LINGUIST List 14.2369

Mon Sep 8 2003

Books: Phonology, Cantonese: Flynn

Editor for this issue: Marisa Ferrara <marisalinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. LINCOM.EUROPA, Intonation in Cantonese: Flynn

Title: Intonation in Cantonese
Series Title: LINCOM Studies in Asian Linguistics 49.
			
Publication Year: 2003
Publisher: Lincom GmbH 
 www.lincom-europa.com, http://lincom.at		 
			
Author: Choi Yeung Chang Flynn				

Paperback: ISBN: 3895869864, Pages: 150, Price: 54 EURO
			
Abstract:

This study develops a system for describing intonation in Cantonese, a
language having six phonological tones employing both pitch and
slope. It analyses the utterance intonation contour into major
intonation groups, intonation groups and feet. It defines what
criteria those units meet and how they relate to each other. The
intonation contours, constructed with a string of lexical tones, are
described in terms of prosodic units which separate themselves in
terms of pitch height and pitch span. The demarcation of the units is
an innovation of this work. The different F0 values of identical
phonological tones in an utterance are found to be in gradual descent
if they are within an intonation group, and an intonation group is
depicted more clearly when the two fitted lines which cover the top
and the bottom are parallel and declined. A major intonation group is
the largest prosodic unit in utterances. It is decided by a larger
size of resetting of pitch span. An intonation group and a major
intonation group each represent a unit of information which is
semantically and syntactically coherent. The most prominent syllable
in an intonation group is the tonic. An acoustic analysis of all
possible combinations of the lexical tones of disyllabic and
trisyllabic tonal sequences shows that tonal coarticulation is an
important factor in modifying the F0 contours. The modification can
affect both the pitch height and the slope of the F0 contours, and is
also realised in both anticipatory and carryover effects. Prominence
is examined, both at the level of words and of utterances, and a
description of its prosodic parameters is developed with supporting
evidence from the discussion of tonics.
 
Choi-Yeung-Chang Flynn earned her M.A. and Ph.D degrees in Phonetics
from SOAS, University of London. She has published a number of papers
in Phonetics as well as co authoring a Chinese pronunciation
glossary. She has taught Linguistics and Chinese languages in
universities in London, China and Hong Kong. Currently, she teaches
at the University of Hong Kong. . (for more information, please see
the LINCOM webshop : lincom.at).

Lingfield(s): Asian languages (General Linguistics)
		Phonology
			 
Subject Language(s): Cantonese (Language Code: YUH)

Written In: English (Language Code: ENG)


 See this book announcement on our website: 
 http://linguistlist.org/get-book.html?BookID=7152.