The present study examines the effect of context on the use of transitions as cues to vowel perception. Thirty V₁CV₂CV₁ utterances were recorded, with V₁ being one of the three vowels /a,i,u/, and V₂ one of ten English vowels (/ i , I, el, E, ae, a,^,Ou,U,u/). After removal of the outer vowels (V₁), three sets of stimuli were created from the CV₂C parts: (1) unmodified controls (CO); (2) V₂ steady-state only (SS); and (3) transitions only (TR). Twenty subjects were asked to identify V₂. Subjects and speaker were matched for dialect and all subjects had some phonetics training. Results showed significant differences across conditions and contexts. Scores for SS stimuli, for all contexts, were as high as for CO stimuli. Performance on the TR stimuli was as good as on the other two conditions for two of the contexts. However, for the TR condition--/a/ context, performance was considerably worse than for any other combination of conditions and contexts. Possible reasons for this are discussed, and the need for testing of other vowel contexts is emphasised. It is concluded that, in some V₁CV₂CV₁ contexts, transitions can provide information about vowel identity on a level equal to steady-state alone, or to the combined information provided by both transitions and steady-states. This effect, however, is not uniform across contexts. For at least one context, transitions alone are not sufficient to cue vowel identity at a level comparable to steady-state or combined information. This lack of uniformity suggests that the role of transitions varies with the type of vowel context present, and conclusions about general usefulness await systematic testing of a number of vowel contexts. / Medicine, Faculty of / Audiology and Speech Sciences, School of / Graduate

This study was designed to measure the perception of Southwest Michigan residents' perception of the Northern Cities Shift, and compare it to the perceptions of Southeast Michigan residents. Participants, recruited from the Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo areas, were asked to complete a dialect boundary map of the United States in order to discern perceptions of American English dialects and accents and determine the dialect or accent that they most associate with the state of Michigan. Participants were also asked to listen to and judge the personality traits of seven different North American speakers. The results of this study indicate that Southwest Michigan residents may subconsciously be able to detect the NCS in speech, though they were mostly unable to correctly identify the NCS as a characteristic of Michigan speech. Further research with a larger pool of participants could provide more accurate measurements as to the perception of Michigan residents towards the Northern Cities Shift.

In this dissertation I examine partial vowel assimilations, where more than one but less than all vowel features pattern together in a phonological rule. The result of this dissertation research is the 'Height Node Geometry'. The particular innovation this geometry makes is to group the height features ( (high) and (low)) under a separate Height Node, as opposed to having the height features report to the Dorsal Node or the Place Node. Motivation for the Height Node Geometry comes from analyses of several phonological processes. First, removing the height features from under the Dorsal Node and the Place Node facilitates a more natural explanation for reduplication in the Petit Diboum dialect of Fe?fe?-Bamileke. Second, placing the height features above the Place Node but still directly or indirectly under the Supralaryngeal Node provides an account for Tunica partial translaryngeal harmony. Finally, vowel harmony in Ewe involves spreading of (+high) and (+low) in the same environment, arguing for a simpler rule of node spread; hence, I propose that the height features stem from a separate Height Node, instead of directly to the Supralaryngeal Node.

No description available.

Two key methods of perceptually training difficult L2 contrasts are the perceptual fading (PF) technique and the high variability phonetic training (HVPT) technique, and perceptual benefits from using both of these methods have also been found to transfer to pronunciation. However, these techniques have not been compared in their classic forms (PF with one speaker vs. HVPT with multiple speakers) with regard to perceptual gains, nor have they been compared with regard to gains in pronunciation accuracy or how any improvement is retained in the long term. Furthermore, whilst a number of studies suggest that motivation, the concern for L2 pronunciation accuracy aspect in particular, along with perception and/or pronunciation training may contribute to more nativelike pronunciation in late L2 learners, this has not been examined with specific reference to these training techniques. The present work compares these techniques for training native English speaking learners of French on difficult L2 French contrasts (/u/ vs. /y/ and /ɑ˜/vs./ɔ˜/),and assesses participant concern for pronunciation accuracy in order to ascertain an optimal training technique to improve the perception and pronunciation of less able learners. Experiment 1 of this thesis compares HVPT and PF using multiple and single speakers and found that the single speaker HVPT technique was significantly less effective than the others immediately after training. Testing again after at least one month suggested that training was best retained either through using PF with one speaker or HVPT with multiple speakers, that is, the techniques in their classic forms. Experiment 2 examines the benefits of these perceptual training techniques vs. pronunciation training vs. perception AND pronunciation training for both perceptual and pronunciation improvement. Undergoing multiple speaker HVPT + pronunciation training (over the same timescale as training in a single modality) appeared to be most beneficial for perception and pronunciation. Experiment 3 examines the relationship between average pronunciation improvement and participant concern for pronunciation accuracy as measured Elliott’s (1995) Pronunciation Attitude Inventory and found that a high concern for pronunciation accuracy is only related to greater improvements when specific, perhaps more monotonous, training techniques (using only one modality and speaker) are used. Overall, the present results provided no evidence of transfer of perceptual training benefits to pronunciation, and only slight evidence of transfer of pronunciation training benefits to perception, although there was a clear link between participant perception and pronunciation ability before training commenced. This is likely to be at least partly why some training in both modalities emerged as most successful in terms of improvements in both domains. It was therefore suggested that it may be prudent to consider the relationship between perceptual and production learning as distinct from any links between perception and production in general.

American dialect studies have progressed rapidly within the last thirty years, but the progress seems to be concentrated within the Southern and New England areas of the United States. Though there have been studies made in other areas, they are sporadic, no work of any significance having yet been published. Texas, unfortunately, is one area of rich dialectal significance which has been neglected, with the exception of Oma Stanley's work on the dialect in East Texas. Even though that work is somewhat dated in many respects, few scholars have seen fit to undertake a revision of Stanley's work or a study of other areas of Texas which would be comparable to The Speech of East Texas. Several master's theses add to the small number of studies concerned with Texas dialects, notably Roy Elders' study of the stressed back vowels in the speech of Parker County, but such studies are also too few. The present investigation was undertaken for the purpose of adding to that collection of Texas dialect studies an examination of the low-back vowels in stressed syllables, of certain diphthongs in stressed syllables, and of the change in frequency of usage of those vowels and diphthongs, occurring within recent generations in Denton, Texas.

The goal of this work was to evaluate the performance of a classical method for predicting vocal tract cross-sectional areas from cross-distances, to be implemented in speaker-specific articulatory modelling. The data forming the basis of the evaluation were magnetic resonance images from the vocal tract combined with simultaneous audio and video recordings. These data were collected from one female and one male speaker. The speech materials consisted of extended articulation of each of the nine Swedish long vowels together with two short allophonic qualities. The data acquisition and processing involved, among other things, the development of a method for dental integration in the MR image, and a refined sound recording technique required for the particular experimental conditions. Articulatory measurements were made of cross-distances and cross-sectional areas from the speakers’ larynx, pharynx, oral cavity and lip section, together with estimations on the vocal tract termination points. Acoustic and auditory analyses were made of the sound recordings, including an evaluation of the influence of the noise from the MR machine on the vowel productions. Cross-distance to cross-sectional area conversion rules were established from the articulatory measurements. The evaluation of these rules involved quantitative as well as qualitative dimensions. The articulatory evaluation gave rise to a vowel-dependent extension of the method under investigation, allowing more geometrical freedom for articulatory configurations along the vocal tract. The extended method proved to be more successful in predicting cross-sectional areas, particularly in the velar region. The acoustic evaluation, based on area functions derived from the proposed rules, did however not show significant differences in formant patterns between the classical and the extended method. This was interpreted as evidence for the classic method having higher acoustic than physiological validity on the present materials. For application and extrapolation in articulatory modelling, it is however possible that the extended method will perform better in articulation and acoustics, given its physiologically more fine-tuned foundation. Research funded by the NIH (R01 DC02014) and Stockholm University (SU 617-0230-01). / <p>För att köpa boken skicka en beställning till exp@ling.su.se/ To order the book send an e-mail to exp@ling.su.se</p>

Chen, Hui. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 126-132). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.i / 摘要 --- p.iii / Acknowledgments --- p.iv / Table of Contents --- p.ix / List of Tables --- p.xii / List of Figures --- p.xiii / Chapter Chapter One --- Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- Nature of vowel length --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1.1 --- Definitions of vowel quantity and vowel length --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1.2 --- Vowel length in relation to language prosody --- p.3 / Chapter 1.2 --- Acquisition of vowel length distinction --- p.5 / Chapter 1.3 --- Current study on the acquisition of vowel length in Cantonese --- p.9 / Chapter 1.4 --- Organization of thesis --- p.10 / Chapter Chapter Two --- Vowel length in Cantonese --- p.11 / Chapter 2.1 --- Long and short vowels in t h e Cantonese vowel system --- p.11 / Chapter 2.1.1 --- The syllable template of Cantonese --- p.11 / Chapter 2.1.2 --- The phonetic inventory of Cantonese vowels and their distributions --- p.12 / Chapter 2.1.3 --- Two competing analyses of Cantonese vowels --- p.17 / Chapter 2.1.4 --- Status of vowel duration in Cantonese vowel length contrasts --- p.26 / Chapter 2.2 --- Vowel length and the prosodic structure of Cantonese syllables --- p.32 / Chapter 2.2.1 --- Durational properties of Cantonese vowel length and syllable structure --- p.33 / Chapter 2.2.2 --- Towards a constant syllable weight/size --- p.41 / Chapter 2.2.3 --- A prosodic model of Cantonese Syllables --- p.43 / Chapter Chapter Three --- Acquisition of vowel length in Cantonese --- p.50 / Chapter 3.1 --- Cantonese vowel length: the acquisition task --- p.50 / Chapter 3.2 --- Previous studies relevant to the acquisition of vowel length --- p.51 / Chapter 3.2.1 --- Previous studies on vowel length and prosodic development --- p.51 / Chapter 3.2.2 --- Previous studies on Cantonese vowel development --- p.62 / Chapter 3.2.3 --- Kong (1997) on prosodic development in Cantonese --- p.64 / Chapter 3.3 --- Insights and Inadequacies of previous studies --- p.67 / Chapter 3.4 --- Research questions --- p.68 / Chapter Chapter Four --- Vowel length acquisition and prosodic development in Cantonese: A naturalistic case study --- p.70 / Chapter 4.1 --- Objectives of the study --- p.70 / Chapter 4.2 --- Method --- p.70 / Chapter 4.2.1 --- Database and subject --- p.71 / Chapter 4.2.2 --- Transcription and acoustic measurement --- p.72 / Chapter 4.3 --- Data analysis --- p.76 / Chapter 4.3.1 --- Age of onset of vowel quantity --- p.76 / Chapter 4.3.2 --- Development of vowel length and prosodic structure in Cantonese . --- p.83 / Chapter Chapter Five --- Acquisition of vowel length and its contrastive function: Experimental studies --- p.90 / Chapter 5.1 --- Objectives of the experimental studies --- p.90 / Chapter 5.2 --- Experiment I - Actual Word Test --- p.91 / Chapter 5.2.1 --- Subjects and materials --- p.91 / Chapter 5.2.2 --- Procedure --- p.92 / Chapter 5.2.3 --- Results --- p.93 / Chapter 5.2.4 --- Summary of findings of the Actual Word experiment --- p.96 / Chapter 5.3 --- Experiment II - Novel Word Test --- p.97 / Chapter 5.3.1 --- Experimental design: --- p.97 / Chapter 5.3.2 --- Subjects and materials --- p.98 / Chapter 5.3.3 --- Procedure --- p.100 / Chapter 5.3.4 --- Results --- p.103 / Chapter 5.3.5 --- Summary of findings of the Novel Word experiment --- p.104 / Chapter 5.4 --- Overview of the two experiments --- p.105 / Chapter Chapter Six --- Conclusions and discussions --- p.106 / Chapter 6.1 --- Vowel length in child Cantonese: Key findings --- p.106 / Chapter 6.2 --- Factors affecting acquisition: the role of vowel quantity in the vowel length contrast --- p.109 / Chapter 6.3 --- Vowel length development viewed as an integral part of the development of prosodic structure --- p.111 / Chapter 6.4 --- Acquiring vowel length as a phonological opposition --- p.113 / Chapter Appendix I --- Results of the complete set of data in the naturalistic longitudinal study --- p.115 / Chapter Appendix II --- The list of words tested in the Actual Word experiment --- p.118 / Chapter Appendix III --- Examples of the test pictures used in Actual Word Test for each of the vowel pairs in various coda environments --- p.119 / Chapter Appendix IV --- "Examples of test pictures used in the Novel Word Test for the Repeat Condition, the Non-contrastive Condition, the Contrastive Condition, and the Control Condition" --- p.122 / References --- p.126

This thesis studies the role of contrast distinctiveness in sound changes. Perceptual experiments are conducted to investigate the distinctiveness between Mandarin sibilants (dental s ts ts{02B0}, palatal {0255} t{0255} t{0255}{02B0}, and retroflex {0282} t{0282} t{0282}{02B0}). The experiment results are then adopted to account for the diachronic developments of Mandarin sibilants and the apical vowels {027F}, {0285} (syllabic approximants homorganic to the preceding dental/retroflex sibilants). / In Mandarin CV syllables, the apical vowels {027F}, {0285} are in complementary distribution with the vowel i: {027F} follows the dental s ts ts{02B0}; {0285} follows the retroflex {0282} t{0282} t{0282}{02B0}h (and the approximant {0279}); i follows the palatal {0255} t{0255} t{0255}{02B0} and other consonants. As reconstructed in previous studies, this distribution was developed from a series of sound changes since Middle Chinese (MC, circa the 7th century), when MC had dental, palatal, and retroflex sibilants but no apical vowels. Part of MC syllables, whose onsets were these sibilants, merged their rimes into -i. In these syllables, MC palatals merged into MC retroflexes, while the rimes -i developed into / after the dental/retroflex sibilants. In a later stage, palatal sibilants re-emerged before the vowel i in the palatalization of dental sibilants and velar obstruents. Through these developments came Mandarin 'sibilant+i/{027F}/{0285}' syllables. In these changes, a diachronic pattern can be observed, i.e. the avoidance of contrastive dental vs. palatal sibilants before the vowel i. This thesis argues that, this pattern can be attributed to the tendency for human languages to enhance contrast distinctiveness, in addition to the articulatory accounts given in previous studies. / Conducting two experiments, this thesis examines the perceptual distinctiveness between Mandarin sibilants, in isolation and in CV sequences. The results generally support the claim that apical {027F} and {0285} enhance the distinctiveness between the sibilants. Applying these results to the diachronic sound changes, this thesis argues that speech perception has interacted with articulation to ensure contrast distinctiveness of the sound system. / This thesis provides experimental evidence for sibilant distinction, and supplies a case study on diachronic sound changes, where speech perception and articulation interacted to achieve contrast distinctiveness. / 本文通過對普通話音[si字形為: '口'在左, '絲'在右] (齒音 s ts ts{02B0}、齶音{0255} t{0255} t{0255}{02B0}和捲舌音 {0282} t{0282} t{0282}{02B0})的聽覺實驗研究，探討對比清晰性 (contrast distinctiveness)在歷時語音變化中的作用，用聽覺實驗的結果來解釋普通話[si字形為: '口'在左, '絲'在右]音和舌尖元音 {027F}, {0285} (注:與齒音、捲舌音同部位的元音 )的歷史發展。 / 在普通話 CV音節中，舌尖元音 {027F}, {0285} 和前高元音 i呈現互補分佈：舌尖元音{027F}出現在齒音 s ts ts{02B0}後面，舌尖元音{0285} 出現在捲舌音{0282} t{0282} t{0282}{02B0} (以及捲舌通音 {0279})後面，前高元音 i出現在齶音 {0255} t{0255} t{0255}{02B0}和其他輔音後面。根據以往的漢語歷史音韻研究，這個互補分佈是從漢語中古音 (Middle Chinese)經歷一系列語音變化發展而來。部分以中古音的齒音、齶音、捲舌音為首音(onset)的音節中，原本不同的韻 (rime)合併為 -i，並最終發展為普通話中的"[si字形為: '口'在左, '絲'在右]音 +i{027F}/{0285}音節。從中古音開始，這些音節中，齶音併入捲舌音，同時一部分齒音和捲舌音後面的 -i韻音變為舌尖元音。在接下來的發展階段中，軟齶阻塞音 (velar obstruents)和齒音都在元音 -i的前面齶化爲 {0255} t{0255} t{0255}{02B0}。在這些歷時音變中，有一個的規律的模式，即：在元音-i之前，齒音與齶音不形成對立。本文認爲，除去前人研究中的語音發音作用之外，這個發展模式也是由語音系統傾向於清晰對立的趨勢造成的。 / 通過聽覺實驗，本文研究了普通話[si字形為: '口'在左, '絲'在右]音(單獨音段和 CV音節)之間的聽覺對比清晰度。實驗結果總體上支持舌尖元音加強了普通話音間的對比清晰度的觀點，並發現不同類型的音之間顯示出不同的對比清晰程度。本文將這些實驗結果應用於歷時音變的分析，認爲聽覺感知和言語發音相互作用，保證了歷時音變中語音系統的對比清晰性。 / 本文希望能夠為對比清晰度的研究提供聽覺實驗依據，並為對比清晰性在歷時音變中的作用和聽覺與發音的交互提供一個個案研究。 / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Li, Mingxing. / "Dec., 2011." / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 110-120). / Abstracts in English and Chinese; appendixes includes Chinese. / Chapter 1 --- Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- Mandarin sibilants and apical vowels --- p.2 / Chapter 1.2 --- The reconstructed historical development --- p.3 / Chapter 1.3 --- The role of contrast distinctiveness in sound change --- p.5 / Chapter 1.4 --- The contents of this thesis --- p.6 / Chapter 2 --- Previous studies on Mandarin sibilants and apical vowels --- p.7 / Chapter 2.1 --- The phonetics of sibilants and apical vowels --- p.7 / Chapter 2.1.1 --- Sibilants --- p.7 / Chapter 2.1.1.1 --- Articulation --- p.7 / Chapter 2.1.1.2 --- Acoustic properties --- p.8 / Chapter 2.1.2 --- Apical vowels --- p.8 / Chapter 2.1.2.1 --- Articulation --- p.8 / Chapter 2.1.2.2 --- Acoustic properties --- p.9 / Chapter 2.1.2.3 --- The phonetic status of apical {027F}/{0285} --- p.9 / Chapter 2.2 --- The phonology of apical vowels --- p.11 / Chapter 2.2.1 --- Apical {027F},{0285} as underspecified and derived --- p.11 / Chapter 2.2.2 --- Apical {027F} {0285} as a phoneme different from the vowel i --- p.13 / Chapter 2.2.3 --- Apical {027F}, {0285} and the vowel i as in one phoneme --- p.14 / Chapter 2.3 --- Sibilants and apicals: The reconstructed diachrony --- p.15 / Chapter 2.3.1 --- The historical development: An overview --- p.15 / Chapter 2.3.1.1 --- The sibilants in Middle Chinese --- p.15 / Chapter 2.3.1.2 --- The MC syllables developing into Mandarin 'sibilant+{027F}/i/{0285}' --- p.16 / Chapter 2.3.1.3 --- The rime merge into -i --- p.17 / Chapter 2.3.1.4 --- The three sound changes --- p.18 / Chapter 2.3.2 --- Palatal Retroflexion --- p.19 / Chapter 2.3.3 --- Apical vowel formation --- p.21 / Chapter 2.3.3.1 --- The formation of apical vowels --- p.21 / Chapter 2.3.3.2 --- Apical vowels as place assimilation --- p.22 / Chapter 2.3.3.3 --- Apical vowels as loss of rime -i --- p.24 / Chapter 2.3.4 --- Dental and velar palatalization --- p.25 / Chapter 2.3.4.1 --- Velarpalatalization as articulatory assimilation --- p.26 / Chapter 2.3.4.2 --- Dental palatalization as articulatory assimilation --- p.27 / Chapter 2.3.5 --- A summary of the sound changes --- p.28 / Chapter 2.4 --- A summary --- p.29 / Chapter 3 --- Contrast distinctiveness in sound changes --- p.30 / Chapter 3.1 --- Thediachronic pattern from MC to Mandarin --- p.30 / Chapter 3.1.1 --- Thedisfavor on dental vs. palatal sibilants --- p.30 / Chapter 3.1.2 --- Typologyofdentalvs.palatalsibilantsamong Chinesedialects --- p.31 / Chapter 3.2 --- Distinctiveness of contrast between Mandarin sibilants --- p.33 / Chapter 3.2.1 --- Dental vs. palatal sibilants: Distinctiveness of contrast --- p.33 / Chapter 3.2.2 --- Distinctiveness of contrast in phonology --- p.35 / Chapter 3.2.2.1 --- Distinctiveness between segments --- p.35 / Chapter 3.2.2.2 --- Distinctiveness in phonotactics --- p.36 / Chapter 3.2.2.3 --- Distinctiveness in phonological alternation --- p.36 / Chapter 3.2.3 --- Distinctiveness between Mandarin sibilants --- p.37 / Chapter 3.3 --- Contrast distinctiveness in the diachrony: The hypotheses --- p.38 / Chapter 3.3.1 --- Palatal Retroflexion --- p.39 / Chapter 3.3.2 --- Contrast distinctiveness in apical vowel formation --- p.40 / Chapter 3.3.2.1 --- Apical vowels conditioned by contrast --- p.41 / Chapter 3.3.2.2 --- Dentals vs. retroflexes: Distinctiveness before the vowel i --- p.43 / Chapter 3.3.2.3 --- Contrastive dentalsvs. retroflexes before the vowel i --- p.45 / Chapter 3.3.2.4 --- More on place assimilation --- p.45 / Chapter 3.3.3 --- Contrast distinctiveness in dental palatalization --- p.46 / Chapter 3.3.3.1 --- Contrast distinctiveness in Dental Palatalization --- p.47 / Chapter 3.3.3.2 --- Distinctiveness vs. assimilatory palatalization --- p.48 / Chapter 3.3.3.3 --- Implicational relation and dental/palatal distinctiveness --- p.49 / Chapter 3.4 --- A summary --- p.50 / Chapter 4 --- Distinctiveness between sibilants: The perceptual experiments --- p.51 / Chapter 4.1 --- Distinctiveness between sounds: Previous experiments --- p.51 / Chapter 4.1.1 --- Previous studies on consonant distinctiveness --- p.51 / Chapter 4.1.2 --- Perceptuality of Mandarin sibilants --- p.52 / Chapter 4.2 --- Experiment I: Distinctiveness between sibilants --- p.53 / Chapter 4.2.1 --- Objective --- p.53 / Chapter 4.2.2 --- Method --- p.53 / Chapter 4.2.2.1 --- Stimuli --- p.53 / Chapter 4.2.2.2 --- Subjects --- p.55 / Chapter 4.2.2.3 --- Procedure --- p.55 / Chapter 4.2.3 --- Results --- p.55 / Chapter 4.2.3.1 --- The effect of stimuli order --- p.56 / Chapter 4.2.3.2 --- Distinctiveness between sibilants --- p.56 / Chapter 4.3 --- Experiment II: Distinctiveness between 'sibilant+i' sequences --- p.58 / Chapter 4.3.1 --- Objective --- p.58 / Chapter 4.3.2 --- Method --- p.59 / Chapter 4.3.2.1 --- Stimuli --- p.59 / Chapter 4.3.2.2 --- Subjects --- p.61 / Chapter 4.3.2.3 --- Procedure --- p.61 / Chapter 4.3.3 --- The results --- p.61 / Chapter 4.3.3.1 --- The presentation order --- p.61 / Chapter 4.3.3.2 --- ‘Sibilant+i' sequences --- p.63 / Chapter 4.3.3.3 --- ‘Sibilant+i' pairs vs. isolated sibilant pairs --- p.64 / Chapter 4.3.3.4 --- ‘Sibilant+{027F}/i/{0285}' sequences --- p.64 / Chapter 4.3.3.5 --- ‘Sibilant+i’ pairs vs. ‘sibilant+{027F}/i/{0285}’ pairs --- p.65 / Chapter 4.4 --- Summarizing the experimental results --- p.66 / Chapter 4.4.1 --- The four hypotheses --- p.66 / Chapter 4.4.2 --- Distinctiveness between different types of stimuli --- p.67 / Chapter 5 --- Contrast distinctiveness and articulation in sound change --- p.68 / Chapter 5.1 --- Contrast distinctiveness in Mandarin diachrony --- p.68 / Chapter 5.1.1 --- Palatal Retroflexion --- p.68 / Chapter 5.1.2 --- Apical Vowel Formation --- p.69 / Chapter 5.1.2.1 --- Apical {027F}/{0285} as induced by contrast distinctiveness --- p.69 / Chapter 5.1.2.2 --- Apical {027F}/{0285} as enhancement of dental retroflex contrast --- p.70 / Chapter 5.1.3 --- Dental palatalization --- p.70 / Chapter 5.2 --- Sound changes triggered by contrast distinctiveness --- p.72 / Chapter 5.2.1 --- Enhancement of distinctiveness through merge --- p.72 / Chapter 5.2.2 --- Sacrifice of contrast to avoid less distinctiveness --- p.73 / Chapter 5.2.3 --- Vowel allophony for consonant distinctiveness --- p.73 / Chapter 5.3 --- The interaction of speech perception and articulation --- p.74 / Chapter 5.4 --- A summary --- p.76 / Chapter 6 --- Conclusions --- p.77 / Chapter 6.1 --- A summary of the contents --- p.77 / Chapter 6.2 --- Limitations and directions of future research --- p.78 / Chapter Appendix I: --- Development of sibilants and apical vowels --- p.80 / Chapter Appendix II: --- Typology of apical vowels in 124 Chinese dialects: A summary --- p.81 / Chapter Appendix III: --- Typology of apical vowels in 124 Chinese dialects: Full list --- p.83 / Chapter Appendix IV: --- Waveforms and spectrograms of the stimuli --- p.95 / Chapter Appendix V: --- List of stimuli pairs in the record --- p.103 / Chapter Appendix VI: --- Marking sheet for the experiments --- p.104 / References --- p.110

This thesis deals with aspects of Persian phonology and morpho-phonology which are less studied or controversial, and has two specific goals: (i) to examine the structure of the Persian vowel system with the goal of understanding the asymmetries in patterning of different vowels in the system; (ii) to examine some suffixation processes in Persian with the goal of understanding the seeming irregularities in morphophonemics. The more generals goals of this work are to contribute to the discussions of: (i) determining dimensions of contrast in a vowel system; (ii) interactions of vowels and consonants at a morpheme boundary. Although the main focus of this work is on the synchronic status of these issues in Persian from a theoretical viewpoint, many discussions in the thesis benefit from an historical and/or an experimental investigation. As such, the thesis contributes both to the field of theoretical and experimental phonology, and offers both synchronic and historical perspectives on many issues at hand.