Doctoral Degrees (African Languages)

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Browsing Doctoral Degrees (African Languages) by browse.metadata.advisor "Roux, J. C."

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    Intrusive stop formation in Zulu : an application of Feature Geometry Theory
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2005-12) Naidoo, Shamila; Roux, J. C.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of African Languages.
    This study investigates the Intrusive Stop Formation process in Zulu. In this process an intrusive stop arises when a nasal and fricative are juxtaposed resulting in the following seven affricate sounds /þf’, {v, ts’, dz, tñ’, dL, tS’/. These sounds are theoretically distinct from the four affricate phonemes which occur in Zulu, namely /kl’, dZ, ts’, tS’/. In this study the former are termed derived affricates and the latter pure affricates. Two aspects of Intrusive Stop Formation are focused on - firstly, determining experimentally whether durational differences obtain between pure and derived affricates and secondly, using the results of the experimental investigation to facilitate a feature geometry description of the Intrusive Stop Formation process. In the experimental investigation nine affricate sounds were examined. Words, containing these sounds, were recorded in frame sentences by five speakers, using PRAAT, a speech–processing platform. The duration of the pure and derived affricates were then determined. It was found that pure affricates are durationally longer than derived affricates. The next progression in this study was the incorporation of the experimental results into a feature geometry description of Intrusive Stop Formation. Feature Geometry Theory has enjoyed acclaim because of its ability to retain Distinctive Feature Theory – the crux of Phonology – in a nonlinear framework. However, Feature Geometry Theory faces challenges with regard to the extent to which it includes phonetic detail; and its formalization technique. This study – Intrusive Stop Formation in Zulu : An Application of Feature Geometry Theory – brings a new perspective to Feature Geometry Theory with the incorporation of the Duration tier – significant for the description of the Intrusive Stop Formation process. Furthermore the study introduces a more efficient formalization technique, which facilitates the explanation of the process. It is always incumbent upon endeavours like this study, which examine specific phonological processes, to show relevance. In the concluding section the application of the experimental approach and Feature Geometry Theory is evaluated in terms of the contribution made to the disciplines of Human Language Technology and Speech Disorders. A compact disk accompanies this thesis. It contains the sound files, spectrograms and textgrids of the recorded data.
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    Queclaratives in Xhosa : an acoustic and perceptual analysis
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001-03) Jones, Catherine Jacquelynn Julia; Roux, J. C.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of African Languages.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Key words: acoustic speech analysis, speech synthesis, speech perception, copulative queclarative, linguistics, psycho linguistics, human language technology This study investigates the notion of interrogativity in Xhosa as expressed in the form of Queclaratives. Queclaratives, or statements which are question-like in function, have been studied in many languages of the world. Unfortunately with regard to the Bantu languages, studies relating to interrogativity in general have largely been impressionistic in nature. This research comprised two aspects of analysis. These included an acoustic and a perceptual analysis of data. The reason for this approach is that, without this combination the results could have been considered to be suspect and lacking in authenticity. The acoustic analysis was conducted on 858 words in statement and queclarative pairs. Significant parameters were extracted and these were then statistically analyzed. The results revealed that duration on the penultimate vowel, pitch on the penultimate vowel and the overall raised pitch of queclaratives as opposed to statements were indeed the acoustically significant parameters differentiating statements from queclaratives. However as is well known, there is no one-to-one relationship between the acoustic signal and its perception and, therefore, it is imperative that such findings also be perceptually tested. The perceptual testing of these parameters was conducted in an attempt to elicit whether they were perceptually significant and also at what point in the utterance listeners could differentiate between queclaratives and statements. The next progression was the compilation of carefully designed perception tests on the acoustically significant parameters. Two experiments were compiled using stimuli that were manipulations of the original signal of one of the selected informant's utterances. These tests were administered on multimedia computers in the Language Laboratory at the University of Stellenbosch using 64 subjects for the first experiment and 63 for the second. The results of the perception tests showed that duration and pitch on the penultimate syllable are perceptually highly significant in differentiating statements from queclaratives. However the results also indicated very early recognition of the different forms with minimal speech segments from which the penultimate vowels were absent altogether. This then suggests that the perceptual judgements made earlier in the utterance may be either reinforced or overridden by the duration and pitch on the penultimate vowel. These results have assisted in the validation of some impressionistic claims made within the Bantu and other languages, while refuting others. However, as this corpus of data has included research on copulative queclaratives, it appeals for further research on this subject using any other linguistic markers. The results have also been evaluated in terms of their possible contribution to the related disciplines of psycholinguistics, linguistics and human language technologies. In so doing, the thesis makes an urgent appeal to researchers to pursue this experimental approach to language research. Another appeal is made for an awareness campaign as to the importance of this approach in harnessing the power of language for the development of language and society as a whole. The fertility of the South African society lies in its richness of multilingualism and the necessity for the improvement of the dissemination of information to all people of all languages and the improvement of communication between people in general, including those less fortunate in terms of literacy skills.