=m2
‘to taste’ sr=M1 sr=m1
‘short’ j’=M2 j’=m2
‘red’ fchM0 fchm0
‘gold’ sbhm0 sbhM0
‘three’ K?m0 KCM0
It is possible that the place of articulation distinction on the final nasal is being lost. In addition, there are a very few examples of variation
•
between [ C] and [a], []
•
between [ D] and [=], []
•
between [o] and [ B], [uo]
•
between the occurrence of final [k] and [t], and
•
in the occurrence of certain diphthongs.
588 6. Comparison of speech between younger and older speakers
Examples:
English Older speaker
Younger speaker
‘towel gourd’ sbhd=0 sbh=0
‘mosquito net’ bh=j6 bhj6
‘to take’ bhDt2 bht2
‘to have’ fht4 fh=t4
‘claw’ iHj7 ihs7
‘to drink’ fcCs6 fcCf
‘to take off clothes’ stCs6 st`s6
‘sugar cane’ ftCh2ltCh5 ft`h2lth5
‘pot’ srtn4 srn4
‘to breathe’ srnM4KtDh22 srnM4Kth22
‘brain’ fBj6 fnj6
4. For the 5
th
tone, the older speaker most often produced a [44] pitch, though also [45] and [35]. The younger speaker produced [35] with few exceptions.
For the 7
th
tone the older speaker produced [44] most often; also producing [35], [45], and [34]. The younger speaker produced [35] with few exceptions. Pitch production for these two
tones is relatively stable in the younger person’s speech. In summary the major differences between the older person’s and younger person’s speech
occurs in the nucleus and on the 5
th
and 7
th
tones.
6.1.10. Ziyun Huohua