Reconsidering Cuzco-Quechua Vowels

Carlos Molina-VitalRice University

Basics of Cuzco-Quechua (CQ) phonology• Trivocalic system:

– /i/ and /u/ are pronounced like [ɪ] and [ʊ]

– /a/ is slightly centralized .• High vowels in CCQ have

allophones in the context of a uvular stop /q/: – /ʧiqaq/ [ʧeqaq] (“true”) – qiru/ [qero] (“wooden cup”).

• Long distance consonant harmony:– /sunqu/ /’sonqo/

(“heart”)– /irqi/ [‘erqe] (“kid”) – /q’iliti/ [q’e’lete]

(“node”).– /suqta/ [‘soqta]

(“six”)

• Morphophonological restrictions– A suffix with /q/ doesn’t

lower adjacent vowels; but there are exceptions: [ya ʧaʧeq] (“teacher”), [watoq] (“fortune-teller”).

• There are no stems with /k/ and /q/ at the same time.

• The distinction between velar and uvular stops is not very common in world languages (14.8% according to Maddieson 1984: 32) and can be problematic (Campbell 1999: 32)

Consonant system of CQ

The basic problem: 3 or 5 vowels?• “As any linguist will have gathered

from the above, the [i] vs. [e] and [u] vs. [o] oppositions in Quechua are merely allophonic, within the phonemes /i/ and /u/ respectively. It is true that the occasional linguist […] has claimed the [i] vs. [e] and [u] vs. [o] distinctions have become phonemic in certain dialects of Quechua. This is rejected by the great majority of linguists, however.” Heggarty , Paul http://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/~pah1003/quechua/Eng/Main/i_ISSUES.HTM#ThreeVowelsOrFive

“A number of studies have shown how thoroughly the phonemic system of several Latin American Indian languages have been transformed via Spanish Loans; for example, Quechua probably had only a three-vowel system /i a u/ before the arrival of the Spaniards, but now, by virtue of completely assimilated loans from Spanish, has a five vowel system /i e a o u/” (Hockett, Charles: A Course in Modern Linguistics, p. 411, 1958.

Reconsidering the problem• The importance of

transitions from formant to formant. – Basic CV syllable with

/q/, /k/, and other C in onset position.

• Vowel plots with four time-points for extended uvular and non-uvular contexts. (Normalized values)

• Evidence in support of a functional, “substance-based”, view of phonology.

About the study

• Four groups of male speakers: 2 Quechua Monolingual (QML), 2 Quechua first language (QL1), 2 Quechua-Spanish Bilingual (BL), 1Quechua second language (QL2).

• Age ranges from 25 to 60 years old. • The data is based on 50 words elicited

through repetition of three lists of words (each word repeated an average of two times).

Average values for F1 and F2

QML chi and ti should read : other contexts with vowel as nucleus. The same applies to all the other transition charts.

The numbers next to the QML, and other acronyms represent the timepoint measured. Lower case vowels are non-uvular contexts, uppercase vowels are uvular context (i.e. there’s a uvular stop in the word)

The numbers next to the QML, and other acronyms represent the timepoint measured. Lower case vowels are non-uvular contexts, uppercase vowels are uvular context (i.e. there’s a uvular stop in the word)

The numbers next to the QML, and other acronyms represent the timepoint measured. Lower case vowels are non-uvular contexts, uppercase vowels are uvular context (i.e. there’s a uvular stop in the word)

Conclusions• There’s no such thing as “mere allophony”. Allophony is a way of

regularizing certain basic articulatory patterns. This creates important cues for the recognition of problematic distinctions at word level. Redundancy is good! Underspecification through features is unrealistic!

• The CQ vowel system seems to reinforce the distinction between /q/ and /k/ through lowering two of the three possible regions used by the speakers. (Of course, a does not lower significantly, but there are other cues for the distinction of /q/ and /k/, for instance, the fricativization of /q/)

• The influence of Spanish is evident in the reorganization of the vowel-space of the bilinguals.

• However, the stability of the middle stages of the formant transitions is noticeable even in the (near) monolingual group.

Acknowledgements

• Field research conducted in July, 2009 thanks to the Wagoner Scholarship at Rice University.

• A big yusulpaykichis to Katherine Crosswhite, Vica Papp, and Katie Nelson for helping me out with my incompetence in phonetic matters!

Tupananchiskama! (Until we meet again!)