Voiced and Voiceless Bilabial Occlusive in Arabic Speakers. A problematic pair.

  • Giulia Bertolotto Researcher

Abstract

Voiced and Voiceless Bilabial Occlusive in Arabic Speakers. A problematic pair.This paper aims at describing the author’s ongoing Phd research, focusing on the production of the plosive consonants /p/it and /b/it by Arabic speaking learners of Italian as a second or foreign language. The study of this pair of homorganic consonants is of particular interest since the voiceless /p/, although not present in the repertoire of Classical Arabic, appears in some of the modern oral varieties. In order to study the characteristics of the labial occlusive consonants made by the interviewed speakers, the Voice Onset Time, an acoustic parameter particularly effective in phonological discrimination, was measured. The analyses of instrumental data already available will be exposed, along with some consideration on methodology (such as the preparation of an ad hoc questionnaire and the characteristics of the target sample). In the concluding paragraph possible interpretations of data will be put forward, analysing them in the light of the existing theories about phonological learning in adult age and of the specific background of the speakers.

Author Biography

Giulia Bertolotto, Researcher

Dottoranda presso l’Università degli studi di Torino, Scuola di Dottorato  in Studi Euro-Asiatici. Ha ottenuto il titolo di Laurea Magistrale presso l’Univesità per stranieri di Siena, con una tesi sull’apprendimento dell’italiano come lingua seconda (L2) da parte di migranti analfabeti. Attualmente svolge attività di ricerca sulla fonologia dell’interlingua di apprendenti arabofoni presso il Laboratorio Genre dell’Università di Torino e  sull’apprendimento e acquisizione dell’italiano L2 in contesto carcerario presso l’Università per Stranieri di Siena, (progetto DEPORT). Dal 2001 è insegnante di italiano L2 in progetti regionali e provincialii del comune di Torino

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Published
2014-12-30
How to Cite
Bertolotto, G. (2014). Voiced and Voiceless Bilabial Occlusive in Arabic Speakers. A problematic pair. RiCOGNIZIONI. Rivista Di Lingue E Letterature Straniere E Culture Moderne, 1(2), 63-82. https://doi.org/10.13135/2384-8987/706
Section
CrOCEVIA