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The acquisition of acoustic and aerodynamic patterns of coarticulation in second and heritage languages

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Abstract

This dissertation investigates language-specific acoustic and aerodynamic phenomena in language contact situations. Whereas most work on second language and bilingual phonology has focused on individual consonants and vowels, this project examines patterns of coarticulation in the two languages of Spanish-English and French-English bilingual speakers. These include speakers whose first language is either Spanish, French or English, and are late second-language acquirers, and heritage speakers of Spanish, who are early second-language acquirers. I focus on subtly different coarticulation patterns between English and Spanish, including the extent to which vowels are nasalized in contact with nasal consonants (Chapter 2), are lengthened before voiced consonants (Chapter 3), and whose quality is affected before voiced consonants (Chapter 4). Whereas the existence of such effects can be taken as universal, the degree to which they are implemented varies from language to language, presumably contributing to what defines a ‘native accent.’ My work thus presents a novel method to investigate coarticulatory patterns. The theoretical question that I address in my dissertation is whether bilingual speakers can establish distinct coarticulatory patterns in their two languages in ways that are similar to those of monolinguals of the two languages. A related question is to what extent learning both languages in childhood (as in the case of heritage speakers) facilitates separating the two phonetic systems. In Chapter 2, I study coarticulatory vowel nasalization in Spanish and English using pressure transducers and Generalized Additive Mixed Models to observe how nasal airflow changes over time. In Chapter 3, I focus on vowel length as a cue for voicing of the following consonant in two Romance languages (Spanish, French) and English, which show opposite patterns. Chapter 4 is about vowel formant displacement patterns across time and the effect of vocalic length in Spanish and English. In Chapter 5, I present a new phonological model, “The Bilingual Coarticulatory Model”, which describes coarticulation as malleable and adjustable cross-linguistically in bilingual speakers that possess a higher level of linguistic proficiency. Results show that properties pertaining to vowel quality are easier to acquire than durational properties, which would go against some of the L2 literature on the acquisition of vowels. Native speakers of Spanish show native-like nasalization values in L2 English, yet only when the syllabic structure of sequences is shared. Heritage speakers show native-like results in both languages with regard to nasalization, and L1En speakers show an adjustment of onset of nasalization but not of degree of nasalization. Regarding duration, heritage speakers were the only group to completely separate the two coarticulatory systems, as the other groups showed cross-linguistic influence. Finally, regarding the dynamics of vowel formants, speakers transfer L1 patterns to the L2. Linguistic proficiency in the L2 was a significant factor to acquire coarticulatory patterns. In the case of heritage speakers, different findings were found depending on the variable under study.
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... Remarkably, the effect of (re)syllabification of nasal consonants on neighboring vowels in Spanish has not been thoroughly investigated, especially via articulatory methods. The present study seeks to understand the aerodynamics (Beristain 2022(Beristain , 2023a(Beristain , 2023bCohn 1993;Huffman and Krakow 1993;Shosted 2009;Shosted et al. 2012;Solé 1992; In this view, resyllabified codas should behave like onsets. Remarkably, weakening phenomena that affect word-internal coda consonants may also affect word-final consonants, even if they are resyllabified as onsets preceding a vowel in the following word. ...
... Previous studies have analyzed the effect of syllable structure on the nasalization of the vowel (Beristain 2022;Byrd et al. 2009), and the general resolution that they have found is that nasalization develops earlier in vowels in tautosyllabic VN sequences than in heterosyllabic V.N ones because of gestural timing differences (Krakow 1989(Krakow , 1999. For instance, Diakoumakou (2005) analyzed coarticulatory vowel nasalization in Modern Greek and compared it to Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Ikalanga, French, Italian, American English, Hindi, and Bengali. ...
... Participants wore an AKG C-520 head-mounted microphone (Harman International, Stamford, CT, USA) that was located approximately 3 cm (1 inch) away from their mouths. For a more detailed report about the equipment, see Beristain (2022Beristain ( , 2023a. ...
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Tautosyllabic segment sequences exhibit greater gestural overlap than heterosyllabic ones. In Spanish, it is presumed that word-final consonants followed by a word-initial vowel undergo resyllabification, and generative phonology assumes that canonical CV.CV# and derived CV.C#V onsets are structurally identical. However, recent studies have not found evidence of this structural similarity in the acoustics. The current goal is to investigate anticipatory and carryover vowel nasalization patterns in tautosyllabic, heterosyllabic, and resyllabified segment sequences in Spanish. Nine native speakers of Peninsular Spanish participated in a read-aloud task. Nasal airflow data were extracted using pressure transducers connected to a vented mask. Each participant produced forty target tokens with CV.CV# (control), CVN# (tautosyllabic), CV.NV# (heterosyllabic), and CV.N#V (resyllabification) structures. Forty timepoints were obtained from each vowel to observe airflow dynamics, resulting in a total of 25,200 datapoints analyzed. Regarding anticipatory vowel nasalization, the CVN# sequence shows an earlier onset of nasalization, while CV.NV# and CV.N#V sequences illustrate parallel patterns among them. Carryover vowel nasalization exhibited greater nasal spreading than anticipatory nasalization, and vowels in CV.NV# and CV.N#V structures showed symmetrical nasalization patterns. These results imply that syllable structure affects nasal gestural overlap and that aerodynamic characteristics of vowels are unaffected across word boundaries.
... • Prediction 4: Yes. Previous studies such as Beristain (2022), Oh (2008), Shea and Curtin (2011), and Zsiga (2003) find that more native-like productions of context-dependent patterns are more native-like in participants with higher levels of instruction. Considering the present study provides a more systematic way to measure overall spoken proficiency, I expect to find differences in phonetic details vis-à-vis accentedness ratings. ...
... By accentedness, I am referring to the fine-grained phonetic details of spoken proficiency (that is, a way towards ultimate attainment). Based on previous studies such as Martínez (2020), Zsiga (2011), and Beristain (2022, 2023a, it is predicted that this type of bilingual speakers will show the ability to adjust their coarticulatory settings (RQ1, P1) and possess distinct categories for the nasalized vowels in Spanish and English (RQ1, P3). This will result in earlier gestural overlap in English than in Spanish, thus enhancing the proportion of nasality of vowel segments in English (RQ1, P2). ...
... This will result in earlier gestural overlap in English than in Spanish, thus enhancing the proportion of nasality of vowel segments in English (RQ1, P2). Moreover, based on previous literature (Beristain, 2022;Oh, 2008;Zsiga, 2003), I predict that within the highly proficient group, those rated with a more 'native-like' accent will show a greater degree of nasality in their L2 vowels, resembling expected patterns in native English vowels (RQ2, P4). The current results provide evidence for the predictions proposed. ...
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Segment-to-segment timing overlap between Vowel-Nasal gestures in /VN/ sequences varies cross-linguistically. However, how bilingual speakers may adjust those timing gestures is still unanswered. Regarding timing strategies in a second language (L2), research finds that native (L1) strategies can be partially transferred to the L2, and that higher L2 proficiency promotes a more successful phonetic performance. My goal is to answer whether highly proficient bilingual speakers can adjust their L1 coarticulatory settings in their L2 and to observe whether their L2 accentedness level plays a role in ultimate attainment. Ten native speakers of Spanish (L1Sp) who were highly proficient L2 English speakers participated in Spanish and English read-aloud tasks. A control group consisting of 16 L1 English speakers undertook the English experiment. Aerodynamic data were collected using pressure transducers. Each participant produced tokens with nasalized vowels in CVN# words and oral vowels in CV(CV)# words. Four linguistically trained judges (two per target language) evaluated a set of pseudo-randomized sentences produced by the participants containing words with nasalized vowels and rated the speech on a 1 (heavily accented) to 9 (native-like) Likert scale. Measurements for onset and degree of overall nasality were obtained. Results indicate the L1Sp group can accommodate gestural timing strategies cross-linguistically as they exhibit an earlier nasality onset and they increment nasality proportion in L2 English in a native-like manner. Additionally, a positive correlation between greater vowel nasality degree and native-like accentedness in the L2 was found, suggesting L2 timing settings might be specified in higher spoken proficiency levels.
... Aerodynamic data were collected via BIOPAC's (2020) TSD160A pressure transducers (Beristain 2022;Carignan et al. 2011;Shosted 2009;Shosted et al. 2012). The transducers were connected to a vented Scicon OM-2 mask which had a separator between the nasal and oral cavity. ...
... Approximately 15-30 before every session, the BIOPAC machine was manually calibrated by the author of this study. This was done via an AFTA6A Calibration syringe, which expelled a precise volume of air: 600 mL (Beristain 2022;Shosted 2009). Two measurements were considered for the signal calibration: (i) the correction value of the signal, and (ii) the integral area of the amount of air expelled by the syringe. ...
... After filtering the data in the forward direction, filtfilt reverses the filtered sequence and runs it back through the filter". A signal cut-off was applied at 50 Hz to avoid any interference such as vocal fold vibration or noise in airflow contours (Beristain 2022;Shosted 2009). Integral and correction values were saved in a separate spreadsheet that was later read onto the MATLAB script that performed the data extraction. ...
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Gestural timing overlap between a vowel and subsequent nasal consonant results in the vowel being articulatorily nasalized. Research has shown that such degree of coarticulation varies cross-linguistically (e.g., English exhibits a greater gestural timing overlap than Spanish). This phenomenon has mainly been investigated in monolingual samples, and with only a small number of studies focusing on second and heritage language gestural timing patterns of nasality; the role of bilingualism in this respect is thus an open question, which is the focus of the current study. Sixteen second-generation US-born heritage bilinguals participated in this experiment. Their degree of bilingualism was assessed via the Bilingual Language Profile. They completed two separate read-aloud tasks: one in Spanish (heritage language) and one in English (second language). Simultaneous oral and nasal airflow were collected via pressure transducers from words that included phonetically oral and nasalized vowels. Results indicate that heritage bilinguals increment the degree of vocalic nasalization from Spanish to English. Nevertheless, their degree of bilingualism did not yield statistical significance in phonetic performance. The current study is the first one implementing aerodynamic methods with a heritage bilingual population and presents data for the possibility to possess two segment-to-segment timing strategies in heritage grammars.
... In addition, acoustic realisations of liquids interact with the neighbouring segments as a result of coarticulation. While coarticulation is often viewed as a consequence of the physiological mechanisms in the transition between segmental targets, some aspects of coarticulation may be language-specific and thus need to be learnt (Beristain, 2022;Keating, 1985). Word-initial /ô/ in English, for instance, shows lower F 3 values when followed by back vowels compared to other vowel conditions (King and Ferragne, 2020). ...
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This article reports an acoustic study analysing the time-varying spectral properties of word-initial English liquids produced by 31 first-language (L1) Japanese and 14 L1 English speakers. While it is widely accepted that L1 Japanese speakers have difficulty in producing English /l/ and /ɹ/, the temporal characteristics of L2 English liquids are not well-understood, even in light of previous findings that English liquids show dynamic properties. In this study, the distance between the first and second formants (F2–F1) and the third formant (F3) are analysed dynamically over liquid-vowel intervals in three vowel contexts using generalised additive mixed models (GAMMs). The results demonstrate that L1 Japanese speakers produce word-initial English liquids with stronger vocalic coarticulation than L1 English speakers. L1 Japanese speakers may have difficulty in dissociating F2–F1 between the liquid and the vowel to a varying degree, depending on the vowel context, which could be related to perceptual factors. This article shows that dynamic information uncovers specific challenges that L1 Japanese speakers have in producing L2 English liquids accurately.
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The aim of this paper is to differentiate between universal phonetic processes and language-specific phonological processes. Cross-linguistic data on coarticulatory nasalization of vowels preceding a nasal consonant were obtained across different speech rates in American English and Spanish. The data show that in American English the temporal extent of vowel nasalization varies with speech rate, whereas in Spanish, nasalization has a constant temporal extent across speech rates. It is argued that the different behavior of nasalization in these two languages reflects different inputs to speech production: In Spanish, vowels followed by a nasal are targeted as oral and nasalization is an unintended vocal tract constraint, whereas, in American English, vowels are targeted as nasalized and vowel nasalization is a phonological effect, intentionally implemented by the speaker. It is suggested that in American English, vowels followed by a tautosyllabic nasal are phonologically specified as nasal as a result of sound change. Data on perceived vowel nasalization in American English are reviewed and shown to be compatible with this proposal.
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This paper focuses on the spectral properties of anterior sibilant fricatives in Northern Peninsular Spanish, and sibilant-merging and non-merging varieties of Basque. Non-merging varieties of Basque have two voiceless anterior sibilant fricatives, characterized as apico-alveolar and lamino-alveolar. In other Basque varieties, however, these two phonemes have merged with varying results. Twenty-four participants divided into four different groups have been studied. One group is a set of monolingual Spanish speakers from north-central Spain while the remaining three are Basque-Spanish bilingual groups with different sibilant fricative systems in Basque. The goal is to describe the spectral properties of anterior sibilant fricatives and examine the effect of the L1-Basque sibilant system upon L2-Spanish. The Basque varieties chosen are (1)-Azpeitia Basque, where merging in favor of the lamino-alveolar sibilant fricative has occurred, (2)-Lemoa Basque, where the merging in favor of the apico-alveolar sibilant fricative is widespread, and (3)-Goizueta Basque, where no merging has happened. Participants took part in an elicitation task where they produced sentences containing target words with an intervocalic anterior sibilant fricative in Basque and Spanish. Bayesian probability was used for inferential statistics. Speakers of the non-merging Basque variety show the narrowest acoustic dispersion of /s/ in Spanish, as opposed to broader diffusion in the other three groups. Regarding L1 transfer, while the Azpeitia group does not show transfer into Spanish, the Lemoa and Goizueta groups do. Results show that /s/ is more fronted for monolingual Spanish speakers from north-central Spain than what previous literature has reported.
Chapter
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The aim of our research is to understand how speech learning changes over the life span and to explain why "earlier is better" as far as learning to pronounce a second language (L2) is concerned. An assumption we make is that the phonetic systems used in the production and perception of vowels and consonants remain adaptiive over the life span, and that phonetic systems reorganize in response to sounds encountered in an L2 through the addition of new phonetic categories, or through the modification of old ones. The chapter is organized in the following way. Several general hypotheses concerning the cause of foreign accent in L2 speech production are summarized in the introductory section. In the next section, a model of L2 speech learning that aims to account for age-related changes in L2 pronunciation is presented. The next three sections present summaries of empirical research dealing with the production and perception of L2 vowels, word-initial consonants, and word-final consonants. The final section discusses questions of general theoretical interest, with special attention to a featural (as opposed to a segmental) level of analysis. Although nonsegmental (i.e., prosodic) dimensions are an important source of foreign accent, the present chapter focuses on phoneme-sized units of speech. Although many different languages are learned as an L2, the focus is on the acquisition of English.
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The majority of previous studies on nasal coarticulation in French find an inversely proportionate relationship between vowel opening and nasality, such that high vowels are the most nasalized, sometimes exceeding 50% nasality. However, it has been unclear whether this is a mechanical or controlled property of French, given the typically short duration of high vowels in natural speech, as well as the aerodynamic and acoustic factors rendering them more susceptible to spontaneous nasalization. This study uses nasometric data to quantify progressive and regressive nasalization in 20 Northern Metropolitan French speakers as a function of vowel height. Furthermore, the relationship between degree of nasal coupling and overall vowel duration serves as a proxy for distinguishing mechanical from controlled nasalization, in the spirit of Solé (1992, 2007). This study finds evidence that high vowel nasalization in French is mechanical in pre-nasal position, but controlled in post-nasal position. Meanwhile, nasalization of mid and low vowels is blocked in pre-nasal position but, at most, mechanical in post-nasal position. In consequence, French appears to block nasalization in otherwise lexically impossible positions (*ṼN), while passively allowing, though not actively requiring, nasalizing in positions where conflation is possible (both NṼ and NV being permitted in the lexicon).
Chapter
The variation that a speech sound undergoes under the influence of neighbouring sounds has acquired the well-established label coarticulation. The phenomenon of coarticulation has become a central problem in the theory of speech production. Much experimental work has been directed towards discovering its characteristics, its extent and its occurrence across different languages. This book is a major study of coarticulation by a team of international researchers. It provides a definitive account of the experimental findings to date, together with discussions of their implications for modelling the process of speech production. Different components of the speech production system (larynx, tongue, jaw, etc.) require different techniques for investigation and a whole section of this book is devoted to a description of the experimental techniques currently used. Other chapters offer a theoretically sophisticated discussion of the implications of coarticulation for the phonology-phonetics interface.
Chapter
The variation that a speech sound undergoes under the influence of neighbouring sounds has acquired the well-established label coarticulation. The phenomenon of coarticulation has become a central problem in the theory of speech production. Much experimental work has been directed towards discovering its characteristics, its extent and its occurrence across different languages. This book is a major study of coarticulation by a team of international researchers. It provides a definitive account of the experimental findings to date, together with discussions of their implications for modelling the process of speech production. Different components of the speech production system (larynx, tongue, jaw, etc.) require different techniques for investigation and a whole section of this book is devoted to a description of the experimental techniques currently used. Other chapters offer a theoretically sophisticated discussion of the implications of coarticulation for the phonology-phonetics interface.