Dar kartą apie dvigarsių dėmenų i, u kiekybę: ar tikrai neilgėja bendrinei kalbai artimiausiame šnektų areale?

Standard Language 2025, No. 98, pp. 1–16 Contents link ISSN 2351-7204 (electronic / online) Copyright © 2025 Rima Bakšienė. Published by the Institute of the Lithuanian Language. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. // Published by the Lithuanian Language Institute. This article is open access, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which allows unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction of the content in any media, provided that the author and source are acknowledged. Received: / Gauta: 2025-04-22. Accepted: / Priimta: 2025-05-25. 1 ONCE AGAIN ABOUT THE QUANTITY OF BIVOCAL SUBJECTS i, u: IS THE COMMON LANGUAGE IN THE NEAREST SPEAKERS’ AREA REALLY IN DEMAND? Once Again on the Quantity of Elements i, u in Mixed Diphthongs: Do They Really Not Lengthen in the Dialect Area Closest to the Standard Language? RIMA BAKŠIENĖ Institute of Lithuanian Language El. email: [email protected] ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6716-0776 Research fields: experimental phonetics, phonology, geolinguistics. https://doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2025.98.05 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ANNOTATION The article analyzes the number of doubled i, u in the northwestern part of the western Kaunas dialect, which includes the dialects of Jurbarkas, Šakiai and Vilkaviškis, whose phonological and prosodic structure is often used in the codification of general pronunciation norms. The normative pronunciation of this type of acute diphthongs has been discussed more actively in recent years, when the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) was introduced for the common Lithuanian language. It is then provided that the first elements can be both short and semi-long, speaking in a more free style. However, the question remains definitively unsolved, and therefore it is important to further investigate the prosodic features of these diphthongs in speeches, traditionally considered as a non-elongating area of the accents i, u, distinct from the whole Lithuanian language system. Based on the results of the research carried out using experimental phonetic methods and evaluated by the Student’s statistical criterion, the article concludes that in the northern part of Kaunas, Jurbarkas and partly in the vicinity of Šakiai, both acute and circumflex diphthongs i, u are considered semi-longitudinal, and the elongation of acute diphthongs in the described area increases in the northern direction. The established laws of Kaunas prosody are undoubtedly taken into account when providing normative variants of the general consonant. KEY WORDS: Lithuanian dialects, western highland Kaunas dialects, consonant, mixed diphthong, vowel quantity. ABSTRACT The article analyzes the quantity of the elements of mixed diphthongs i and u in the northwestern part of the Western Aukštaitian subdialect of Kaunas, encompassing the local dialects of Jurbarkas, Šakiai, and Vilkaviškis. The phonological and prosodic structure of these regional dialects is most commonly used as a basis when codifying the norms of standard pronunciation. There is still ongoing debate about the established pronunciation of the acute syllables of this type in the standard language (whether they are short or semilong), so it is essential to identify their prosodic features in those local dialects that have traditionally been considered an area where the elements i and u do not lengthen and which stands out from the rest of the Lithuanian language system. Based on the findings of studies conducted using experimental phonetic methods and evaluated with the statistical Student's t-test, it can be concluded that in the northern part of the Kaunas subdialect, specifically the Jurbarkas area and partly the surroundings of Šakiai, the elements i and u in both acute and circumflex mixed diphthongs should be considered semi-long. Moreover, the lengthening of acute elements becomes more 2 pronounced as we move northward within the described area. The identified prosodic patterns of the Kaunas subdialect should undoubtedly be taken into account when establishing standard pronunciation variants. KEYWORDS: Lithuanian dialects, Western Aukštaitian of Kaunas, pitch accent, semi-diphthong, vowel quantity. INTRODUCTION In the works of dialectologists, the northern schnecks of the western Kaunas Highlanders are generally referred to as the closest to the common Lithuanian language (Zinkevičius 1994: 27–29; 2006: 165–167; LKTCh 2004: 38; VAKKKA 2005: 36–38 and others), their phonological structure is usually referred to when codifying the norms of the common pronunciation (see Pupkis 2020: 14–18; Bielinskienė and others 2014: 24–34). Although at the beginning of the 21st century there were opinions that the pronunciation basis of the big cities, especially the capital, is becoming more relevant for the formation of the common language due to various factors (see Vaicekauskienė 2017; Čičirkaitė 2019 and others; for criticism see Pupkis 2020: 117– 146), traditionally the regularity of the common language is still assessed by comparing it with the phonetic system of the northern part of Kaunas. One of the elements of the vocal sound that is still relevant to the general pronunciation of Lithuanian are acute diphthongs with accents i, u – their pronunciation has been widely discussed by language normers (see Pupkis 2020: 170–173 for an overview), but the main normative variant still provides the pronunciation of such diphthongs without lengthening these accents, keeping them short, although as a variant of a freer style, a slightly elongated pronunciation is already provided. (see VLCC 2021). For the absolute majority of the representatives of Lithuanian dialects of the discussed position, it is customary to pronounce diphthongs by prolonging (for the Žemaites – by broadening) their accents i, u. The only area not prolonging was defined in traditional dialectological works precisely the Kaunas dialects of Vilkaviškis, Šakiai and Jurbarkas, as well as small parts of the Klaipėda region’s Altai and Western Altai Šiaulių dialects (see LKA 1982: map no. 20). This provision has been questioned more consistently in Lithuania with the development of dialect studies based on experimental phonetic methods, and especially in the works of experimentalists of the beginning of the 21st century, mainly students of Professor Aleksas Girdenis (for an overview see Bakšienė 2014: 197). However, the question of the duration of the acute points i, u in Kaunas dialects has not been definitively answered, so the article returns to a more detailed experimental study of these sound units. The aim of the study is to analyze the duration of the i, u double accents of the northwestern part of western Kaunas highland dialects using experimental phonetic methods and to evaluate its relationships with consonants based on statistical parameters. 1) to determine the specific characteristics of the quantity of the i, u double-sided accents in the investigated sniffers; 2) based on the obtained duration data, to 1 review the relationship of the quantity of the discussed spots in the entire northwestern (traditionally non-elongating) VAK range; 3) discuss the general laws of the quantity of this type of double-sided spots and answer the question about their possible elongation / non-elongation in the analyzed area. The research material consisted of targeted audio recordings of the edge of the VAK area – Jurbarkas and Vilkaviškis. 6 speakers (3 men and 3 women, born and raised in the study areas, well-versed in the local language, average age ~53 years) were recorded from both dialects. Acute and circumflex diphthongs with accents i, u are recorded for the study in the following 2 artificial sentences: sulūžo t ltas per upstream: da(r) ši tas tas puodas; to her the answer was: in autumn ski sta those hands; very k msta that child: hard ki this splitting; yesterday we bought a fly: in summer flies fly; just (over)pùltas of the dirt: all pu who came; 1 For all abbreviations, see the end of this article. 2 The duration of the first accents of acute diphthongs can only be estimated by comparing them with those of the corresponding circumflex diphthongs, especially in speeches with continuous prepositions. 3 already (pa)kùrt that shoulder: all you that perished; was (pa)stùmtas that table: he was just where he was; Kùnca came to us: in the summer that child (at)kuñta. The recordings were made 3 in 2014, with the participation of the author of the article and one representative of the local dialects, who would say the required sentence, and the narrator would repeat it freely 3-5 times. In analyzing the material, the unsuccessful attempts were rejected, for each diphthong study 3 dictator repetitions were taken, a total of 288 realizations were examined (144 acute and 144 circumflex diphthongs). The obtained results are additionally compared with the previous year’s studies of the Šakiai snicket, in order to comprehensively cover the entire potentially non-elongating area of acute spots i, u. During the research, experimental phonetic methods were used: the required sounds were segmented using the PRAAT computer program, the duration of the segments was measured, and the data were later processed using the EXCEL computer program – the averages of the duration values were calculated and graphs were drawn. The absolute duration of the whole diphthong and the first dot in milliseconds (ms) and the relative duration of the first dot as a percentage of the total duration of the 4 diphthong were calculated. The samples of comparable duration were evaluated by a statistical parameter often used in experimental phonetic science – the so-called Student’s criterion (t Test), which shows whether the difference between the two comparing groups is statistically significant. The statistical evaluation was also performed in EXCEL, by selecting the commands Data > Data Analysis > t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Equal Variances. The duration data was chosen to be displayed in informative rectangular charts, which also reflect certain statistical parameters of the comparable samples: first and third quartiles, median, average, minimum, maximum and exclusion values (for more see Kruopis 1993; Čekanavičius, Murauskas 2000; Lapinskas 2010). When evaluating the novelty and relevance of the study, it should be mentioned that the whole area of Kaunas is analyzed complexly. This area consists of three more prominent ranges – Vilkaviškis, Šakiai and Jurbarkas, which, in addition to the non-elongation that unites them, are characterized by quite a lot of distinctive features (see Bakšienė 2022 for more information), therefore, in answering the question, what is the duration of the discussed double spots, it is necessary to analyze the data of all ranges. A new, comprehensive study of the duration of Kaunas doubles would be relevant for the codification of the norms of common speech, because, as mentioned, there is still no final common opinion on this aspect of normization. 1. PREVIOUS STUDIES OF KAINISH DIVOWS The question of the duration of the i, u double accents in western Kaunas dialects is not new, it has been addressed by dialectologists in several previous works. As already mentioned in the introduction, in the capital and chrestomatic works of dialectology of the 20th century, in which the characteristics of the dialects are usually described only on the basis of hearing, the northern and north-western Kaunas dialects (in A. Salis’ classification – part of the north-western Alytaus, Veliuoniškiai, Zanavykai and part of the western Kapsai) were distinguished from the whole area of the Lithuanian language, stating that the acute diphthongs i, u do not elongate here, remaining short (LKA 1982: map no. 20; see fig. 1). 3 A small part of this material has already been analyzed, see. Bakken 2014. 4 When discussing the relative length, it is possible to calculate the part of the whole word that the segment in question comprises (cf. Švageris 2015: 12 and others), but in this case it was not possible to do this, because the pairs were not absolutely minimal, differed not only in consonant, but also in other sounds, the number of sounds, etc. The duration was expressed in percentages rather than in other relative units, also because of the alignment with previous studies in order to compare the results of several sniffings. 4 1 Figure 1. Acute double-sided spotted i, u non-prolonging Kaunas schnets (excerpt from LKA 1982: map no. 20) With the development of experimental phonetic studies in Lithuania, the characteristics of dialects were re-verified using a more objective methodology. At the beginning of the 21st century, a number of experimental studies of Kaunas voices have been carried out, among which attention has been paid to the question of the duration of the double accents i, u. In the conclusions of these studies it was almost universally stated that the points of acute diphthongs in the described area elongate, become semi-elongated, but retain the quality of the short vowel – as they elongate, they tend not to narrow, as in the entire area of southeastern Lithuanian dialects, but to widen, similarly as in western Žemaičių dialects, only the expansion is of a much weaker degree. It should also be mentioned that in the northern Kaunas dialects the elongated circumflex diphthongs i, u, due to the continuous preposition, are almost universally considered to be semi-long and most common, e.g.: [²ˈʋʲɪeˑlˑks] ~ all, [²ˈpʲɪeˑrˑkt] ~ pi kti. Thus, in the syllables 5 of both phonological prepositions, these features are treated as equivalent in terms of duration, and in syllables with continuous prepositions, elongation is even considered as a more pronounced and systematic prosodic feature (for more details see Bacevičiūtė 2004: 89; Bacevičiūtė, Leskauskaitė 2004: 12–14; Vaišnienė, Bacevičiūtė 2005: 292–302; for an overview see Bakšienė 2014). However, most of the mentioned works analyzed the data of one of the individual schnecks or compared them with the data of the southeastern part of Kaunas, which obviously lengthens the mentioned spots, a comprehensive study of the non-elongating area was not carried out. 2. RESULTS OF THE TOTAL DURATION OF TWISTLES Firstly, the results of the total duration measurements of the doubles with focal points i, u are analyzed. Looking at the rectangular diagrams depicting the distribution 6 of the total duration of the acute and circumflex diphthongs of the Vilkaviškis and Jurbarkas dialects (see Figure 2), it is clear that there are both similarities and different duration patterns in both dialects. 5 For transcription using TFA signs, see Bakšienė, Čepaitienė 2024. 6 Only absolute duration data are discussed in this section. 5 The two schnaps have in common that circumflex diphthongs tend to be longer than acute diphthongs, which is primarily shown by the higher median values in both cases. However, the difference between the diphthongs with different prefixes is noticeably greater in Vilkaviškis dialect: here the epicenter of the duration values of acute diphthongs is 178 ms, of circumflex diphthongs – 194 ms, and of Jurbarkas dialect – 164 and 168 ms respectively. The mean values also differ quite clearly in Vilkaviškis dialect: acute – 182 ms, circumflex – 192 ms, in Jurbarkas dialect there is no difference in the mean values at all – the mean duration of both acute and circumflex diphthongs is 168 ms. The differences between the dialects are also obviously revealed by the zones of the main duration values, located between the first and third quartiles (in the “boxes” of the diagram, excluding the “legs”): the values of the first and third quartiles of the circumflex diphthongs of Vilkaviškis are noticeably higher than those of the acute diphthongs, and the zones of the main values of both prefix diphthongs of Jurbarkas coincide, the data of the circumflex diphthongs completely fall into the zone of acute diphthongs. Thus, it is likely that there is no significant difference in the overall duration of acute and circumflex diphthongs of the discussed group in Jurbarkas speech. The diagrams also show that in the Vilkaviškis speech in general the total duration of all measured diphthongs is longer than in Jurbarkas, but when evaluating absolute duration data this is not a very important difference, it may be related to the individual characteristics of the speakers. Figure 2. Distribution of the values of the total duration of diphthongs7 Comparing the averages of the total duration of diphthong pairs with different prefixes (l – i, r – i…) (see Figure 3), the already discussed trends are visible (in the dialect of Vilkaviskis there is obviously a greater difference between acute and circumflex diphthongs; all diphthongs of the dialect of Vilkaviškis tend to be longer than those of the dialect of Jurbarkas), but new characteristics are also emerging that support the above-mentioned general laws. In 7 pairs of Vilkaviškis dialect (out of 8 compared) circumflex diphthongs are longer, only in one case (ùn – uñ) they are longer. 7 In rectangular charts, the "boxes" in the middle represent the area of sample values between the first and third quartiles. Median (mean of the sample; in this case, when the number of values is even (144), the median is obtained by calculating the average of the two middle values) marked by a horizontal line, the arithmetic mean by the symbol eerd inside the box. The beginning and end of the “box legs” coincide with the minimum and maximum values of the sample (see Lapinskas 2010). 6 acute diphtheria. The greatest difference between acute and circumflex diphthongs in the samples from Vilkaviškis was recorded in the case of the pair ùm – u (24 ms), the smallest – between the members of the pair r – i (3 ms). In Jurbarkas dialect the relationship is quite different: even in 5 pairs out of 8 longer are acute diphthongs, but their duration differences from circumflex ones are much smaller, only acute ùn, longer than the corresponding circumflex ones 20 ms, is distinguished. It is also striking that the total duration of the diphthongs of both schnekts (regardless of the prefix) is generally very closely related to the sounds they are composed of: diphthongs with second accents n, m (average total duration 189 ms) are significantly longer than diphthongs with l, r (166 ms). Figure 3. In order to verify the trends identified in the figures, a statistical evaluation of the duration of the samples was carried out using the so-called Student’s criterion test (t Test), the total duration data were compared separately by randomness and by the investigated areas (see table 1). Two statistical parameters are the most important in the evaluation: the p-value (the difference between the samples is considered statistically significant if it is less than 0.05), the Student criterion value (T) and the calculated 95% probability critical value (t) (the statistically significant difference is confirmed when T > t). As additional parameters, the parameters of the dispersion and standard deviation (obtained by subtracting the square 8 root from the dispersion) can also be important, showing how far the values of the sample are away from the mean (for more information see Figure 1). Lapinskas 2010). The tables show that the statistical evaluation confirmed the discussed patterns. Only the difference between the acute and circumflex diphthongs of the Vilkaviškis schnect (see Table 1) is statistically significant, because in this case p < 0.05 (0.00733341), and the T values are greater than t (2.7006357 > 1.96829326). The difference in the total duration of acute and circumflex diphthongs of the Jurbarkas schnect should be considered as statistically insignificant, because the p value is greater than 0.05 (0.9469643), and T < t (0.0665778 < 1.9682933). 8 Since the two-way alternative is evaluated, the minus sign next to the T-value does not need to be taken into account. 7 Table 1. Statistical evaluation of the total duration of bilaterals Location Priegaidė Statistical parameters Vilkaviškis Acute Circumflex Acute Circumflexes Mean (ms) 182.146 192.188 168.715 168.493 T value -2.7006357 0.0665778 (bilateral Jurbarkas Dispersion 1030,545 960,321 903,702 700,573 Standard deviation (ms) 32,102 30,989 30,062 26,468 Number of measurements 144 144 144 144 alternative) (bilateral alternative) p value (T<= t) t 0,00733341 0,9469643 critical value 1,96829326 1,9682933 In summarizing the data on the total duration of diphthongs with accents i, u in the dialects of Vilkaviškis and Jurbarkas, two things are important: the statistically significantly longer duration of circumflex diphthongs was found in the dialect of Vilkaviškis and in general all diphthongs tend to be longer in the dialect of Vilkaviškis compared to the surroundings of Jurbarkas. There are no reliable differences between acute and circumflex diphthongs in Jurbarkas dialect. Comparing these results with previous data from the study of the Šakiai schnekta, it can be said that the pattern of the overall length relationship is closer in the Jurbarkas and Šakiai neighborhoods: here there tend to be longer acute diphthongs with accents i, u, but their difference is small, statistically insignificant, the length relationship of the diphthongs varies depending on the sounds that make up the center of the syllable (for more details see Bacevičiūtė 2004: 86–88). It is likely that the differences between the Vilkaviškis and 9 Jurbarkas-Šakiai ranges are due to the continuous presence of the latter (LKA 1982: map no. 106). 3. RESULTS FOR THE ABSOLUTE LENGTH OF THE FIRST STAIN To answer more precisely the question whether the accents i, u in the investigated speeches are lengthened, it was expected to analyze the duration of the first accent of the doubles. As already mentioned in the introduction, absolute and percentage duration data of the first segments were examined. The rectangular diagrams of absolute duration values (see Figure 4) clearly show the uneven positioning of the sniffers. In the Vilkaviškis dialect, the duration of all the examined bilingual elements is slightly longer, but these are absolute duration data, which may be influenced by the characteristics of individual speakers and other factors; In Vilkaviškis’s speech there is no clearer distinction between acute and circumflex first elements: the values of the first quartile, median and average seem to indicate that the longer ones tend to be circumflex double-sided elements, but their value zone falls into the value zone of the acute elements, they completely coincide; The relationship of the duration of the snitch data in Jurbarkas is clearer and more stable: all the visible parameters – the first quartile, median and average – in the case of acute diphthongs are located in the zone of slightly higher values, so their first spots tend to be slightly longer, although the difference is not large, because most of the duration samples of acute and circumflex spots coincide. 9 As can be seen, the length of the double-syllable segments tends to depend on several factors, most of all on the specific prosodic system of the snitch, the preposition, and perhaps on the syllable constituent sounds. In the future, it should be considered to carry out studies of the differential power of these factors, using more diverse statistical methods, such as two-factor or multi-factor analysis, recently used by researchers to determine the patterns of interaction of sounds in general language (see Švageris, Urbanavičienė 2024). However, this is not the subject of this article, but of a broader study. 8 Figure 4. Distribution of the absolute duration values of the first dot Drawing a graph depicting the relationships of the mean values of the double pairs of clusters (see Figure 5) confirms the previously discussed laws. The figure shows that in the Vilkaviškis dialect, in 6 cases out of 8 pairs, the averages of circumflex diphthongs were larger; In Jurbarkas speech – in 5 cases out of 8, the averages of acute bifurcated spots were higher. This confirms the tendency that in the Vilkaviškis area the circumflex doubles i, u tend to be longer, while in Jurbarkas they tend to be acute. On the other hand, the graph shows that the averages are not stable, there are also cases opposite the discussed trend, where the difference in duration between the acute and circumflex spot is very small. Figure 5. Absolute mean duration of the first spot of individual doublets Data from this part of the study were also evaluated by the Student criterion test (see Table 2). Remiantis jau anksčiau minėtais parametrais, galima teigti, kad skirtingas priegaides turinčių dvigarsių dėmenų i, u absoliučiosios trukmės skirtumas galėtų būti laikomas statistiškai reikšmingu tik Jurbarko šnektoje: čia T (2,012787915) > t (1,968293255), o p < 9 0.05 (0.045073953), but it is evident that the calculated statistical criteria values differ little from the critical ones, so the difference between the comparable samples is small. The difference in i, u duration of the double-sided spots of the Vilkaviškis snicket proved to be statistically insignificant: T (1.299146024) < t (1.968293255), and p (0.194940153) > 0.05. Table 2. Statistical evaluation of the absolute duration of the double first dot Location Priegaidė Statistical parameters Vilkaviškis Acute Circumflexes Acute Circumflexes Jurbarkas Average (ms) 92,666 96,395 84,840 81,048 Dispersion 641,860 Standard deviation (ms) 25.335 23.338 16.970 14.934 p value (T<= t) t critical value 544,646 287,953 223,054 Number of measurements 144 144 144 144 T 0,194940153 0,045073953 value -1,299146024 2,012787915 (bilateral alternative) (bilateral alternative) 1,968293255 1,968293255 Summarizing the results of this part of the study, it can be said that the relationships of the first elements i, u of the comparative diphthongs with different prepositions are not equal. In Vilkaviškis dialect, the longer accents tend to be those of circumflex diphthongs i, u, but the difference in their length is statistically insignificant, so the accents of acute and circumflex diphthongs do not differ in length in these areas. In Jurbarkas speech, the longer tend to be the acute diphthongs, and the difference in their duration has been confirmed statistically. Comparing the data of previous analogous studies of the Šakiai dialect, it is clear that the Šakiai dialect occupies an intermediate position: here the acute diphthongs i, u are more frequently longer (similarity with the Jurbarkas area), but statistical differences in duration between the diphthongs with different prefixes have not been established (similarity with the Vilkaviškis area) (for more details see Bacevičiūtė 2002: 88–91). Thus, the preliminary data show that the elongation of the acute double first accents i, u in northwestern Kaunas dialects is strengthened in the northern direction. 4. PERCENTAGE RESULTS FOR THE DURATION OF THE FIRST STAIN When analyzing the duration of sound units, it is usually based not so much on absolute as on some relative data, because they are much more objective and subtler, less affected by the individual characteristics of the speaker (see Pakerys 1982: 44). As already mentioned, in this study it was chosen to analyze the percentage duration of the first dot of the diphthongs, i.e. what part of the total duration of the diphthong it constitutes. The results of the percentage duration confirmed the previously discussed trends (for example, that the first elements of all Vilkaviškis schneck dimorphisms are longer than those of Jurbarkas), but also highlighted new aspects of the dimorphism relationship with the precocials. The rectangular diagrams (see Figure 6) show that in terms of percentage duration, the acute diphthongs i, u tend to be longer in both of the comparison speeches – in all cases, both the first quartile and the median and mean values are higher. However, in the Vilkaviškis dialect the difference in the duration of acute and circumflex dots is barely noticeable, the zones of duration values basically coincide, and in Jurbarkas the difference is much more pronounced. 16 there are no local dialects within the entire Lithuanian language area in which these elements remain unlengthened, as the pronunciation of short elements would contradict the overall prosodic structure of acute mixed diphthongs.