Realizing [χ] for /r/ in Eifel German and Corresponding Attitudes

"… man klingt dann halt schon irgendwie wie ein Bauer"

Scientific Study , 2018 , 30 Pages , Grade: 1,3

German Studies - Linguistics

It has been proposed that in Modern Standard German no other phoneme is as variable in terms of pronunciation as /r/. Although the IPA system includes seven types of rhotics in its system, it has been argued that several more r-sounds exist which are not included in the class of rhotics due to a lack of a consistent definition. One of these r-sounds, not included in the class of rhotics, is the voiceless uvular fricative [χ] which has been found to be frequently used for /r/ by speakers of Eifel German in the Eifel area.

Past research has suggested a steady decline in the use of dialects and regiolects, which are becoming more and more gerontolects. This is also true for Eifel German which has been proposed to be rather used by older generations nowadays. In addition to age, it has been claimed that speech style also has an effect on speakers of a certain dialect altering their speech behavior in careful and casual speech styles. While several studies exist on peoples’ assessment which specific pronunciations are most frequently used in the area in which they live, no systematic study exist on the actual speech behavior of the people living in the Eifel area in which speech styles are varied, as to the knowledge of the author.

This study tries to fill this research gap by, first of all, investigating whether there is a difference in the realization [χ] for /r/ across age groups, secondly, the effects of different speech styles in actual speech behavior and lastly analyzing informants’ attitudes towards Eifel German. By analyzing four age groups ranging from 20 to 59 and varying speech styles, the study tries to gain greater insights into age differences and the effect of careful and casual speech styles on actual linguistic behavior from people coming from the Eifel area. Two informants were used for each age group amounting to a total of eight participants. To elicit casual speech data a taboo game was used, whereas as wordlist-reading task was used to gather careful speech data. Based on previous findings, the study aims at finding out whether the Eifel German dialect is in decline and how people living in the Eifel feel about this dialect. The paper starts with the theoretical background providing a comprehensive

Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Theoretical Background
• 2.1. Realization of /r/ in Germany
• 2.2. Realizations of /r/ in the Rhineland
• 2.3. Attitudes Towards Dialects
• 3. Methodology
• 3.1. Informants
• 3.2. Research Instruments
• 3.3. Data Collection Procedure
• 3.4. Coding Scheme
• 4. Results
• 4.1. Age Comparison
• 4.2. Speech Style Comparison
• 4.3. Attitudes towards Eifel German
• 5. Discussion
• 6. Conclusion
• References

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This study investigates the realization of the phoneme /r/ in Eifel German, specifically focusing on the use of the voiceless uvular fricative [x]. The study aims to analyze whether there is a difference in the use of [x] for /r/ across age groups, to examine the effect of different speech styles on actual speech behavior, and to analyze informants' attitudes towards Eifel German.

• Realization of /r/ in Eifel German, particularly the use of [x]
• Age-related variations in the use of [x] for /r/
• Influence of speech styles on the realization of /r/
• Attitudes towards Eifel German and its decline
• Comparison of Eifel German with other regional varieties and Standard German

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

• Chapter 1: Introduction
  This chapter introduces the research question, outlining the variability of the phoneme /r/ in Modern Standard German and its realization in Eifel German as the voiceless uvular fricative [x]. It highlights the potential decline of Eifel German and the lack of systematic studies on the actual speech behavior of Eifel speakers in different speech styles. The study aims to bridge this research gap by investigating age differences, speech style effects, and attitudes towards Eifel German.
• Chapter 2: Theoretical Background
  This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the phoneme /r/ in Germany, including its various realizations and the challenges of defining it. It discusses different r-sounds, their places and manners of articulation, and the problematic nature of defining /r/ in segmental terms. The chapter further presents the sonority hierarchy as a potential approach to defining rhotics and discusses the prevalence of the voiced uvular fricative/approximant [è] in Modern Standard German.
• Chapter 3: Methodology
  This chapter outlines the methodology employed in the study, including the selection of informants, the research instruments used to elicit speech data, the data collection procedure, and the coding scheme used to classify the data. It describes the use of a taboo game to elicit casual speech and a wordlist-reading task to gather careful speech data.
• Chapter 4: Results
  This chapter presents the main findings of the study, focusing on the relationship between age and the use of [x] for /r/, the effects of speech styles on the realization of /r/, and the attitudes of Eifel speakers towards their dialect.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

This study focuses on the realization of the phoneme /r/, specifically the voiceless uvular fricative [x], in Eifel German, exploring its use across age groups and speech styles. The study also analyzes attitudes towards Eifel German and its potential decline. Key concepts include dialect variation, sociolinguistics, phonetics, phonology, speech style, and attitude towards language.

• College: University of Bonn (IAAK)
• Grade: 1,3
• Author: Katja Grasberger (Author)
• Publication Year: 2018
• Pages: 30
• Catalog Number: V497958
• ISBN (eBook): 9783346066275
• ISBN (Book): 9783346066282
• Language: English
• Tags: realizing, eifel, german, corresponding, attitudes, bauer