08 May 2001

Dr Joyce McDonough (University of Rochester)

In this talk I will present some data from yes / no and focus constructions in Navajo as part of a preliminary investigation into the interaction of tone and intonation. Navajo has the dense tonal specification of a tone language, though its complex morphological and morpho-syntactic structure precludes easy typological tonal classification. The Navajo verb is characterized by final prominence, the word final stem is marked by acoustic properties commonly associated with stress: longer, louder segments and pitch range expansion, resulting in a striking end-prominent profile [McDonough, Anthro. Ling. 41.4, 503-539 (1999)]. Preliminary studies indicated tonal sensitivity to the morphological domains in the word, pitch range expansion in the final syllable, no apparent boundary tones, no declination/downstep of H^Òs across the domains of the word. Research has shown that tone languages may use intonational and/or stress-related strategies (boundary tones, pitch-range expansion) to mark focus and yes/no questions. To investigate the acoustic properties of these constructions in Navajo, 12 native speakers were recorded reciting short statements followed by either yes/no questions (3 types) or focus constructions. Both type constructions in Navajo are marked by pro and enclitic-like particles on/surrounding the (non-utterance final) NP's. Results indicate no differences in the F0 contour between statements and the contrasting constructions, though the interpretation of the results is dependent on the analysis of the structures. This fact about intonation is arguably related to the NP's non-argument status in the grammar, possibly indicating a consequential interaction of morphology, morpho-syntax and intonation in these type languages.

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