Gestión de Alarmas

The goal of the thesis was to establish phonemicity for all of the distinct sounds proposed for TS’s dialect of Sgaw Karen and to analyze them phonetically as appropriate, a project that does not seem to have been undertaken for the three other dialects of Sgaw Karen described (Moulmein, Bassein, and Yangon Sgaw). Although TS’s dialect shares many characteristics with the three previously described dialects, there are many differences, as noted in the previous sections.

Sgaw Karen as spoken by TS has nine vowel phonemes, six distinct tones, and twenty five consonantal phonemes. The nine vowel phonemes as produced by TS are: /i, e, ɛ, a, #, ɨ, ɔ, o, u/. Each phoneme has one distinct allophone, unlike previously proposed for other Sgaw Karen dialects. Beyond vowels, the tones were investigated. In her dialect, TS has six distinct tonal categories, all with characteristic shape, as depicted in (4.13) above, voicing, and start and end frequencies. The six tones with the aforementioned characteristics are shown in the graphic in (7.1). In terms of phonetics, tones 2 and 5 are similar enough to each other that they may appear to be allotones of the same toneme. However, the presence of minimal pairs suggest that they are distinct categorically. Further research is necessary to establish what phonetic cues allow the native speaker to perceptually distinguish these two tones.

described for Moulmein Sgaw (Jones 1961), Bassein Sgaw (Jones 1961), and Yangon Sgaw (Lar 2001), especially with regards to the rising tone 6—a contour not described for any of the other Sgaw Karen dialects.

(7.1) Characteristics of TS’s six tonal categories

Tone

Average frequencies and Labels Average frequencies and Labels Average frequencies and Labels Average frequencies and Labels

Description Audible voice quality Tone _{Start Start End End} Description Audible

voice quality Tone F0 (Hz) Label F0 (Hz) Label Description Audible voice quality 1 207.2 M 214.1 M Mid-level Modal 2ʔ 244.3 H 141.7 L High-falling Creaky 3 192.6 L 181.3 L Low-level Breathy 4ʔ 204.9 M 159.8 L Mid-falling Creaky 5ʔ 232.9 H 149.7 L High-falling Creaky 6 192.2 L 238.7 H Low-rising Breathy

Upon analysis, the twenty five consonantal phonemes also demonstrated some

differences from MS, BS, and YS. Although attested in other dialects, TS’s dialect lacked the voiced fricatives /z, ɦ/, and its only voiced fricative /ɣ/ had an intervocalic allophone [ɰ]. For TS’s Sgaw Karen, /ɣ/ behaves more like an approximant than a voiced fricative, also

appearing as the second consonant in an onset cluster (along with other sonorous sounds). Another instance of allophony was noted for the consonants in her dialect, that of: /s/ produced as either [s] or [tʃ] and /sʰ/ produced as either [sʰ] or [tʃʰ]. Although both the fricative and the affricate appear to vary freely, the fricative is produced more often than the affricate and has therefore been taken as the looking like the underlying phoneme. A

summary of the twenty five consonant phonemes found in the data to be contrastive is presented in graphic (7.2).

(7.2) Summary of consonant phonemes in TS’s variety of Sgaw Karen Manner Manner Place of articulation Place of articulation Place of articulation Place of articulation Place of articulation Place of articulation Place of articulation Manner Manner

Labial CoronalCoronal _alveolarPost- Palatal Velar Glottal

Stops Unaspirated p t k ʔ Stops _{Aspirated pʰ tʰ kʰ} Stops Implosive ɓ ɗ Fricatives Unaspirated θ s ʃ j _{x ɣ h} Fricatives Aspirated sʰ Nasals Nasals m n ɲ ŋ Approximants Approximants w l j w Trill Trill r

Lastly, the syllable shape for TS’s dialect is maximally: C1(C2)VC3, where C1 can be

any consonant except when there is a C2. When a consonant cluster is present, it can be any

of the consonant clusters provided in (6.3) (possibly a few others). In the coda position, C3

can only be a glottal stop, the presence of which usually depends on the tone found in V. Lar (2001) proposes that there are two kinds of syllables in Sgaw Karen, major and minor syllables. Under this analysis, a syllable is composed of an optional minor syllable and a major syllable: (C1V1) C2(C3)V2T. However, further research is needed to establish the

patterns and possible functions of minor syllables, their phonological representation, and their phonetic characteristics.

Although this project presents a comprehensive phonological analysis of TS’s variety of Sgaw Karen, there are still questions that remain regarding the tones and syllable structure. Future research should involve more participants and continue to analyze the tones,

be helpful in understanding the underlying phonological representations of words in Sgaw Karen.

Overall, from the analysis of TS’s variety of Sgaw Karen, it does not appear to match any of the previously described dialects and thus represents a distinct dialect of Sgaw Karen. The data from this thesis thus provides an additional platform for experimental studies in the future and for comparison as the intricacies of the phonological and phonetic systems of the language are further explored.

APPENDICES