A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast

The eastern variety of Kmhmu' described in this study has a rich phoneme inventory of 36 consonants and 10 distinctive vowel qualities with contrastive vowel length. There is no contrast of vowel phonation or tone, although voicing and glottalisation do contrast in initial consonants. Word and...

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Main Author: Anne R. Osborne
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Hawaii Press 2018-10-01
Series:Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society
Subjects:
Online Access:https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10524/52430
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author Anne R. Osborne
author_facet Anne R. Osborne
author_sort Anne R. Osborne
collection DOAJ
description The eastern variety of Kmhmu' described in this study has a rich phoneme inventory of 36 consonants and 10 distinctive vowel qualities with contrastive vowel length. There is no contrast of vowel phonation or tone, although voicing and glottalisation do contrast in initial consonants. Word and syllable structure are described along with word formation patterns. Previous descriptions of this variety of Kmhmu' differ in their interpretation of the final voiceless palatal continuant and in their interpretation of vowel length preceding final /? h j?/ (Smalley 1961, Preisig 1990, Suksavang Simana et al. 1994 and Suwilai 2002). This study presents data and analysis which clarify these details. This analysis suggests that the voiceless palatal approximant in final position be interpreted as an approximant, rather than a fricative as others have analysed it, because it is realised with little turbulence. It also demonstrates how vowel length contrast is neutralised in syllables with final laryngeal consonants /? h j?/, where duration is consistently intermediate between long and short. The neutralisation of vowel length before final /j?/ is thought to be due to the articulatory and auditory similarity to final /h/.
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spelling doaj.art-828814c5a7394c63b5f788edcad760932022-12-21T20:51:16ZengUniversity of Hawaii PressJournal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society1836-68211836-68212018-10-011126685A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length ContrastAnne R. Osborne0SIL InternationalThe eastern variety of Kmhmu' described in this study has a rich phoneme inventory of 36 consonants and 10 distinctive vowel qualities with contrastive vowel length. There is no contrast of vowel phonation or tone, although voicing and glottalisation do contrast in initial consonants. Word and syllable structure are described along with word formation patterns. Previous descriptions of this variety of Kmhmu' differ in their interpretation of the final voiceless palatal continuant and in their interpretation of vowel length preceding final /? h j?/ (Smalley 1961, Preisig 1990, Suksavang Simana et al. 1994 and Suwilai 2002). This study presents data and analysis which clarify these details. This analysis suggests that the voiceless palatal approximant in final position be interpreted as an approximant, rather than a fricative as others have analysed it, because it is realised with little turbulence. It also demonstrates how vowel length contrast is neutralised in syllables with final laryngeal consonants /? h j?/, where duration is consistently intermediate between long and short. The neutralisation of vowel length before final /j?/ is thought to be due to the articulatory and auditory similarity to final /h/.https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10524/52430Kmhmu'phonologyvowels
spellingShingle Anne R. Osborne
A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast
Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society
Kmhmu'
phonology
vowels
title A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast
title_full A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast
title_fullStr A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast
title_full_unstemmed A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast
title_short A Phonology Of Eastern Kmhmu' With Special Reference To Palatal Continuant Codas And Neutralisation Of Vowel Length Contrast
title_sort phonology of eastern kmhmu with special reference to palatal continuant codas and neutralisation of vowel length contrast
topic Kmhmu'
phonology
vowels
url https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10524/52430
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