Coda Stop and Taiwan Min Checked Tone Sound Changes

Abstract

This acoustical and Electroglottography (EGG) study investigates the effect of coda deletion and co-articulatory phasing on vowels and final coda stops, [p t k ?], in Taiwan Min checked tones 3 and 5 syllables. Vowel duration, f0, spectral tilt (H1*-A3*), cepstral peak prominence (CPP) and glottal contact quotient (CQH) were analyzed. Compensatory lengthening, f0 lowering and increasing periodic phonation during the production of vowels after coda deletion were observed. During gradual phasing when codas were produced as energy damping, the vowels were found to be shorter in duration and less periodic in voicing than vowels abruptly phased with coda that were produced as full stop closure. However, spectral tilt H1*-A3* was not affected by either coda deletion or co-articulatory phasing. Therefore, these findings suggest that H1*-A3* may play a salient role in checked tone identification, and, as a result, is unaffected by sound change.