Variational analysis of rising diphthongization in popular speech of Salvador

Abstract

This article presents a part of the results found in a larger research, which analysed all the possible contexts of diphthongization in word boundaries, cases of rising and decreased diphthongization. For this work, we selected the results referring only to the variational analysis of the rising diphthongization in the popular speech of Salvador. Between words, rising diphthongization may occur between the final vowel of a word and the initial vowel of another word in the sequence, when the first vowel is phonetically high and unstressed. In this case, the first vowel becomes glide with the application of the process, as in example tre[zja]nos (thirteen years). The objective of this research is to contribute to a more detailed description of the rising diphthongization that occurs in Brazilian Portuguese, considering the popular speech data of Salvador, taken from PEPP (Studies Program on the Spoken Popular Portuguese of Salvador), coordinated by Professor Norma Lopes (UNEB). We selected eight interviews classified by sex (male and female), education (primary and secondary education) and age (25 35 and over 65 years), totaling 1.121 data for statistical analysis. These data passed through a statistical analysis of Goldvarb X, taking into account some variables that have already been analysed in other studies. Among the favourable factors to the application of the process are V2 central and stressed, the following context filled by a consonant, different high vowels, and clitic group.