In Malayalam, a Dravidian languages spoken in India, there is a contrast in vowel length, as in [ka[retroflex lateral approximant]i] 'game' and [ka:[retroflex lateral approximant]i] 'goddess of death'. This vowel length contrast is the basis for any theory of stress placement in Malayalam. A listener acceptability study was performed to determine how acceptable vowel duration variation was to native speakers. It was found that listeners prefer a long vowel to have a longer duration than a short vowel. It was also found that listeners only accepted short vowel reduction and/or deletion when it was next to a vowel of contrasting length. Implications of these findings are discussed.
A listener acceptability study was performed to determine how acceptable vowel duration variation was to native speakers. It was found that listeners prefer a long vowel to have a longer duration than a short vowel. It was also found that listeners only accepted short vowel reduction and/or deletion when it was next to a vowel of contrasting length. Implications of these findings are discussed. / text
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UTEXAS/oai:repositories.lib.utexas.edu:2152/ETD-UT-2011-12-4611 |
| Date | 27 February 2012 |
| Creators | Terzenbach, Lauren M. |
| Source Sets | University of Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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