Rhotacism

[Mark Mitchell]

>>H.G. Simonsen writes:
>Norwegian has both apical and dorsal /r/, depending on dialect. The apical
>/r/s are most often not trilled, but rather produced as a tap.
>
>=46or Norwegian children, /r/ is recognised as a problematic sound, but it i=
>s
only the apical /r/ which causes problems even up to 4 and beyond (being
typically substituted with [l], [j], [=8F], but never with [w]). For some,
the (apical) /r/ problem persists into adulthood.

A general question:  Does anyone know of any evidence that such 'problematic'
phonemes effect L1 lexical aquisition?  Are words containing such phonemes (particularly
at the beginning or end) more difficult for children to learn?  Or do they just
happily substitute an easier phoneme and slowly correct this as they get older?

Thanks,
mark mitchell