Language variation and change

Pavel Iosad (University of Edinburgh), 'Preaspiration in Norwegian: what’s a “dialect difference”?'.

Abstract: I report in-progress research on variation in preaspiration in dialects of Norwegian. This phenomenon within mainland North Germanic had, until fairly recently, mostly been known from traditional dialectological sources. In Norway, it is uncontroversially attested in western dialects (the region of Jæren), and mentioned by various sources for the (phonologically conservative) dialects of Gudbrandsdalen and for some northern Norwegian varieties. More recently it has also been studied instrumentally for dialects of Trøndelag. In all these cases, as far as can be ascertained, preaspiration belong to a type Pétur Helgason (2000) calls ‘non-normative’, that is, non-obligatory and variable within a variety. To date, however, there has been relatively little focus on cross-dialect comparison of the patterning of preaspiration across North Germanic. However, it appears implausible that there should not be dialect variation in its patterning — one can usefully compared here Scottish Gaelic, which, with a comparable if not smaller time depth, evinces significant dialect variation in preaspiration patterns (Bosch 2006; Ó Maolalaigh 2010).

I report a comparative study of the patterning of preaspiration in data collected from speakers of western (Jæren) and northern Norwegian dialects. I show that, first, preaspiration in Norwegian appears under- and misreported by traditional descriptions; and, second, that there is variation in the factors that drive variable preaspiration in different dialects. I also discuss some methodological implications of these results.

References

• Bosch, A. R. K. (2006). Revisiting preaspiration. Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium, 26/27, 269–290.
• Ó Maolalaigh, R. (2010). The sound of silence: Some structural observations on preaspiration in Scottish Gaelic. In W. McLeod, A. Burnyeat, D. U. Stiùbhart, T. O. Clancy, & R. Ó Maolalaigh (Eds.), Bile ós chrannaibh: A Festschrift for William Gillies (pp. 365–404). Ceann Drochaid: Clann Tuirc.
• Pétur Helgason (2002). Preaspiration in the Nordic languages (Doctoral dissertation). Stockholm University, Stockholm.

Contact details

Dr Lauren Hall-Lew