Pre-boundary lengthening in a cross-linguistic perspective

该项目研究韵律边界之前的音段延长现象，通常被称为“前边界延长”(以下简称PBL)。不同于以往的研究，这一现象是从跨语言的角度来探讨的，比较了具有不同韵律系统的语言的加长域。这就提出了这样一个问题，即PBL的各个方面在多大程度上是普遍的、特定于语言的和/或与一种语言的单词-韵律系统联系在一起的。该项目还研究了PBL领域中相邻语段之间延长的时间动态，探索了言语时长规划的潜在机制。PBL在各种语言中都得到了证明，这导致了这是言语产生中的一种普遍趋势。然而，人们也发现，PBL是以特定于语言的方式实施的，这表明它是一种由说话者学习的机制，并提出了它是否以及如何与语言的单词-韵律系统联系在一起的问题。尽管PBL存在于不同的语言中，并与认知相关，但其应用领域的界定、时间动态以及跨语言差异等问题仍未得到解答。对于PBL领域，文献中区分了两种主要的观点：基于结构的观点和基于内容的观点。基于结构的观点假设一个特定的语言成分，如单词rime，作为域。Rime这个词是从最后一个主要重音音节的核元音开始直到韵律短语结束的伸展。另一方面，基于内容的视图假设PBL域的结构可变性：域的范围取决于最后一个片段或音节的属性。至于PBL领域中的时间动态，先前的研究发现节段长度在韵律短语结束时增加。本项目的总体目标是在不同语言之间检验上述假设，从而确定各自语言的PBL领域以及领域内的动态。调查的重点是三种语言：德语、法语和茨瓦纳语。选择这些语言是因为它们包含了不同类型的韵律系统，这可能会影响PBL的实施。对语言内部和跨语言的PBL产生的领域和动态的详细了解对于研究单语和双语说话者的PBL的加工和理解语音时长的计算机制是至关重要的。

The project investigates the phenomenon of segmental lengthening preceding a prosodic boundary, commonly referred to as ‘pre-boundary lengthening’ (henceforth, PBL). Unlike in prior studies, this phenomenon is approached from a cross-linguistic perspective, comparing the lengthening domains of languages with different prosodic systems. This contributes to the question in how far aspects of PBL are universal, language-specific and/or tied to the word-prosodic system of a language. The project also investigates the temporal dynamics of lengthening among adjacent segments in the PBL domain, exploring the underlying mechanisms in the planning of duration in speech.PBL has been attested in various languages, which led to the suggestion that it is a universal tendency in speech production. However, it has also been found that PBL is implemented in language-specific ways, which suggests that it is a mechanism that is learnt by speakers, and raises the question whether and how it is linked to the word-prosodic system of a language. Furthermore, it has been attested that listeners employ PBL as a cue for the detection of a prosodic boundary, which may lead to structural disambiguation.Despite the existence of PBL in various languages and its attested relevance for perception, questions concerning the delineation of its domain of application, its temporal dynamics, and its cross-linguistic differences remain unanswered. As for the PBL domain, two major views on its specification are distinguished in the literature: structure-based and content-based views. Structure-based views assume that a specific linguistic constituent, such as the word rime, serves as the domain. The word rime is the stretch starting with the nuclear vowel of the last main stress syllable going up to the end of the prosodic phrase. Content-based views, on the other hand, assume structural variability of the PBL domain: the extent of the domain depends on properties of the final segment or syllable. As for the temporal dynamics within the PBL domain, prior studies found an increase of segmental lengthening towards the end of the prosodic phrase.The overall objective of the project is to test the aforementioned hypotheses across languages, thereby identifying the PBL domain of the respective language as well as the dynamics within the domain. The investigation focuses on three languages: German, French, and Tswana. These languages are chosen because they comprise typologically different prosodic systems that potentially influence the implementation of PBL. Detailed knowledge about the domain and dynamics in the production of PBL within and across languages is of paramount importance for investigating the processing of PBL in monolingual and bilingual speakers and for an understanding of the mechanisms for the computation of duration in speech.