2023 Spring

March. 10    10:00-11:00

 What does it mean to be “checked”: case studies of Yateé Zapotec and Xiapu Min 

 Dr. Yuan Chai (UCLA) 

Title: What does it mean to be “checked”: case studies of Yateé Zapotec and Xiapu Min

Slides: https://yuanchaiyc.github.io/website/presentation/NYCU-talk-YC.html

Meeting link:https://meet.google.com/iya-dtac-zdh

Abstract:

Phonation types, syllables, and tones have all been referred to as “checked” in linguistic research, especially when these constituents are short and end abruptly. However, the phonological nature of a “checked” constituent remains unclear. This talk explores whether being “checked” refers to a distinct phonological feature or category, or whether it can be reduced to existing phonological structures such as glottalization, syllable structure, tone, or duration. Through a survey of 20 Zapotec varieties and 94 Chinese languages, I conclude that there are two broad types of checked constituents. In Zapotec, “checked” refers to a phonatory category. Checked phonation is characterized by having glottalization at the end of vowels, in contrast with rearticulated phonation with glottalization in the middle of vowels. In Chinese, “checked” describes syllable and tone types. Obstruent-closed syllables are associated with different tones from open syllables and nasal-closed syllables. The  obstruent-closed syllables and their associated tones are called “checked.”

Do these two different types of checked constituents share the same phonetic characteristics? In my field research, I examine the checked phonation in Yateé Zapotec (Oaxaca) and the checked syllables and tones in Xiapu Min (Fujian). In Yateé Zapotec production, checked phonation is distinguished from both rearticulated and modal phonation types in having glottalization at the end of vowels. In Xiapu Min, checked tones are differentiated from unchecked ones in production in terms of their F0, duration, and vowel-final glottalization. In tone perception, listeners rely more on F0 and duration than on glottalization when identifying checked tones. The results suggest that, in production, glottalization is more central to checked phonation than to checked tones, whereas F0 is more important to checked tones than to checked phonation. This asymmetry in production is likely due to the fact that checked phonation contrasts with another glottalized phonation type, whereas checked tones contrast with other tones.

Overall, we argue that referring to vowels, syllables, and tones as “checked” is based on their phonetic characteristics. The typology and phonology of individual languages with “checked”-like constituents suggest that being “checked” does not refer to a single structural feature or category.

April. 21      12:15-13:15, HC2 207 (人社二館 207)

Prof. Jeff Holliday (Korea University)  

Title: Accounting for cross-linguistic variability in the relationship between vocal pitch and politeness 

Abstract:

It has been hypothesized that polite speech is associated with a higher vocal pitch across languages. This prediction is made in Ohala's Frequency Code, which locates the source of this association in the fact that physically smaller things produce higher pitch sounds, and making oneself seem small is an act of submission and therefore polite. In this talk I will explore this relationship in both English and Korean, a language in which a lower vocal pitch has been associated with politeness. Because vocal pitch can be non-arbitrarily associated with many different meanings, not just physical smallness, I claim that the connection between vocal pitch and politeness in a community is mediated by the kinds of attributes that speakers in that community happen to value in judging politeness. This explanation can help account for cross-linguistic variability in the pitch-politeness relationship while still supporting the basic claim of the Frequency Code.