Experimental Study On Tone Of Jianghuai Mandarin In Jiangsu Province

This paper investigated the representative and marginal dialects' tonal system of different dialect sections of Jianghuai Mandarin in Jiangsu province. We choosed 12 dialects from the area we mentioned. They are: Yangzhou, Huaian, Lianyungang,Yancheng, Nanjing, Lishui, Taizhou, Nantong, Taixing, Xinghua, Dafeng and Rudong.We analysed the pitch and time data extracted from the audio files we recorded before to describle the acoustics features of dialect's tones. We also concentrated on the phonation types of tones in different dialects. We tried to give every tone an accurate position on the database according to the theory of tonal typology. We advanced a new proposal about the distribution of dialects called "The Marginal Wu Dialet" to define dialects in marginal areas.We found that most dialects' tonal system of the Jianghuai Mandarin take the tone's type as the most important distinction between different tones. The most dialects in Hongchao section have 5 tones. The most dialects in Tongtai section have 6 to 7 tones. The mode of the collocation of different tones indialects always be the"fall-raise-low-flat" or "fall-raise-low-flat-fall/concave". After all, the most popular strategy is to depend on the different type of tone, although the phonation types of tones could influence the state of tonal system in some dialects.The phonation types of tones could give us a new point of view of research.There are 4 dialects in Jianghuai Mandarin which have different level because of the influence created by the phonation types of tones. They are Lianyungang, Xinghua,Dafeng and Nantong. We could divided the tones into 3 level according to the phonation types of tones.The entering tone still exists in most dialects of Jianghuai Mandarin. The glottal catch also exists in most dialects of Jianghuai Mandarin except of Lianyungang and Nanjing dialect.We found that the Tongtai section of Jianghuai Mandarin is close to the Wu dialect in tonal system and phonation types of tones. Most dialects in Tongtai section have 6 to 7 tones. What's more, Xinghua and Dafeng's dialects have high tonal level defined by falsetto and low tonal level defined by creaky voice. So we advanced a new proposal about the distribution of dialects called "The Marginal Wu Dialet" to redefine the Tongtai section. We prefer cover the Tongtai section into the area of the marginal Wu dialect. It would separate from Wu dialect if the Tongtai section lose the character of Wu dialect.