Noun-Related Changed Vowels And Their Age Variation In Jiaozuo Urban Speech

The phenomenon of changed vowels is one of the characteristics of Jiaozuo dialects. Jiaozuo encompasses two Chinese dialects, Jin Group and Zhongyuan Mandarin. At present, the changed finals of Jiaozuo urban speech are in the process of quick change. In the light of sociolinguistic and dialectology theories and methodologies, this paper describes the types and complexity of noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech, compares the differences between the old and the young when they use noun-related changed vowels. Further it analyzes the age variations of noun-related changed vowels, discusses the reasons caused these variations, and forecast their developing trend. This paper consists of the following five chapters.Chapter One is the introduction. It mainly introduces the Jiaozuo and Jiaozuo dialects.Chapter Two is the relevant studies, the significance and the methodologies of our research. The former research on changed vowels and noun-related changed vowels is introduced here. It clarifies the significance, research materials and scope of this research. The research procedures and steps are also explained.Chapter Three is the noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech. According to the survey materials, it describes the general status of noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech, sorts the types and explains them. It also discusses the differences between the old and the young. Based on the phonetic form, there are seven categories of noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech. The differences between the old and the young are showed in the aspects of the number of the noun-related changed vowels, the changing speed of the noun-related changed vowels and the usage of the words with changed vowels. We find that three types of the noun-related changed vowels are changeful, which are "o, ou" kind, nasalized kind and nasal kind.Chapter Four is the age variations of noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech. Firstly it clarifies the agc variations of noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech. Secondly, it analyzes the age variations on the categories of noun-related changed vowels, and concludes the dynamic relationship of the seven categories of noun-related changed vowels, that is, the usage of categories of "o u", nasalized and nasal is decreasing, and the usage of category "(?)" is increasing. Finally, it observes the reasons that caused the age variations. As a whole, noun-related changed vowels are still widely used in Jiaozuo. The old group use noun-related changed vowels more than the middle-age group and the young group. With the age decreases, more and more people use the elementary vowels among the three groups. The increasing speed of using postfix "Zi" in young group is slow.Chapter Four is conclusion. It summarizes the whole paper, and the prospect of noun-related changed vowels in Jiaozuo urban speech is predicted.