Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-42gr6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-24T07:23:52.126Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The acquisition of phonology by Cantonese-speaking children*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 September 2008

Lydia K. H. So  and
Barbara J. Dodd
Lydia K. H. So
Affiliation:
University of Hong Kong
Barbara J. Dodd*
Affiliation:
University of Queensland
*
Department of Speech and Hearing, University of Queensland, St Lucia 4072, Australia.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Little is known about the acquisition of phonology by children learning Cantonese as their first language. This paper describes the phoneme repertoires and phonological error patterns used by 268 Cantonese-speaking children aged 2;0 to 6;0, as well as a longitudinal study of tone acquisition by four children aged 1;2 to 2;0. Children had mastered the contrastive use of tones and vowels by two years. While the order of acquisition of consonants was similar to that reported for English, the rate of acquisition was more rapid. The developmental error patterns used by more than 10% of children are also reported as common in other languages. However, specific rules associated with Cantonese phonology were also identified. Few phonological errors were made after age four. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that the ambient language influences the implementation of universal tendencies in phonological acquisition.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Child Language , Volume 22 , Issue 3 , October 1995 , pp. 473 - 495
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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.)

Footnotes

[*]

We are grateful to the children for their co-operation, and M. Hui and C. Chan for their enthusiasm and speed. The CRCG, University of Hong Kong and the Australian NHMRC provided financial assistance.

References

REFERENCES

Aitchison, J. (1987). Words in the mind. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Bortolini, U. & Leonard, L. (1991). The speech of phonologically-disordered children acquiring Italian. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics 5, 1–12.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chomsky, N. & Halle, M. (1968). The sound pattern of English. New York: Harper & Row.Google Scholar
Clumeck, H., Barton, D., Macken, M. & Huntington, D. (1981). The aspiration contrast in Cantonese word-initial stops. Journal of Chinese Linguistics 9, 210–24.Google Scholar
Crystal, D. (1986). Prosodic development. In Fletcher, P. & Garman, M. (eds), Language acquisition: studies in first language development. Cambridge: C.U.P.Google Scholar
Cube, F. S. M. (1950). Xhosa manual. Johannesburg: Juta.Google Scholar
Dodd, B. J. (1975). The acquisition of phonological skills in normal, severely subnormal and deaf children. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, London University.Google Scholar
Enderby, P. & Philipp, R. (1986). Speech and language handicap: towards knowing the size of the problem. British Journal of Disorders of Communication 21, 151–65.Google ScholarPubMed
Ferguson, C. & Farwell, C. (1975). Words and sounds in early language acquisition. Language 51, 39–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gimson, A. (1989). An introduction to the pronunciation of English (4th edn.) Sevenoaks: Arnold.Google Scholar
Hashimoto, A. (1972). Studies in the Yue dialect. Cambridge: C.U.P.Google Scholar
Ingram, D. (1981). Procedures for the phonological analysis of children's language. Baltimore, MD: University Park Press.Google Scholar
Ingram, D. (1989). First language acquisition: method, description and explanation. Cambridge: C.U.P.Google Scholar
Ingram, D. (1991). An historical observation on ‘Why ‘Mama’ and ‘Papa’?’ Journal of Child Language 18, 711–13.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jakobson, R. (1941/1968). Child language, aphasia and phonological universals. The Hague: Mouton.Google Scholar
Leonard, L., Schwartz, R., Allen, G., Swanson, L. & Loeb, D. (1989). Unusual phonological behaviour and the avoidance of homonymy in children. Journal of Speech and Hearing Research 32, 583–90.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Locke, J. (1983). Phonological acquisition and change. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Macken, M. & Ferguson, C. (1983). Cognitive aspects of phonological development: model, evidence and issues. In Nelson, K. E. & van Kleek, A. (eds), Children's language, Vol. 3. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Magnusson, E. (1983). The phonology of language disordered children: production, perception and awareness. Lund: CWK Gleerup.Google Scholar
Mowrer, D. & Burger, S. (1991). A comparative analysis of the phonological acquisition of consonants in the speech of two and a half and six year old Xhosa- and English-speaking children. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics 5, 139–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ohala, J. (1980). Phonetic universals in phonological systems and their explanation. In E. Fischer-Jorgensen & N. Thorson (eds), Proceedings of the XlXth International Congress of Phonetic Science, Copenhagen, vol III.Google Scholar
Olmsted, D. (1971). Out of the mouths of babes. The Hague: Mouton.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Prather, E., Hedrick, D. & Kern, C. (1975). Articulation development between two and four years. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders 40, 179–91.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pye, C., Ingram, D. & List, H. (1987). A comparison of initial and final consonant acquisition in English and Quiché. In Nelson, K. E. & A, van Kleek (eds), Children's language, Vol. 6. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Slobin, D. (1986). Crosslinguistic studies of language acquisition, Vols 1 & 2. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Smith, N. (1973). The acquisition of phonology. Cambridge: C.U.P.Google Scholar
So, L. K. H. & Dodd, B. J. (1994). Phonologically disordered Cantonese-speaking children. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics 8, 235–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Templin, M. (1957). Certain language skills in children, their development and interrelationships. Institute of Child Welfare Monograph Series, N° 26. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tse, A. C.-Y. (1991). The acquisition process of Cantonese phonology–a case study. Unpublished M.Phil, thesis, University of Hong Kong.Google Scholar
Tse, J. K.-P. (1978). Tone acquisition in Cantonese: a longitudinal case study. Journal of Child Language 5, 191–204.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tse, S.-M. (1982). The acquisition of Cantonese phonology. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of British Columbia.Google Scholar