english accents 7. historical change (ii) innovations reflected in rp etc., but not everywhere in...
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English accents
7. Historical change (ii)
Innovations reflected in RP etc., but not
everywhere in Britain and not in most
American English
developments before /r/
beer beer and beard
biːr biːr biːrd
bɪər bɪər bɪərd
bɪə bɪər bɪəd
RP bɪə
GA bɪr
RP bɪəd
GA bɪrd
developments before /r/
beer, beard chair, Mary more, force sure, jury
biːr tʃeːr moːr ʃuːr
Pre-r breaking
biːər tʃeːər moːər ʃuːər
Pre-schwa laxing
bɪər tʃɛər mɔər ʃʊər
r dropping
farmer
ˈfɑːrmər
ˈfɑːmə
developments before /r/
beer, beard chair, Mary more, force sure, jury
biːr tʃeːr moːr ʃuːr
biːər tʃeːər moːər ʃuːər
bɪər tʃɛər mɔər ʃʊər
r dropping
bɪə tʃɛə mɔə ʃʊə
resisted in rhotic accents
developments before historical /r/
beer, beard chair, Mary more, force sure, jury
biːr tʃeːr moːr ʃuːr
biːər tʃeːər moːər ʃuːər
bɪər tʃɛər mɔər ʃʊər
bɪə tʃɛə mɔə ʃʊə
monophthonging
bɪː tʃɛː mɔː (ʃʊː)
BATH broadening
æ → ɑː / _ [-voi +fric]bæθ → bɑːθ
Some words resisted this change: math(s), mass, tassel, dash. Compare class-classic, pass-passage.
Others were coined or borrowed later: gas.
bath vs. math(s), castle vs. tassel, pass vs. gas
This change was resisted in the north of England as well as in north America.
pass, glass, grass, staff, raft, laugh, bath, path, after, castle
TRAP-BATH split
æ → ɑː / _ n [-voi -son +cor]slænt → slɑːnt
Some words resisted this change: ant, cant, manse, cancer, cancel; stand, grand, ample
aunt vs. ant, answer vs. cancer, example vs. ample
These words also retained /æ/ in the Leeward Islands and in most of Australia.
slant, grant, aunt, can't, dance, chance, answer, chancel, branch, ranch; also demand, Alexander, example
lexical incidence: BATH words
• typical southern accent
TRAP æBATH ɑːSTART ɑː
gas, pass, farce
æ ɑː ɑː
• typical northern accent
TRAP aBATH aSTART aː
gas, pass, farce a a aː
resisted in Scotland and Ireland and (for a time) in North America
(in educated speech in London by 1800)
suffix vowel weakening
cemetery ˈsemɪteri → ˈsemɪtəri → ˈsemɪtri
testimony ˈtestɪmoʊni → ˈtestɪməni
suffix vowel weakening
Discuss
necessary
February
ordinary
suffix vowel reduction?
• The ending -ary is reverting to a strong vowel
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necessary
February
ordinary
suffix vowel stressed!
• In -arily, the suffix vowel is becoming not only strong but stressed
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b. -1933 1934-1953 1954-1973 since 1973