[Ads-l] Pronunciation of "faith" and "also" in parts of Alabama

Wed Mar 2 20:08:05 UTC 2016

It's also why you get the usual W MI (and elsewhere?) pronunciation of else as "elts".

----- Original Message -----
> From: "Laurence Horn" <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Sent: Wednesday, March 2, 2016 2:51:07 PM
> Subject: Re: Pronunciation of "faith" and "also" in parts of Alabama
> 
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: Pronunciation of "faith" and "also" in parts of
> Alabama
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> > On Mar 2, 2016, at 2:19 PM, Charlie Law <chaslaw at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> >=20
> > [Ugh. Still got these pesky character-encoding probs. Here's
> > another =
> try.]
> >=20
> > Thanks, Walter! That's an explanation that makes sense to me.
> >=20
> > It shows how hypercorrection doesn't follow the derivational
> > pattern =
> that
> > it's evidently motivated by: "width" < "wide", "breadth" < "broad",
> > =3D"fai[t]th" < ???.
> >=20
> > Now, can you tell me what's going on with "al[t]so"?
> >=20
> > Similar case: in Florence, Alabama, and in Shelby, NC, I heard this
> > pronunciation of the 28th president's surname: "Wil[t]son". This
> > must =
> be
> > the same inland Southern (piedmont, not mountain) dialect that I
> > hear =
> in
> > upstate S.C.
> 
> Those really do involve excrescent stop consonants (see WB's (1)
> below), =
> which often occur between sonorants (nasals, laterals like [l], etc.)
> =
> and fricatives (like [s]), sometimes but not always represented in
> the =
> spelling.  It's why the nouns from "assume" or "redeem" are
> "assumption" =
> and "redemption" with epenthetic [p]'s, why there are jokes about how
> a =
> good doctor must have a lot of patients/patience [these being =
> homophones], why "sense" is often homophonous with "scents", and so
> on.  =
> The [p] or [t] in such cases is "excrescent" in that it grows out of
> the =
> collision between the two consonants, yielding an easier articulation
> of =
> the sonorant + fricative sequence (or sequents).  (I'm not a =
> phonetician, nor do I play one on TV; maybe Herb or someone with
> similar =
> credentials can pop in here.)
> 
> LH
> 
> >=20
> >=20
> > On Wed, Mar 2, 2016 at 7:07 PM, Charles Law <chaslaw at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >=20
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> -----------------------
> >> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster:       Charles Law <chaslaw at GMAIL.COM>
> >> Subject:      Re: Pronunciation of "faith" and "also" in parts of
> >> =
> Alabama
> >>=20
> >> =
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------=
> -----
> >>=20
> >> Thanks, Walter! That=3DE2=3D80=3D99s an explanation that makes
> >> sense =
> to me.=3D20
> >>=20
> >> It shows how hypercorrection doesn=3DE2=3D80=3D99t follow =
> derivational pattern
> >> that it=3DE2=3D
> >> =3D80=3D99s evidently motivated by:
> >> =3DE2=3D80=3D9Cwidth=3DE2=3D80=3D9D=
>  <
> >> =3DE2=3D80=3D9Cwide=3DE2=3D80=3D9D,
> >> =3DE2=3D80=3D9Cbreadth=3DE2=3D80=3D=
> 9D < =3DE2=3D80=3D9Cbro=3D
> >> ad=3DE2=3D80=3D9D, =3DE2=3D80=3D9Cfai[t]th=3DE2=3D80=3D9D <
> >> ???.=3D20
> >>=20
> >> Now, can you tell me what=3DE2=3D80=3D99s going on with
> >> =3DE2=3D80=3D9Cal[t]so=3DE2=3D80=3D9D?=3D20
> >>=20
> >> Similar case: in Florence, Alabama, and in Shelby, NC, I heard
> >> this
> >> pronunc=3D
> >> iation of the 28th president=3DE2=3D80=3D99s surname:
> >> =3DE2=3D80=3D9CWil[t]son=3DE2=3D80=3D9D.
> >>=20
> >> (Yes, the bowtie is nice, except that it gets Alpo stains when I
> >> eat =
> my
> >> bre=3D
> >> akfast.)
> >>=20
> >>=20
> >>=20
> >> On 3/2/16, 4:48 PM, "American Dialect Society on behalf of W
> >> Brewer"
> >> <ADS-L=3D
> >> @LISTSERV.UGA.EDU on behalf of brewerwa at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> >>=20
> >>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> ------------------=3D
> >> -----
> >>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >>> Poster:       W Brewer <brewerwa at GMAIL.COM>
> >>> Subject:      Re: Pronunciation of "faith" and "also" in parts of
> >>> =
> Alabama
> >>=20
> >>> =
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------=
> =3D
> >> -----
> >>>=20
> >>> Well, looks like the dialectologists are hibernating, so this is
> >>> my
> >>> opportunity to consult my trusty old Arthur Bonstein handbook.
> >>> RE: <faith> ~ <fai[t]th>:
> >>> (1) Probably not an "excrescent [t]", that just grew in there as
> >>> a
> >>> homorganic interdental t, for some unknown reason.
> >>> (2) Possibly, hypercorrection. Bronstein notes that "In careless
> >>> or
> >>> indistinct speech, the /t/ or /d/ may be lost, especially when
> >>> final =
> or in
> >>> certain clusters, as in ... <eighth, width, breadth> ..." Note
> >>> how
> >>> <eight+th> is even written <eighth>, but some people may feel it
> >>> =
> sounds
> >>> better to stick the plosive <t> back in; and, not only that, add
> >>> one =
> into
> >>> <faith> for good measure. Can't think of any better parallels =
> offhand.
> >>> Cute bow tie, Charlie.
> >>>=20
> >>> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >>> The American Dialect Society - =
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=3Dhttp-3A__www.americandialect.=
> org&d=3DAwIBaQ&c=3D-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=3DwFp3X4Mu39hB2bf13gtz0ZpW1TsS=
> xPIWYiZRsMFFaLQ&m=3Dl6Y9TPWqtJ20tCaimBBfyws2ZC8wDmL5lL6Qj_5Y43o&s=3DpBzY2D=
> Ddh7vRcLuZbx2GpcSJEtXt1viDWTaonXNiLu0&e=3D=20
> >>=20
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - =
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> org&d=3DAwIBaQ&c=3D-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=3DwFp3X4Mu39hB2bf13gtz0ZpW1TsS=
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> >>=20
> >=20
> >=20
> >=20
> > --=20
> > *Tired? There's a nap for that.*
> >=20
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - =
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