음성음운형태론연구 29집 2호 Lee, Yong-cheol
2023.09.09 18:46
[DOI: 10.17959/sppm.2023.29.2.193]
[본문: 파일]
Revisiting the merger of mid front vowels in Seoul Korean
Yong-cheol Lee (Hannam University)
Abstract
Using read speech data, this study reexamined the vowel merger phenomenon of /ɛ/
into /e/ in Seoul Korean to determine whether the two vowels are realized differently
across syllable positions within words (word-initial, word-medial, and word-final).
Initially, I investigated potential differences in the production of these two vowels,
separately for age group and gender. The findings revealed that male speakers
experienced the merger of these vowels one generation later than female speakers.
Next, to examine whether the merging process of the vowels varied across syllable
positions, we extracted data, particularly from speakers born between the 1960s and
1980s. The two vowels exhibited significant differences in F2 values, indicating
backness. This study also utilized LDA models to determine whether the two vowels
are accurately classified, separately for gender and syllable position. The classification
scores were higher for male speakers than for female speakers, and word-final position
exhibited the highest degree of confusion when distinguishing the two vowels. This
study unveils one important finding: the merger of /ɛ/ into /e/ is not yet fully completed
due to the distinct realizations of F2 observed in different syllable positions.
Keywords
vowel merger, mid front vowels, Seoul Korean, age groups, gender, Pillai scores, LDA
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