Kategorie: Phonologie

We are happy to announce a talk by Janika Kunzmann in the Phonology Colloquium. Room: IG 4.301 Date: Wednesday November 5th Time: 17-18 st. Title: On the tonal system of Mbum - Insights from fieldwork in Cameroon Abstract:  This talk presents preliminary insights from an ongoing study of the tonal system of Mbum, a Cameroon- Ubangian language spoken in Cameroon. Drawing on data collected through both on-site and remote fieldwork conducted as part of a doctoral project in descriptive linguistics, the presentation examines key features of Mbum’s tonal system, including a two-level tonal contrast, the presence of various toneless elements, polarity rules, and instances of grammatical tone, as well as how these phenomena are approached in this study. The talk further discusses the challenges and strategies involved in preparing and organizing fieldwork data from scratch for tonal analysis. Overall, it aims to offer a window into the methods, approaches, and preliminary findings that shape a fieldwork-based tonal study of a little-documented and hardly accessible...

We are happy to announce a talk by Jonas Grünke in the Phonology Colloquium. Room: IG 4.301 Date: Wednesday July 16th Time: 16-18 ct Title: When intonation meets intonation: Evidence from Catalan-Spanish bilingualism and other contact settings Abstract:  Language contact often leads to mutual influence, with prosody frequently said to be particularly susceptible to such effects. However, detailed studies on prosodic transfer remain relatively scarce. In this talk, I examine intonational influence between Catalan and Spanish, showing how both languages shape each other prosodically in bilingual speakers. I argue that current patterns of variation can only be understood when taking into account language dominance in these speakers’ repertoires. In addition to this case study, I will discuss further examples of prosodic contact effects in minority and heritage languages (e.g., Judeo-Spanish) as well as in third language acquisition (L3 French), aiming to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of prosody in multilingual settings....

We are happy to announce a talk by Justine Mertz in the Phonology Colloquium. Room: IG 4.301 Date: November 20, 2024 Time: 4 pm – 6 pm ct Title: "Investigating prosodic modulation in French Sign Language (LSF): A kinematic analysis of sign language coarticulation” Abstract: During interaction, speakers often modulate coarticulatory cues to either amplify or reduce perceptual distinctions between competing speech units. Anticipatory coarticulation has been observed in visual-gestural languages as well. However, coarticulatory strategies in sign language remain underexplored. This study offers the first investigation of coarticulation in French Sign Language (LSF) using 3D-Electromagnetic Articulography (EMA) for precise kinematic analysis of sign production. A deaf native signer was recorded (EMA/video) producing phonological sign pairs involving '1'- and/or '3'-handshapes. The kinematic data reveal the presence of coarticulation in varied discourse contexts, at both temporal and spatial levels. Using a dynamical framework (Articulatory Phonology), we interpret these kinematic patterns as systematic overlapping processes rooted in the phonological system....