Recursivity in prosodic phonology

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Frank Kügler
• Subject Area: General and Comparative Linguistics, Experimental Linguistics, Typology, Non-European Languages ; Applied Linguistics, Computational Linguistics
• Term: from 2016 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 313566120

• Final Report Year: 2022

Final Report Abstract

As part of my Heisenberg fellowship "Recursivity in prosodic phonology” this project contributed to two major debates in prosodic phonology. First, a central issue was concerned with whether recursivity can be assumed in phonology and if so, how recursivity is best modelled in prosodic phonology (RQ-1). Second, the project aimed at modelling the interaction between tone and intonation with respect to prosodic phrasing regardless of whether phrases were recursive or not. A main contribution with respect to recursivity in prosodic constituents was the analysis of phonological phrase structure of the Kwa language Anum. Anum employs a pattern of [ATR] vowel harmony that is regressive and [+ATR] dominant (RVH). RVH is analysed as a phrasal process. My proposal argues for an application of the process within and across nonmaximal phonological phrases (φnon-max) and a blocking of application across maximal phonological phrases (φmax). Eliciting new empirical data, I was able to show that neither the size of constituents nor the complexity of sentence structures had an influence on prosodic phrasing. Instead, the empirical data show that RVH applies frequently between words that belong to either the same or to different syntactic constituents, but is blocked between two verb phrases of a serial verb construction and between any word and a following sentence-final time adverbial. A further major contribution to this topic is the ongoing edition of a special issue in the journal Languages. In this collection, we have contributions from different areas of the syntax-phonology interface stimulating the debate in the field. The main contribution for the second issue regarding the prosodic expression of prosodic phrase boundaries was the publication of a number of empirical studies looking at various patterns of the prosodic expression of phrase boundaries in a diverse range of languages. Regarding downstep in Mandarin and Tswana, we claim that downstep is phonetic in nature in Mandarin while it is phonological in Tswana, independent of the trigger of downstep. As for the prosodic signalling of sentence mode in Akan, we find that yes-no-questions are signalled by an intonationphrase final Low boundary tone, while statements are not signalled by any boundary tone. Our research on Hindi suggests that modulations of pitch register, in particular the presence of postfocal compression, is a necessary cue for focus perception. Based on that finding, a working hypothesis for future research was proposed to analyse pitch register as a further prosodic category on the same level as well-established categories as pitch accents or boundary tones. This project also contributed to the understanding of prosodic categories by substantiating the proposal of the DIMA (German Intonation – Modelling and Annotation) Annotation system for German intonation. In sum, although the pandemic constrained the original project plan, the individual studies, the diverse research topics, and the activities in the project contribute to stimulate the discussion on theoretical modelling of prosodic categories and prosodic structure as well as on empirical underpinnings of prosodic theory.

Publications

• Optional accentuation of pronouns in German. Speech Prosody 2018 (2018, 6, 13). American Geophysical Union (AGU).
  Kügler, Frank
  
• Production and perception of question prosody in Akan. Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 50(1), 61-92.
  Genzel, Susanne & Kügler, Frank
  
• Post-focal compression as a prosodic cue for focus perception in Hindi. Journal of South Asian Linguistics, 10(2), 38-59
  Kügler, Frank
  
• Speech rhythm in Ghanaian languages: The cases of Akan, Ewe and Ghanaian English. Speech Prosody 2020 (2020, 5, 25), 586-590. American Geophysical Union (AGU).
  Boll-Avetisyan, Natalie; Omane, Paul Okyere & Kügler, Frank
  
• An Empirical Investigation on the Perceptual Similarity of Prosodic Language Types. 1st International Conference on Tone and Intonation (TAI) (2021, 12, 6), 209-213. American Geophysical Union (AGU).
  Gregori, Alina & Kügler, Frank
  
• Focus and Prosodic Cues in Hungarian Noun Phrases. 1st International Conference on Tone and Intonation (TAI) (2021, 12, 6), 219-223. American Geophysical Union (AGU).
  Langer, Corinna & Kügler, Frank
  
• Prosodic Prominence – A Cross-Linguistic Perspective. Language and Speech, 64(2), 253-260.
  Grice, Martine & Kügler, Frank
  
• Deutsche Intonation, Modellierung und Annotation (DIMA) – Richtlinien zur prosodischen Annotation des Deutschen. In Schwarze, Cordula & Grawunder, Sven (eds.) Transkription und Annotation gesprochener Sprache und multimodaler Interaktion: Konzepte, Probleme, Lösungen. Tübingen: Narr, 23-54
  Kügler, Frank, Baumann, Stefan & Röhr, Christine T.
  
• Phrase-Level ATR Vowel Harmony in Anum—A Case of Recursive Prosodic Phrasing. Languages, 7(4), 308.
  Kügler, Frank
  
• The interaction of focus and phrasing with downstep and post-low-bouncing in Mandarin Chinese. Frontiers in Psychology, 13 (2022, 9, 30).
  Wang, Bei; Kügler, Frank & Genzel, Susanne