Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-rvbq7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-12T17:20:26.656Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Bulgarian Speech Rhythm: Stress-Timed or Syllable-Timed?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 February 2009

Snezhina Dimitrova
Snezhina Dimitrova
Affiliation:
Department of English and American Studies, University of Sofia “St Kliment Ohridski”, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., Sofia 1000, Bulgaria e-mail: snezhina@fcml.uni-sofia.bg
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Experimental work on Bulgarian speech rhythm has failed to determine which of the two “traditional” rhythmic categories the language belongs to. Using the model put forward by Dauer (1987), the present paper attempts to characterise the rhythm of Bulgarian in scalar rather than in dichotomous terms. For such an assessment, six of the components proposed by Dauer are relevant. Bulgarian is assigned two pluses (for intonation and function of accent), two zeros (for vowel duration and vowel quality) and two minuses (for syllable structure and consonant quality). According to the model, the more pluses a language has, the more likely it is that this language is “stress-timed”. From the relative rhythm “score” obtained for Bulgarian one can predict that, on a scale of rhythm, the language will occupy an intermediate position. This accounts for the contradictory conclusions reached in earlier studies. Dauer's model thus provides a useful starting point for a study of the rhythm of a given language, but it can be further improved, for example by adding zero marks for some of the components.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of the International Phonetic Association , Volume 27 , Issue 1-2 , June 1997 , pp. 27 - 33
Copyright
Copyright © Journal of the International Phonetic Association 1997

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abercrombie, D. (1967). Elements of General Phonetics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.Google Scholar
Dauer, R.M. (1983). Stress-timing and syllable-timing reanalyzed. Journal of Phonetics 11, 51–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dauer, R.M. (1987). Phonetic and phonological components of language rhythm. Proceedings of the XIth ICPhS, Tallinn, Estonia, vol. 5, 447–450.Google Scholar
Katamba, F. (1989). An Introduction to Phonology. London: Longman.Google Scholar
Kurlova, R. & Krustev, B. (1989). Рeчeвият ритьм на българския eзик (Bulgarian speech rhythm). Bulgarian Language 39, 118–126.Google Scholar
Laver, J. (1994). Principles of Phonetics. Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Misheva, A. (1991). Инmoнauuoннa cucmeмa нa българскuи eзuк (The Intonation System of Bulgarian). Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.Google Scholar
Misheva, A. (ms). Cmamucmuчecкu uзcлeбвaнuя нa cmpykmypama нa българскama peч: фoнeмu, фoнeмнu cъяemaнuя, cpuчкu, бyмu (Statistical studies of the structure of Bulgarian speech: phonemes, phoneme combinations, syllables, words). Institute of Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.Google Scholar
Pettersson, T. & Wood, S. (1988). Vowel reduction in Bulgarian. Folia Linguistica 22, 239–262.Google Scholar
Pike, K.L. (1945). The Intonation of American English. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.Google Scholar
Roach, P.J. (1982). On the distinction between “stress-timed” and “syllable-timed” languages. In Crystal, D. (editor), Linguistic Controversies, 73–79. London: Edward Arnold.Google Scholar
Tilkov, D. & Boyadzhiev, T. (1990). (Bulgarian Phonetics). Third edition. Sofia: Nauka i izkustvo.Google Scholar
Yordanova, Y. (1987). Времетрэнэ на гланитэ н ритмична организация на фразатав английския и българския эзик (Vowel duration and rhythmical organisation of the phrase in English and Bulgarian). Contrastive Linguistics 12, 22–32.Google Scholar