Thursday, February 08, 2007

Aspiration. It's all about persbective.

A friend of mine recently told the story (on her own web log) about teaching her ESL class. For some reason she thought it appropriate to teach them the word "supercalifragilisticexbealidocious." At the very least this word can generate an interesting discussion of what makes a word a word. Would we consider this a lexeme? What is semantic content to this word? I'm pretty sure it's an adjective. And it probably means something like "super." I can't remember the lyrics of that part of Mary Poppins but I remember the tune clearly. It gives me headache. Is there a lyric something like 'lumdiddle-iddle' in there?

So what makes this of interest to me is my friend's admission that she doesn't know how the word is spelled but when her students asked her to write it out for them she chose to spell it "supercalifragilisticexbealidocious." And sure. It works. I knew what word she meant when I read it.

But it's not the spelling I would have used. There's a letter sequence in there that I noticed when I read it: the "xbe". My guess would have chosen "kspi" for that sequence. Why do she and I see that sequence differently? Because I'm a big believer in onset maximization. To say it as simply as I know how...

In English, when stops are the initial sound in a word, they are aspirated. There's a slight puff of air audible right after the release. When an 's' comes before the stop there is no puff of air. (Well -- it's less audible.) Compare the following:

The /p/ in pin and spin
The /k/ in kit and skit
The /t/ in tab and stab

Since English does not differentiate between an aspirated and unaspirated voiceless stop the +/- aspiration alternation is more likely seen as a voiceless/voiced alternation. That is, since voiced stops are not aspirated, an initial unaspirated voiceless stop sounds like a voiced stop.

Now consider the two spellings I suggested for our long word above. Her use of 'x' makes me think that she syllabified the 'ks' as a coda cluster. So her unaspirated bilabial stop sounded like a voiced bilabial stop because she analyzed the onset as a single consonant [...eks.bi.æ.lə...]. Analyzing the [s] as part of the coda she would have expected a [p] to be aspirated [...eks.phi.æ.lə...].

Because I love onset maximization I have just assumed that the syllabification is [...ek.spi.æ.lə...]. After the [s] an unaspirated [p] is what I'd expect.

After searching around I find that "xp" is probably the correct spelling. Even so...I syllabify "expert" with a maximized onset and an unaspirated [p].

A while ago on the ADS listserve there was discussion of a local pronunciation of "Wisconsin" heard by some as "Wisgonsin." Several people called attention to the aspiration alternation and suggested that it's primarily an alternation of syllabification. Where most will syllabify the word [wis.khan.sən] some locals (and surely some non-locals as well) will syllabify it [wi.skan.sən]. Note the difference in aspiration.

6 comments:

  1. Interesting! Thanks for directing me here. When I was writing the word, I did stop for a moment to wonder if it was "b" or "p," but not "x" or "ks." :)

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  2. That pronunciation is the source of the WI slang "skonnie" for Wisconsinite.

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  3. Similarly, are "disburse" and "disperse" really pronounced differently in normal speech? Or "discussed" and "disgust"?

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  4. Good observation kcdindc. I'd say they're not. The alternation in asperation between disburse and disperse would probably make the latter sound like "this purse." The [ð] in this would have to be replaced by a north eastern [d].

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  5. Song: Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Lyrics
    MARY POPPINS:
    Super… calif… ragilistic… expialid… ocious! Oh!
    MICHAEL:
    That’s not a word!

    MARY POPPINS:
    (speaking) Of course it’s a word. And unless I’m very much mistaken, I think it’s going to prove a rather useful one.
    (singing) When trying to express oneself, it’s frankly quite absurd
    To leaf through lengthy lexicons, to find the perfect word.
    A little spontaneity keeps conversation keen
    You need to find a way to say precisely what you mean.
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
    Even though the sound of it is simply quite atrocious
    If you say it loud enough, you’ll always sound precocious
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay

    JANE:
    (speaking) But it doesn’t mean anything!

    MARY POPPINS:
    (speaking) It can mean precisely what you want it to!
    (singing) When stone-age men were chatting, simply grunting would suffice.

    BERT:
    Though if they’d heard this word, they might have used it once or twice.

    MARY POPPINS:
    (speaking) That’s right.

    MRS. CURRY:
    I’m sure Egyptian pharaohs would have grasped it in a jiff.
    Then every single pyramid would bear this hieroglyph! Oh!
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
    Say it and wild animals would not seem so ferocious

    MARY POPPINS:
    Add some further flourishes, it’s so

    MRS. CURRY
    Ahhh

    MARY POPPINS
    Ahhhh

    BERT:
    Ah-ah-ah-ah.

    ALL
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay

    BERT:
    The Druids could have carved it on their mighty monoliths

    MRS. CURRY:
    The ancient Greeks, I’m certain, could have used it in their myths.

    MARY POPPINS:
    I’m sure the Roman Empire only entered the abyss
    Because those Latin scholars never had a word like this!
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

    MARY POPPINS:
    If you say it softly, the effect can be hypnocious.

    BERT:
    Check your breath before you speak, in case it’s halitotious

    MARY POPPINS:
    (speaking) Oh, Bert.

    ALL:
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay
    Um diddle um diddle um diddle ay!

    MARY POPPINS:
    Of course, you can say it backwards, which is suoicodiliaipxecitsiligarfilacrepus.

    MICHAEL:
    She may be tricky, but she’s bloody good!

    MARY POPPINS:
    So when the cat has got your tongue, there’s no need for dismay.
    Just summon up this word and then you’ve got a lot to say.

    BERT:
    Pick out those 18 consonants and 16 vowels as well
    And put them in an order, which is very hard to spell…

    MARY POPPINS:
    S-U-P-E-R

    BERT:
    R

    MARY POPPINS:
    C-A-L-I-F

    BERT:
    F

    MARY POPPINS:
    R-A-G-I-L

    JANE AND MICHAEL:
    I-S-T-I-C-E-X-P-I-A-L-I-D-O-C-I-O-U-S!

    BERT:
    (mutters) Clever clogs…

    ALL:
    S-U-P-E-R- C-A-L-I-F-R-A-G-I-L-I-S-T-I-C-E-X-P-I-A-L-I-D-O-C-I-O-U-S!
    S-U-P-E-R
    C-A-L-I-F
    R-A-G-I-L
    I-S-T-I-C-E-X-P-I-A-L-I-D-O-C-I-O-U-S!
    S-U-P-E-R
    C-A-L-I-F
    R-A-G-I-L
    I-S-T-I-C-E-X-P-I-A-L-I-D-O-C-I-O-U-S!

    BERT:
    (speaking) Here we go!

    ALL:
    (Singing) Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
    Even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious
    If you say it loud enough, you’ll always sound precocious
    Supercalifragilistic

    JANE AND MICHAEL:
    Supercalifragilistic

    ALL:
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
    Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

    ReplyDelete

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