• Speech Sciences
• /
• v.15 no.2
• /
• pp.33-51
• /
• 2008

Difference of learner speech and loanword phonology is investigated in terms of Korean learners' speech and their loanword adaptation of English words with a post-vocalic word-final stop. When we compared the speech of 12 Korean learners in mid-intermediate level with that of eight English speakers, the learner speech did not reflect loanword phonology of the vowel insertion after a voiced word-final stop (e.g., rib$[\dotplus]$, bad$[\dotplus]$, gag$[\dotplus]$ vs. tip[=], cat[=], book[=]), but, instead, the target phonology of vowel lengthening before a voiced word-final stop (e.g., rib[r.I:b], CAD$[k{\ae}:d]$, bag$[b{\ae}:g]$ vs. rip[rI.p], cat$[k{\ae}t]$, back$[b{\ae}k])$. A longitudinal study of learner speech before and after instruction showed some development toward the acquisition of target phonology. The results indicate that learner speech departs from loanword phonology, and approaches to target speech in a faster rate than direct ratio. Thus, native phonology predicts loanword phonology, but lends little support to learner speech. Our results also indicate that loanword phonology is constant, while learner speech changes toward the acquisition of target phonology.

• Speech Sciences
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.91-112
• /
• 1998

This paper aimed at examining the influence of L1 (native language) phonology when speakers of L1 perceive L2 (foreign language) sounds. Korean and Japanese learners of English took a perception test of Australian English words 'work', 'walk' and 'wok'. Based on Korean and Japanese phonology, it was predicted that Korean subjects would face more difficulties than Japanese subjects. The results of the experiment substantiated the influence of L1 phonology in L2 learners' L2 sound perception.

• Speech Sciences
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.109-125
• /
• 2000

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the intonational meaning of various sentences based on the English Intonational Phonology, and to show the superiority of Intonational Phonology in explaining the intonational meanings in comparison with the other existing intonational theories. The American structuralists and British schools which attempt to describe the intonation in terms of 'levels' and 'configurations' respectively, analyze intonational meaning from a holistic perspective in which an utterance cannot be divided into smaller parts. On the other hand, Intonational Phonology considers English intonation as composed of a series of High and Low tones, and as a result, intonational meaning is interpreted compositionally as sets of H and L. In this paper, the phonological relations between intonation and its meaning from the compositions of pitch accents, phrase accents, and boundary tones which consist of an intonational tune are discussed.

• Speech Sciences
• /
• v.6
• /
• pp.119-143
• /
• 1999

In this paper, the development of English Intonational Phonology is introduced. The existing representation systems of intonation are largely divided into the American structuralist school and the British school, which describe intonation by means of 'levels' and 'configurations' respectively. Both representation systems have some theory-internal problems, however. As for the American school, there is no way to represent pitches much lower than the reference line, while the system of intonation in the British school is limited in that intonation is described in a phonetic impressionistic way rather than from a phonological perspective. Intonational Phonology, a real phonological approach, which has grown out of the basic assumptions of autosegmental-metrical(AM) theory has been suggested by Pierrehumbert(1980). In her approach, an intonational tune is made up of one or more pitch accents, followed by an obligatory phrase accent and an obligatory boundary tone, and interestingly 22 combinations are possible. Intonational Phonology has been revised from Beckman & Pierrehumbert(1986) in developing ToBI(Tones & Break Indices), a proposed standard for labelling prosodic features of digital speech databases in English.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
• /
• no.1
• /
• pp.21-42
• /
• 1995

The purpose of this study is to point out that the segment-based study on child phonological acquisition is not sufficient in accounting for the ever-changing dynamic development of child phonology and to attempt to explain child phonology in terms of syllable-based theory of phonology, one of various types of non -linear phonology which have been studied since the late 1970's. According to Gruber's observation. it is obvious that children perceive their own concept of syllable even at the early stage of babbling. In addition, the statistical data show that the CV-type syllable is most frequently used in child phonology. These evidences seem to suffice to conclude that the CV-type syllable is the most unmarked of all four core syllable types in the sense of Clements & Keyser(1983). Starting with this observation, it is further argued that in child phonology the markedness of syllable types increases in the order of CV, CVC, VC and V.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
• /
• v.1 no.3
• /
• pp.3-18
• /
• 2009

Do loanword properties emerge in the acquisition of a foreign language and if so, how? Classic studies in adult language learning assumed loanword properties that range from near-ceiling to near-chance level of appearance depending on speech proficiency. The present research argues that such variations reflect different phonological types, rather than speech proficiency. To investigate the difference between learner speech and loanword phonology, the current research analyzes the speech data from five different proficiency levels of 92 Korean speakers who read 19 pairs of English words and sentences that contained loanwords. The experimental method is primarily an acoustical one, by which the phonological cause in the loanwords (e.g., the insertion of [$\Box$] at the end of the word stamp) would be attested to appear in learner speech, in comparison with native speech from 11 English speakers and 11 Korean speakers. The data investigated for the research are of segment deletion, insertion, substitution, and alternation in both learner speech and the native speech. The results indicate that learner speech does not present the loanword properties in many cases, but depends on the types of phonological causes. The relatively easy acquisition of target pronunciation is evidenced in the cases of segment deletion, insertion, substitution, and alternation, except when the loanword property involves the successful command of the target phonology such as the de-aspiration of [p] in apple. Such a case of difficult learning draws a sharp distinction from the cases of easy learning in the development of learner speech, particularly beyond the intermediate level of proficiency. Overall, learner speech departs from loanword phonology and develops toward the native speech value, depending on phonological contrasts in the native and foreign languages.

• Speech Sciences
• /
• v.11 no.3
• /
• pp.7-21
• /
• 2004

The present study aims to investigate domain-initial strengthening phenomenon, which refers to strengthening of articulatory gestures at the initial positions of prosodic domains. More specifically, this paper presents the result of an experimental study of initial syllables with onset consonants (initial-syllable vowels henceforth) of various prosodic domains in English and Hamkyeong Korean, a pitch accent dialect spoken in the northern part of North Korea. The durations of initial-syllable vowels are compared to those of second vowels in real-word tokens for both languages, controlling both stress and segmental environment. Hamkyeong Korean, like English, tuned out to strengthen the domain-initial consonants. With regard to vowel durations, no significant prosodic effect was found in English. On the other hand, Hamkyeong Korean showed significant differences between the durations of initial and non-initial vowels in the higher prosodic domains. The theoretical implications of the findings are as follows: The potentially universal phenomenon of initial strengthening is shown to be subject to language specific variations in its implementation. More importantly, the distinct phonetics- phonology model (Pierrehumbert & Beckman, 1998; Keating, 1990; Cohn, 1993) is better equipped to account for the facts in the present study.

• Proceedings of the KSPS conference
• /
• 2000.07a
• /
• pp.353-363
• /
• 2000

The consonant system of English is relatively uniform throughout the English-speaking countries. Accents of English are mainly known to differ in terms of their vowel systems as well as in the phonetic realisations of vowel phonemes. The results of an acoustic study of vowel phonology of Japanese English, Singapore English and Indian English are presented, and an attempt is then made to compare the vowel phonology of these non-native varieties with that of Scottish English and RP. Various native varieties of English are thus shown to differ from each other in major ways, as much, perhaps, as the non-native varieties differ from the native varieties. Nevertheless, native speakers of English appear to be mutually intelligible to a degree that does not extend to non-native varieties. Obviously there are features that various native accents have in common which facilitate their mutual intelligibility, and these features are not shared by non-native accents. It is proposed that the foreign learner adopt certain core features of English in his pronunciation if he is to use English effectively as an international language. The common core that is significant in the communication process will be discussed. In conclusion, some pragmatic implications for the English language education in the new millennium will be articulated.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
• /
• v.8 no.2
• /
• pp.91-104
• /
• 2003

The purpose of this paper is to show that when we consider the analytical ways of Dissimilation, it becomes clear that it is insufficient to deal with it in just linear and nonlinear ways. Thus within a new framework to be introduced in this paper, Harmonic Phonology, we will reanalyze the phenomenon. We will also consider how the Obligatory Contour Principle (hereinafter, OCP) is used as both rule trigger and rule blocker in rule application, and works as a universal constraint, that is, a filtering device of ill formed representation. As we also consider it under the new framework, we can show the application position and motivation of rules appropriately and represent the phenomenon synthetically. (Yosu National University)

• Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics
• /
• v.1 no.2
• /
• pp.243-272
• /
• 2001

This paper focuses on the applicability of paradigm to derivational morphology and the pressure of paradigm enforced on derivational phonology and morphology. Through a close examination of well-attested data, we will demonstrate that apparent surface idiosyncrasies in phonology are the results of paradigm leveling, and that paradigmatic forces of analogy are productively operating in English word formation. On the basis of these observations, it can be argued that the notion of paradigm has at least some justification within derivational morphology as well, even if not to the same extent that it has with inflectional morphology and that the paradigm forces are independently needed in any adequate phonological and morphological theory. This can also be extended to provide evidence against the split morphology hypothesis that inflectional and derivational morphology belong to different grammatical modules.