The Phonetic Research On Shandong Fei County’s Dialect

Fei county (Fei Xian) locates in the southeast of Shandong province, the dialect belongs to Zheng-Cao cluster of Central Plains’Mandarine (according to Mrs. Qian Zengyi, it belongs to Xi-Lu district in the West region of Shandong). As it lies in the marginal area of other three secondary Mandrines (which are Central Plains’Mandarine, Jiao-Liao Mandarine and Ji-Lu Mandarine), Fei county’s phonological voice shows lots of special features, and it also displays great differences inside the county. Basing on the field-works research of Fei dialect, taking other dialects nearby as references, and assisting with experimental methods, this thesis makes a comprehensive and thorough analysis to the phonological features from both synchronic and diachronic perspectives.This paper is divided into five chapters. Its main content contains as follows:Chapter One, introduction. In part one, it briefly introduces something about Fei County’s geography, division into districts, population and historical development. Part two introduces the status quo in the study, purposes and its importances. Basing on the analysis about the whole research status of Fei dialects and other dialects nearby, the thesis comes up with its main purposes and importances on this research. Part three introduces the research theories, methods and source of materials which are used in the paper.About the research materials, most of them mainly come from several direct fieldworks on the different towns and countries in Fei County.Chapter Two, Fei County’s Initials study. Firstly, this chapter describes the Initials system of Fei County’s center, Feicheng town. Basing on the description, it compares the differences among different towns and countries. Secondly, it makes an experimental analysis about two special Initials,which are/γ/and/ι/, and observes its acoustics features, and then confirms its practical pronunciation of this two Initials in the local place. As the results shows that every town or countries has the use of y, but it also has a degrading trend in using among the young. And through the actural acoustics parameters of/ι/the experimental research confirms its practical pronunciation. Meanwhile, this chapter also focuses on the study about the modern pronunciation of the ancient Zhi Series Initials, Jian and Tuan Initials, the ancient Ri Series Initials and the ancient Ying and Yi Series Initials. As the result indicates that there are separating pronunciations of the ancient Zhi Series Initials in Fei County, specifically speaking, there are15towns and countries which has combined into one pronunciation while3towns still keep in separation of two pronunciations. Some places has also had the separating pronunciations of Jian and Tuan Initials, as10towns and countries combine the pronunciation into one while8towns keep in separating pronunciations. The ancient Ri Series Initials have different pronunciations, taking the other dialects’ situation nearby into consideration, this chapter analyzer its historical levels on these pronunciations. Meanwhile, to the ancient Zhi Series Initials and the ancient Ying and Yi Series Initials, connecting with the integral pronunciation status and their geographical distribution both in Fei County’s surrounding ares and Shandong dialects, this chapter makes researchs on them respectively, observe their historical levels and discusses its resources about these special pronunciations.Chapter Three, about Finals study. Likes the last chapter, this chapter firstly describes the Finals System of Feicheng town, then compares its internal differences among the towns and countries. At the same time, this chapter makes an experimental research on the monophthongs by taking Feicheng town as an representative, and make a comparasion between Feicheng town and Putonghua (standard Chinese), hence to observe their overal features and differences in the local area. As the result shows that compares with Putonghua, Fei dialect has a more fronter or lower tongue position. As to the special words "耳、儿、二、而"/er/, it also makes an thorough experimental research to confirm its practical pronunciation which is microteaching/e/,but not retroflex vowel/(?)/or central vowel/a/. In the diachronic research, the chapter makes a comparasion between its modern pronunciation and the ancient Finals of mediaeval times, clears its corresponding rules. In Finals, Fei County dialect shows little internal differences, hence this chapter mainly focuses on the variant pronunciation of Dangjiangshe rusheng finals, points out its special ancient characteristics. Meanwhile, the chapter also emphasizes on the study of retroflex suffixation. Fei dialect shows three types of retroflex suffixation. which are retroflex erhua, non-retro flex erhua and the independent syllable of er-end, and these types reflect different historical levels in the evoluctionary process.Chapter Four, on tones of voice study. This chapter is divided into five parts. Part one takes Feicheng town as an example, describe and observe its acoustics characteristics by using LZ calculating method through the experimental way. Fei dialect has four tones, which are Yinping213, Yangping53, Shangsheng55and Qusheng312or31, their overal features are mainly on that Yangping has the greatest decreasing drop of2degrees in tones, Qusheng has the longest duration in times which lasts to270ms. Comparing with Beijing dialect’s tones which centralizes in medium tone ares, Fei dialect has a lower tone area, and generally speaking, its speech is lowering and gently. Part two, comparing the modern tones system with the mediaeval times, the propotion about75%of Yinping from the ancient voiceless consonant of Ru tone words shows it has obvious feature of Central Plains’ Mandarine, and on the study of half-voiced consonant of Ru tone words, the propotion differences in different towns and countries show certain distance among them, some reach the highest propotion of75%, some are lower than50%, the whole county takes an average propotion of Yingping tone as57%, these reflect the imbalance in the evoluctionary process and historical levels. Anyhow, looked from the overal, it still shows great feature of Central Plains’Mandarine. Part three, fouses on the description about the modified tones of stressed-stressed syllables type in Speech. Part four, taking Mr. Pingshanjiuxiong and Zhang Shuzheng’s opinion as reference, it makes the ancient tones according to the modified tones in unstressed syllable type in Speech,which are Yinping of the ancient tone is31(Qusheng of the modern tone). Yangping of the ancient tone is55(Shangsheng of the modern tone), Shangsheng of the ancient tone is213(Qusheng of the modern tone), Qusheng of the ancient tone is53(Yangping of the modern tone). Basing on these rules, it furthers the analysis on its historical levels in the evolutionary process of Shandong dialects. Chapter five, based on the analysis on the new type tone13in stressed-stressed syllables type in Speech, which are Shangsheng and Shangsheng syllables type turns to Yangping, Yinping and Yinping or Qusheng syllables types turn to13tone, it analyzers its modified tone reasons and gets a conclusion that it is an internal adjustment with the purpose of effort-saving.Chapter Five, bases on the upper research, this chapter forcuses on some questions about Fei County’s phonological features. At first, to analysis it from the perspective of geography, Fei County belongs to Central Plains’Mandarine, but it is not far from Jiaoliao Mandarine and Jilu Mandarine, some features of Fei County dialects shows that it has some elements of Jiao-Liao Mandarine to a certain extent, such as the separating pronunciations of the ancient Zhi Series Initials and the separating pronunciations of Jian and Tuan Initials, the propotion of Qusheng about the half-voiced consonant of Ru tone words, and so on. Meanwhile, some other similar features with other dialects shows that they are spreaded from other nearby dialects. Secondary, the internal diversities in areas and ages of Fei County display obvious imbalance in phonetic development. At last, this chapter discusses the internal factors and external influences in phonological development, the external influences mainly come from the influence of the surrounding ares and Putonghua. Especially the lasting and deepening influence of Putonghua has made greater and greater power on dialects. But on the other hand, from both diachronic and sunchronic perspectives, under the incorporated influence with the internal and external influences, the internal function takes the leading place to the phonetic development, and this guarantee the unique and systematic features of dialects.At the end of the paper there attached a homophone table of Feicheng town.The innovation points and importances in this thesis mainly are, firstly, to provide new phonological materials to Central Plains’ Mandarine by an thorough analysis, to make some contribution to the reference on the research of Shandong dialects, Central Plains’ Mandarine and the modern history of voice. Secondly, to combine two research methods in the thesis with experimental analysis and traditional description analysis, and to confirm some characters and features about Initials. Finals and Tones, thus makes some contribitions to the reference on similar phenomenon research in Shandong. Thirdly, in these studies, it combines the internal differences with the related research of other dialects nearby and phonological history, hence makes a thorough analysis in the historical levels and causes of dialect phonological features.