What Spanish Speakers Perceive when They Listen to an Italian Nasal Geminate?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.48162/rev.57.028Keywords:
gemination, perception, duration, palatal constriction, variability of the acoustic signalAbstract
In Italian, consonant duration is phonological; that is, consonants can be simple, as in nono (ninth), cane (dog), or geminated, as in nonno (grandfather), canne (reeds). This particular aspect poses a challenge for Spanish speakers, as gemination does not exist in Spanish. We start from the assumption that perception is conditioned by many factors, including proximity to lexical stress (Payne, 2005; 2006). It is expected that the most common perceptual error for Spanish speakers will be degemination. However, if the production of a geminated nasal [n:] involves greater alveolar constriction, as suggested by Payne, it is likely that the listener will perceive palatal effects, relying more on the degree of constriction than on the duration. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a discrimination task in which 42 L1 Spanish - L2 Italian speakers listened to words containing [n], [n:], and [ɲ]. The results showed that the responses not only manifested degemination, as expected, but also revealed confusion between [n:] and [ɲ]. The study raises questions about the factors influencing acoustic perception. Additionally, it emphasizes the need to focus on perceptual training in a pedagogical context.
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