LL-L "Phonology" 2011.02.06 (01) [EN]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 06 February 2011 - Volume 01
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From: Danette Howland <dan_how at msn.com>
Subject: LL-L "Phonology" 2011.01.19 (01) [EN]

Dear Roger and lowlanders all:



Roger Hondshoven wrote:


Some years ago, while listening to the BBC (radio and TV) I was struck by
words
lie quarter, quart, headquarters, being pronounced with initial k . At that
time
I didn't pay much attetntion. Lately I keep hearing it regularly. I thought
it
was rather bewildering. I checked in my dictionaries:Longman's, publ. 1987,
The
Concise Oxford Dictionary, 1991, a very old edition of An English
Pronouncing
Dictionary by Daniel Jones, 1952, Van Dale, Groot Woordenboek
Engels-Nederlands,
1989, Ten Bruggencate, Engels Woordenboek (Wolters),1983, Webster's Third
New
International Dictionary, 1966. They all concur that the correct
pronunciation
is with kw. I hear this pronunciation in both British and American speech. I
think this rather remarkable, as all other words with qu are realized with
kw.
I am under the impression that this is a rather recent development. What is
your
opinion?



In my estimation dropping the "u" vowel occurs because in many dialects the
"a" vowel has shifted to "o" and quart is now pronounced "quort." The
initial consonant is still pronounced "q" (too far back to be a "k") and the
following "o" makes the frontal "u" weaker. My dialect of American English
still requires an emphasis on the round "w" quality and I pronounce
something like "qwort."

In other "qua-" situations the "u" and "a" are retained as in "quantity."



I'll let the more experienced phonologists explain this.



Be well, everyone,



John Howland



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