LL-L "Phonology" 2002.06.15 (03) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 15.JUN.2002 (03) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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 LS=Low Saxon (Low German) S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic Z=Zeelandic (Zeeuws)
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From: Ruud Harmsen <rh at rudhar.com>
Subject: LL-L "Phonology" 2002.06.13 (02) [E]

Gary Taylor <gary_taylor_98 at yahoo.com>:

>That South East England English and accents in the
>West of the Netherlands are beginning to have this
>l-vocalisation after all vowels is perhaps more
>interesting. However, if there is an influence between
>the two which way is it going? My grandmother used
>l-vocalisations and she was 94 when she died last
>year. There are also still many speakers who fluctuate
>between 'l' and 'w'. Do you know how old this feature
>is in the Netherlands?

At least 100 years, as all my grandparents (born around 1895)
already did it. And I expect it's even much older than that, but I
have no evidence of that.

R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>:

>This rule applies in many Low Saxon (Low German) dialects as well;
e.g.,
>Melk [mE.jk] ~ [mE.ik] (milk).  In dialects in which the "thick"
(velar)
>allophone of /l/ is retained (see my previous posting) after any
type of
>vowel, especially in the farwestern ranges, the "disharmony" between
>velar /l/ and palatovelar /k/, /g/ or /x/ (> [C]) is overcome by means
>of an epenthetic (inserted, separating) vowel, much like it is done in
>many Dutch dialects; e.g., _Melk_ [mE.L`@k] (milk, sounding like
>"mellek").

True, but then the /l/ usually becomes "thin" again, being between
vowels instead of before a consonant or pause.
I don't know if the epenthesis is really caused or influenced by
velarisation, because it also happens with /r/: "werk" often sounds
as "werrek" [vEr at k], varken (less often) as "varreke". This also
changes the r-sound, it "un-shwa-ises" it, but no velarisation is
involved.

--
Ruud Harmsen <rh at rudhar.com>
Last update 12 June 2002 http://rudhar.com/index/whatsnew.htm

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