SEELANGS Digest - 22 Sep 2013 (#2013-400)

[Jana G]

In my experience, I would link this double vowel break (as you say) to
stress and intonation. 'не' for example if emphasized would absolutely
sound slighty as nye-a. So, I would think in questions we would tend to
hear вы as vi-ye if emphasized.  I am studying Polish at the moment, and I
hear it as well. I think that this is not special to Slavic languages but
also is present in English. Imagine the word what in a statement 'wut'
versus 'whaaat? -the intonation would make it longer and thus could be
mistaken by a not native ear as two syllables. Of course, this is not the
perfect English example, but I think it is comparable.

My two zł.

JG -M.A in Slavic Lit & Lang


On Mon, Sep 23, 2013 at 7:00 AM, SEELANGS automatic digest system <
LISTSERV at listserv.ua.edu> wrote:

> There is 1 message totaling 49 lines in this issue.
>
> Topics of the day:
>
>   1. Vowel breaking in Russian
>
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> Date:    Sun, 22 Sep 2013 22:53:02 -0400
> From:    "Goldberg, Stuart H" <stuart.goldberg at MODLANGS.GATECH.EDU>
> Subject: Re: Vowel breaking in Russian
>
> Perhaps in terms of etymology (what other word(s) in Russian, by the way,
> show an analogous effect?), but "не-а" is firmly lexicalized (like "да нет"
> and "да уж"), it differs stylistically and in emphasis from "нет". In this
> semantic field, "aга" and "ого" seem more interesting to me phonetically,
> as they retain an /h/ not otherwise present in the idiolect of speakers of
> "standard" Russian.
>
> Stuart Goldberg
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jules Levin" <ameliede at EARTHLINK.NET>
> To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.UA.EDU
> Sent: Sunday, September 22, 2013 9:51:51 PM
> Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Vowel breaking in Russian
>
> If you start from the phonological level, and assume 5 vowels (with
> whatever 'yes, buts' you want to throw in), and consonants that are
> either palatalized OR labialized/velarized, then all the
> diphthongal/diphthongoidal/diphthongish phenomena can be understood as
> transitions.  When under emphasis a vowel is prolongued for dramatic
> effect, those transitions become more audible, even to naive listeners.
> They also clearly show up on sound spectrographs.
> The n'ea is probably the vowel /e/ heading toward a velarized /t/ that
> is then elided.
> Jules Levin
> Los Angeles
>
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> End of SEELANGS Digest - 22 Sep 2013 (#2013-400)
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