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Phonemic analyses of Yongning Na

in comparative perspective

Journées de Linguistique d’Asie Orientale28-29 juin 2007

Alexis Michaud

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Plan

1. Brief presentation of the language2. Palatalisation and some of its consequences+ (time allowing)3. and 4. Two cases of neutralisation: /kʰ/ vs. /kʶ/,

retroflexes vs. coronals5. A glimpse of the pool of phonetic variation

• Work in progress. Illustrates the method used in fieldwork.

• Tone: key issue, but synchronically independent of segments. Not addressed here. (In preparation; talk given at the Société de Linguistique de Paris on June 16th, 2007)

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1. The Na (Naxi) language

• Sino-Tibetan; Burmic subgroup• Simple syllabic structure: (C)(G)V• Tones: not described here• For a phonemic account of Western Na:

Michailovsky, B.; Michaud, A.: Syllabic inventory of a Western Naxi dialect, and correspondence with Joseph F. Rock's transcriptions. Cahiers de linguistique - Asie Orientale 35(1): 3-21 (2006).

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Fieldwork on Western Na (top) and Eastern Na Fieldwork on Western Na (top) and Eastern Na (bottom)(bottom)

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AS

(W

est

ern

d

iale

ct o

f N

a)

LD (

East

ern

d

iale

ct o

f N

a)

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AS

(W

est

ern

d

iale

ct o

f N

a)

LD (

East

ern

d

iale

ct o

f N

a)

i ɯ uvK

ɤ ɻ

æ ɑ

i y ɯ uvK

e ɤ o ə˞

a ɑ

+ after /h/: nasals / i /, / u /, / vK /, / wU ɤ /

Vowels, not including glides

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First glance at correspondences

AS (Western Na) LD (Eastern Na)pi pvpv pvmi mimi mvmv mv

ly lɯly lili lɯlɯ lv, ʐv, ʐɯlv lvPreliminary work: taking a closer look at individual

correspondences, to understand the changes. Perspective: dynamic synchrony (Martinet 1955, 1975).

Comparable phonemic inventory; correspondences point to earlier contrasts, but do not provide answers on the phonetic nature of these oppositions.

8gɯ

ɟi

2. PalatalisationLD: palatalisation process completed, empty slots filled.

« Water » in Western dialects (e.g. AS): /gi˩/; somewhat palatalised phonetically: [ ɟi˩]. In LD (an Eastern dialect): [dʑi˥]. Regular correspondence: AS /gi/, LD /dʑi/

… and the empty slot [gi] is now occupied: regular correspondence: AS /gɯ/, LD /gi/. (Ex.: « brother », /gɯ˧ zɯ˧/ vs. /gi˧ zɯ˧/)

gi dʑi

Initial consonant

Vow

el

Hypothesis on the historical development in LD:

gi

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Consequences on affricates:

Alveolar-palatal affricate + /u/: what is its history? [dʑu], [tɕu], [tɕʰu]

LD dʑu˧ AS /gy˧/ (phonetically: ɟy˧) verb of existenceLD lo˩ dʑu˥ AS /lɑ˩gy˧/ « bracelet »

/gy/ ɟy ɟju (dʑju) /dʑu/palatalisation diphthongisation

further palatalisation:

becomes alveolar

reinterpretation of rhyme?

Not all correspondences are straightforward:LD mvK˩ tɕu˧LD mvK˩ tɕu˧ AS mɯAS mɯ ￛ ￛ tʰa˧ tʰa˧ « under, « under, down(wards) »down(wards) »

Pressure of Chinese? Also ongoing in Western Na(xi) (AS dialect):

[dɯ˧ mə˞˩ tɕʰi˧ tɕʰu˧ be˧ lu˧] Unlikely to be /kʰi˧ kʰju˧/.

(AS) (FK)

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Further consequences on affricates?Alveolo-palatals + /i/, dentals + /ɯ/: continuity from consonant to vowel. Both sets of syllables become acoustically close.

(Mandarin Chinese: zi, ci + zhi, chi; alveolo-palatals: xi, ji, qi)

Notations, e.g. for Pinyin « zhi »: / ʈʂʅ /, for « zi »: / tsɿ /. IPA equivalent: /ʈʂʐK/, /tszK/. In Na(xi), for the voiced counterparts: /dzɯ/: realised as /dzɿ/ i.e. /dzzK/; simplest notation: /dzK/?

Issue: how strong is the tie with the original rhyme? Allophone of /i/ in Mandarin, of /ɯ/ in Na(xi), but similar realisation. In borrowings: Na /tsɯ/ for Mandarin /tsi/ (« zi »).

Relates to a general phenomenon in (phonologically) monosyllabic languages: cf. Henderson 1985, and Matisoff 1973: ‘tightly structured nature of the syllable in monosyllabic languages’ (Matisoff 1973).

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/tɕi˩/ « set (down), put »

/njæ˧ tsɯ˩/ « eyebrow »

formants:

28001450590

formants:

31502080410

/tɕi/ /tsɯ/spectral peak for friction: about 7,000 about 10,000F2 - F1 (frequency) 1670 860vowel: /tsɯ/ more open and more posterior than /tɕi/.Well distinguished acoustically.

(data from speaker F5)

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In numerous cases: distinction less obvious.

/dʑi/ and /dzɯ/: phonetically close

/dʑi˥/ « water »

/sɯ˧ dzɯ˩/ (speaker F5)« tree »

/tsʰɯ˥ zɯ˥/ « barley »

[speaker F4; said twice]

A correction by speaker F4: ‘don’t say dʑi, say dzɯ’

Vowel: as for /tɕi˩/; friction: centre at 8,000

/dzɯ˥/ « chisel »

Vowel: as for /tɕi˩/; friction: centre at 8,000

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/dʑi˥/ « water »

/dzɯ˥/ « chisel »

first three formants:

31001800360

first three formants:

31001950410

F2 - F1 1540 1440/ɯ/: neither more open nor more posterior.Acoustically tenuous distinction.

(speaker F5)

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Conclusion on palatalisation

Completed. Empty slots filled. Influence on neighbouring consonants – or neighbouring syllables. Distinction threatened although both the initial and the rhyme differ. (Similar to issue in Vietnamese: Michaud and Vu-Ngoc 2004, Michaud 2004.)

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3. A marginal opposition: /k/, /kʰ/, /kʶ/

Almost complementary distribution. Phonetically, the syllables written as /kʶ/+vowel also have a degree of

aspiration: [kʶʰ].

vK æ ɑ wɑ i o u

k kvK kæ kɑ kwɑ ki ko ku

kʰ kʰvK n.a. n.a.

n.a. kʰi kʰo kʰu

kʶ kʶvK kʶæ

kʶɑ kʶwɑ

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Two-term opposition, except before /vK/. Neutralisation, similar to observations on Western Na: Michaud 2006./kʰv/: corresponds to AS /kʰv/ (e.g. « year »); cognates of /kʶv˧/ « hole »: /kʰo˧/ (AS), /kʰɑ˧/ (NL), /kʰə˞˧/ (FK)

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4. Another marginal opposition: dental and retroflex initials

Retroflexion: not on same lexical items as in AS. In AS: only before vowel /o/, which is not present in LD.

vK æ i ɑ u wæ

ɤ

t tvK tæ ti tɑ tu

ʈ ʈvK ʈæ ʈi ʈwæ

ʈɤ

Opposition before /æ/, /i/ and /v/. Examples of attested combinations:

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5. Phonetic variability(pool of variation)

/lvK/, /lɯ/: variation in the initialRealisation of initial /l/: weakens to an approximant before /ɯ/, as opposed to its lateral realisation before /v/.The friction of /v/ is very weak.

Weakening of the friction of /vK//mvK/: tends to be realised as [m].Example: /mvK˩ tɕu˧ ʂu˩/

(brief demonstration of recordings)

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/hi/ realised as nasal, homorganic with following stop/hi/: ‘subordinating’ particle. Example: [ɖwæ ￛ fv˧ hi˧ ɖɯ˧ v˧ ŋi˩] « serious, reliable »[ɖwæ ￛ fv˧ ɳɖɯ˧ v˧ ŋi˩]

Devoicing of /ɯ/ after unvoiced initial fricative/ affricate/sɯ/ can be realised as [s].Example: /nu˥ sɯ˧ kv˩/ (2nd pers. pl.)

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As a conclusion:

Progress of documentation and of analysis: hand in hand.

‘Field experiments’: cf. forthcoming article in Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 3rd issue of 2007. (Western Na data.)

Providing a basis for the study of phonetics/phonology: verification of data; cross-language comparison; typology.

Typology of language change: ‘panchronic phonology’.