Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics
ISSN: 0269-9206 (Print) 1464-5076 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/iclp20
Fricative acquisition in English- and Icelandicspeaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development B. May Bernhardt, Thora Másdóttir, Joseph P. Stemberger, Lisa Leonhardt & Gunnar Ó. Hansson To cite this article: B. May Bernhardt, Thora Másdóttir, Joseph P. Stemberger, Lisa Leonhardt & Gunnar Ó. Hansson (2015) Fricative acquisition in English- and Icelandic-speaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development, Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, 29:8-10, 642-665, DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2015.1036463 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/02699206.2015.1036463
Published online: 31 Aug 2015.
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Date: 05 November 2015, At: 13:20
Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, August 2015; 29(8–10): 642–665 ß 2015 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 0269-9206 print / 1464-5076 online DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2015.1036463
Downloaded by [University of Wisconsin Oshkosh] at 13:20 05 November 2015
Fricative acquisition in English- and Icelandic-speaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development ´ SDO ´ TTIR2, JOSEPH P. STEMBERGER3, B. MAY BERNHARDT1, THORA MA ´ . HANSSON3 LISA LEONHARDT1, & GUNNAR O 1
School of Audiology and Speech Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, Faculty of Medicine, Division of Speech Pathology, National Hearing and Speech Institute of Iceland, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland, and 3Department of Linguistics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada 2
(Received 2 November 2014; revised 27 March 2015; accepted 29 March 2015)
Abstract Few studies have directly compared fricative development across languages. The current study examined voiceless fricative production in Icelandic- versus English-speaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development (PPD). Expected were: a low fricative match (with age effect), highest match levels for /f/ and non-word-initial fricatives, developmentally early mismatch (error) patterns including deletion, multiple feature category mismatches or stops, and developmentally later patterns affecting only one feature category. Crosslinguistic differences in phonetic inventories were predicted to provide different options for mismatch patterns, e.g. affricates in English, [+spread glottis] segments in Icelandic. For each language, native speakers audio-recorded and transcribed single-word speech samples for thirteen 3-year-olds and ten 4-year-olds. Predictions regarding mismatches were generally confirmed. Accuracy data were partially confirmed, /f/ having a lower match than /s/ overall for the Icelandic children. Other results reflected language or group differences. The data provide confirmation that phonological acquisition reflects crosslinguistic, language-specific and child-specific influences.
Keywords: Laryngeal features, manner features, phonological acquisition, phonological impairment, place features, speech sound disorders
Introduction The fricative sound class is mastered relatively late during phonological acquisition, especially by children with protracted phonological development (PPD; Fox & Dodd, 2001; Ingram, 1978; Ma´sdo´ttir, 2008; Smit, 2007). Later mastery may reflect perceptual and/or articulatory factors. Perceptually, small acoustic differences (in e.g. [f] versus [y], or [s] versus [S]) may be ignored (Miller & Nicely, 1955) or considered irrelevant. Articulatorily, fricatives require precise control of airflow to create turbulence; e.g. sibilants need a narrow central tongue groove, and voiced
Correspondence: B. May Bernhardt, School of Audiology and Speech Sciences, University of British Columbia, 2177 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, Canada. Tel: +1-604-822-2319. Fax: +1-604-822-6569. E-mail: [email protected]
Downloaded by [University of Wisconsin Oshkosh] at 13:20 05 November 2015
Fricatives in Icelandic and English
643
fricatives require that the intra-oral air pressure be delicately balanced relative to both the ambient and the sub-glottal air pressures. Relatively few studies have focused solely on fricative development in single languages (Gierut & Storkel, 2002; Ingram, 1978, 1988; Ingram, Christensen, Veach, & Webster, 1980; Nicholson, 2014), and crosslinguistic comparisons of fricative development are either rare (Bernhardt, Romonath, & Stemberger, 2014; Li, 2012) or embedded in studies of other consonants (MacLeod, Sutton, Trudeau, & Tho´rdardo´ttir, 2011). Such crosslinguistic studies have shown not only similarities in acquisition, but also differences reflecting the languages’ phonetic inventories, acoustic characteristics and feature frequency. For example, MacLeod et al. (2011) found a similar age of mastery for many fricatives, although French data showed earlier acquisition of /v/ and /z/, and English data, of /Z/. The following paper extends the crosslinguistic dialogue on fricative acquisition for two Germanic languages, Icelandic and English. The two languages have overlapping but distinct speech sound inventories. In terms of voiceless fricatives, Icelandic and English have /f/, /s/ and /y/ in common; however, post-alveolar fricatives in Icelandic are /c¸/ and /x/ but in English, /S/. Only English has voiced fricatives; the Icelandic voiced cognates ‘/v/’, ‘/D/’ ´ rnason, 2011; Helgason, 1991/1993). The and ‘//’ are phonetically approximants [I, D
ISSN: 0269-9206 (Print) 1464-5076 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/iclp20
Fricative acquisition in English- and Icelandicspeaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development B. May Bernhardt, Thora Másdóttir, Joseph P. Stemberger, Lisa Leonhardt & Gunnar Ó. Hansson To cite this article: B. May Bernhardt, Thora Másdóttir, Joseph P. Stemberger, Lisa Leonhardt & Gunnar Ó. Hansson (2015) Fricative acquisition in English- and Icelandic-speaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development, Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, 29:8-10, 642-665, DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2015.1036463 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/02699206.2015.1036463
Published online: 31 Aug 2015.
Submit your article to this journal
Article views: 34
View related articles
View Crossmark data
Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=iclp20 Download by: [University of Wisconsin Oshkosh]
Date: 05 November 2015, At: 13:20
Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, August 2015; 29(8–10): 642–665 ß 2015 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 0269-9206 print / 1464-5076 online DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2015.1036463
Downloaded by [University of Wisconsin Oshkosh] at 13:20 05 November 2015
Fricative acquisition in English- and Icelandic-speaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development ´ SDO ´ TTIR2, JOSEPH P. STEMBERGER3, B. MAY BERNHARDT1, THORA MA ´ . HANSSON3 LISA LEONHARDT1, & GUNNAR O 1
School of Audiology and Speech Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, Faculty of Medicine, Division of Speech Pathology, National Hearing and Speech Institute of Iceland, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland, and 3Department of Linguistics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada 2
(Received 2 November 2014; revised 27 March 2015; accepted 29 March 2015)
Abstract Few studies have directly compared fricative development across languages. The current study examined voiceless fricative production in Icelandic- versus English-speaking preschoolers with protracted phonological development (PPD). Expected were: a low fricative match (with age effect), highest match levels for /f/ and non-word-initial fricatives, developmentally early mismatch (error) patterns including deletion, multiple feature category mismatches or stops, and developmentally later patterns affecting only one feature category. Crosslinguistic differences in phonetic inventories were predicted to provide different options for mismatch patterns, e.g. affricates in English, [+spread glottis] segments in Icelandic. For each language, native speakers audio-recorded and transcribed single-word speech samples for thirteen 3-year-olds and ten 4-year-olds. Predictions regarding mismatches were generally confirmed. Accuracy data were partially confirmed, /f/ having a lower match than /s/ overall for the Icelandic children. Other results reflected language or group differences. The data provide confirmation that phonological acquisition reflects crosslinguistic, language-specific and child-specific influences.
Keywords: Laryngeal features, manner features, phonological acquisition, phonological impairment, place features, speech sound disorders
Introduction The fricative sound class is mastered relatively late during phonological acquisition, especially by children with protracted phonological development (PPD; Fox & Dodd, 2001; Ingram, 1978; Ma´sdo´ttir, 2008; Smit, 2007). Later mastery may reflect perceptual and/or articulatory factors. Perceptually, small acoustic differences (in e.g. [f] versus [y], or [s] versus [S]) may be ignored (Miller & Nicely, 1955) or considered irrelevant. Articulatorily, fricatives require precise control of airflow to create turbulence; e.g. sibilants need a narrow central tongue groove, and voiced
Correspondence: B. May Bernhardt, School of Audiology and Speech Sciences, University of British Columbia, 2177 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, Canada. Tel: +1-604-822-2319. Fax: +1-604-822-6569. E-mail: [email protected]
Downloaded by [University of Wisconsin Oshkosh] at 13:20 05 November 2015
Fricatives in Icelandic and English
643
fricatives require that the intra-oral air pressure be delicately balanced relative to both the ambient and the sub-glottal air pressures. Relatively few studies have focused solely on fricative development in single languages (Gierut & Storkel, 2002; Ingram, 1978, 1988; Ingram, Christensen, Veach, & Webster, 1980; Nicholson, 2014), and crosslinguistic comparisons of fricative development are either rare (Bernhardt, Romonath, & Stemberger, 2014; Li, 2012) or embedded in studies of other consonants (MacLeod, Sutton, Trudeau, & Tho´rdardo´ttir, 2011). Such crosslinguistic studies have shown not only similarities in acquisition, but also differences reflecting the languages’ phonetic inventories, acoustic characteristics and feature frequency. For example, MacLeod et al. (2011) found a similar age of mastery for many fricatives, although French data showed earlier acquisition of /v/ and /z/, and English data, of /Z/. The following paper extends the crosslinguistic dialogue on fricative acquisition for two Germanic languages, Icelandic and English. The two languages have overlapping but distinct speech sound inventories. In terms of voiceless fricatives, Icelandic and English have /f/, /s/ and /y/ in common; however, post-alveolar fricatives in Icelandic are /c¸/ and /x/ but in English, /S/. Only English has voiced fricatives; the Icelandic voiced cognates ‘/v/’, ‘/D/’ ´ rnason, 2011; Helgason, 1991/1993). The and ‘//’ are phonetically approximants [I, D
