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How does first language influence second language rhythm?
Laurence White and Sven Mattys Experimental Psychology Bristol University
Overview
• Background: Speech rhythm and “rhythm classes”. New speech rhythm metrics.
• Speech production study:Do new rhythm metrics serve to illustrate the influence
of first language on second language rhythm?
• Rhythm (music, speech, etc.) arises from the repetition of related sounds.
• In English speech, rhythm arises from repetition of stressed syllables.
I did not have sexual relations with that woman – Miss Lewinsky.
• In Spanish, there is much less contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables.
A pocos pasos de mi casa está una tienda bonita.
• Traditional distinction: Syllable-timed languages (e.g. Romance). Stress-timed languages (e.g. Germanic).
Background: Rhythm
Stress-timing vs syllable-timing • Stress-timed languages: isochrony?
sleep.ing. soundly vs sleep.il.y. re.searches
• Stress-timing is alternation rather than regularity:
Greater differences between stressed and unstressed syllables… including:
Vowel reduction.
More complex consonant clusters, particularly in stressed syllable onsets and codas.
e.g. (s)(t)(r)a(n)(d)(s)
Fewer open syllables.
Basis of rhythmic analysis
• Separate signal into vocalic and intervocalic sections
and examine variations in length of each.
the standards committee
New rhythm metrics• Variance-based metrics (Ramus, Nespor & Mehler, 1999):
ΔV: standard deviation of vocalic intervals.ΔC: standard deviation of intervocalic intervals.%V: vocalic proportion of total utterance.
Ramus, Nespor & Mehler (1999)
• Also examinedPVI metrics (Low, Grabe & Nolan, 2000;Grabe & Low, 2002).
Overview
• Background: Speech rhythm and “rhythm classes”. New speech rhythm metrics.
• Speech production study:Do new rhythm metrics serve to illustrate the influence
of first language on second language rhythm?
• Comparison between “rhythm classes”:Spanish (“syllable-timed”) vs English (“stress-timed”).
• Six speakers per condition.
• Five sentences per language.
• Other materials also recorded for most speakers:Map task to elicit non-read speech.
Second language recordings
Language spoken
Native language
Spanish English
Spanish
English EngEng
SpEng
EngSp
SpSp
Spanish & English L1/L2 results:
Variance-based metrics
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
ΔV
ΔC
8.06.6
5.24.8
Speech rate (syls/sec) EngEngEngSp
SpSp
SpEng
Key Lang. spoken Native lang.
All speakers:Effect of speech rate on ΔV
•VarcoV – ΔV normalised for speech rate: ΔV / Mean V (Dellwo & Wagner, 2003)
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
ΔV
Sp
eech
rat
e (s
ylla
ble
s/se
con
d)
Spanish & English L1/L2 results: Rate normalised ΔV and %V
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
35 40 45 50 55
%V
Var
coV
EngEng
EngSp
SpSp
SpEng
Key Lang. spoken Native lang.
• A mí no me gustaba su coche pequeño y viejo.
65, 67 vs 67, 66
47, 32 vs 71, 56
40, 41 vs 27, 24
Spanish L1/L2:%V differences continued…
Vowel duration (ms)
SpEng Vowel duration (ms)
SpSp
• What is the effect of speaking a second language, when languages are rhythmically similar?
• Comparison within “rhythm classes”:Dutch (“stress-timed”) vs English (“stress-timed”).
• Six speakers per condition.
• Five sentences per language.
Language spoken
Native language
Dutch English
Dutch
English
Second language recordings
EngEng
DutEng
EngDut
DutDut
35
45
55
65
75
30 35 40 45 50 55
%V
Var
coV
Cross-linguistic results: Dutch vs English
EngEng
EngSp
SpSp
SpEng
Key Lang. spoken Native lang.
DutEng
EngDut
DutDut
First and second language rhythm: summary
• Influence of L1 on L2: Consonantal metrics show little influence of L1. Vocalic metrics:
Normalisation for speech rate necessary (VarcoV). Clearly show influence of L1 on L2.But…
Not necessarily intermediate between L1 and L2.Little accommodation to L2 when languages are
rhythmically similar.
Interpretation of rhythm metrics
• Rhythmic distinctions can be seen as arising from specific segmental and prosodic processes:Rhythm as emergent property rather than product of
top-down timing control.
• Variation within “rhythm classes” sometimes as large as between. Suggests distinction is not simply bimodal.
• Further research: How do rhythm metrics relate to the subjective experience of linguistic rhythm?
Credits
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, U.K.
Juan Toro, Barcelona.Elizabeth Johnson, Nijmegen. Eric-Jan Wagenmakers & Atie Vogelenzang de Jong, Amsterdam.Ineke Mennen, Edinburgh. Reinier Salverda, London.
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