lawn-loan

[hpst@earthlink.net]

Dennis,

You talk about local Michiganders.

What about Yoopers?

Page Stephens

> [Original Message]
> From: Dennis R. Preston <preston at MSU.EDU>
> To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Date: 4/21/2006 8:49:12 AM
> Subject: Re: lawn-loan
>
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Dennis R. Preston" <preston at MSU.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: lawn-loan
>
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>
> Ron,
>
> Ah dint know you were doin folk perceptual dialect phonology. I
> suspect you are right. I'm always amazed that local Michiganders hear
> Ontario "about" (and imitate it) as "a boot"); but this is a more
> subtle mishearing. The native Michigander diphthong starts at the HOT
> vowel and glides to somewhere around the GOOD vowel. The Ontario
> vowel starts at CUT (probably backer) but ends in the same place. In
> this case the misperception of the onset (which is higher than the
> typical Michigander's) causes those tin-eared hearers to hear no
> diphthong at all.
>
> Kuhl, huh?
>
> dInIs
>
> >But the nonnative tends to hear the [o] offglide as the most prominent
> >feature of the vowels in both cases, so LAWN and LOAN sound a lot
> >alike--especiallybecause, in both cases the onsets, while
> >phonetically distinct, are quite
> >similar (nonback, nonhigh, nonrounded, nontense) and overlap a lot in
their
> >variability.
> >
> >Of course, we don't mow the lawn very much here in North Carolina, we
coot
> >(rhymes with BOOK) the grice.
> >
> >In a message dated 4/20/06 5:46:21 PM, preston at MSU.EDU writes:
> >
> >
> >>  Jest what ah sed. A lower and fronter onset for LAWN. (And clearly a
> >>  fonted onset for LOAN.)
> >>
> >>  dInIs
> >>
> >>  >In a message dated 4/19/06 9:22:46 PM, preston at MSU.EDU writes:
> >>  >
> >>  >
> >>  >>  This would amaze me for most of NC, where the low-back vowel has
> >>  >>  become a diphthong with a fronter (not raised and backer) onset.
> >>  >>
> >>  >
> >>  >I'm hearing LOAN = schwa + [o]
> >>  >                   LAWN = [a] + [o]
> >>  >
> >>  >which tend to sound a lot alike to the non-native
> >>
> >
> >------------------------------------------------------------
> >The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
>
> --
> Dennis R. Preston
> University Distinguished Professor
> Department of English
> 15C Morrill Hall
> Michigan State University
> East Lansing, MI 48824
> 517-353-4736
> preston at msu.edu
>
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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