This apparent and real time study analyses how dialect features in the speech of children and adults are differently affected depending on whether they live in homogeneous or heterogeneous speech communities. The general hypotheses are that speakers in such high contact settings as heterogeneous urban centers are more prone to innovation than speakers in homogeneous tightly-knit communities, and that children accelerate leveling, especially through schooling and socialization. This study is of Gheg Albanian, a dialect spoken in and around the capital Tirana. Two features were investigated: rounding of /a/ and vowel length contrasts. Two groups of adults and children were compared: one from Tirana and one from a nearby village. Additionally, the children were recorded twice over a period of 12 months and were compared longitudinally. The results showed that length contrasts were still present in both communities and age groups. Rounding of /a/ was lost in the city, but undergoing change in the village, with differences measured in apparent time, but also in child speech within the 12-month span. Our study further raises the issue of combining both apparent and real time data within the same design.
Cite as: Riverin-Coutlée, J., Cunha, C., Kapia, E., Harrington, J. (2021) Dialect Features in Heterogeneous and Homogeneous Gheg Speaking Communities. Proc. Interspeech 2021, 1449-1453, doi: 10.21437/Interspeech.2021-1090
@inproceedings{riverincoutlee21_interspeech,
author={Josiane Riverin-Coutlée and Conceição Cunha and Enkeleida Kapia and Jonathan Harrington},
title={{Dialect Features in Heterogeneous and Homogeneous Gheg Speaking Communities}},
year=2021,
booktitle={Proc. Interspeech 2021},
pages={1449--1453},
doi={10.21437/Interspeech.2021-1090}
}