EE Pronunciation Varieties MOCK TEST Answer Sheet A/20pts/1a The author of Accents of English, 1982: J.C. Wells 1b The author of Sociophonology, 1998: John Honey 2 Match phonetic terms and their definitions: A continuant, B liaison, C fricative, D pitch, E schwa, F velum. C A consonant in which the vocal tract is narrowed sufficiently to cause turbulent air flow. E The central vowel /ə/, found in great abundance in casual English. F The soft palate. A A consonant that may be prolonged indefinitely rather than having the finite duration of a stop. B Linking, or, the strategy of using the final sound of one word to initiate the following. D The relative musical tone of an utterance. 3 Transcribe the modern (innovated) EE pronunciations of the terms obscure [ɒpsˈkjɔː] variety [vəˈraːəti] Buddha images [ˈbʊdəʳɪmɪdʒɪz] 4 Which English linguist propagates the inclusion of innovations into official transcriptions of RP? Who is his follower at this department? Professor Clive Upton at Leeds University; Miroslav Ježek 5 State what the urban accents spoken in the following towns are called: Birmingham=Brummie, Liverpool=Scouse or Liverpudlian, Newcastle upon Tyne=Geordie, Glasgow=Glaswegian 6 Which accent in England has a Celtic substratum and gives a sing-song impression? Welsh 7 Which is the only accent of English where schwa can be stressed? That of New Zealand What is the schwa here an allophone of? Of the /ɪ/ 8 What would you say are the biggest differences between Scottish and Northern Irish English? A special rising whining tone; a more rounded /r/, sometimes clear /l/, slovenliness. 9 What does the Cockney diphthong shift consist in? Complete the chain: /i:/ > /eɪ/ > /aɪ/ > /ɔɪ/ 10 Characterize the accent of Eire (Irish Republic). /ɒ/=/ʌ/ and vice-versa, clear /l/, dark /r/, t-opening, th-stopping. B/10pts/Match the origins of speakers with the numbers of their recordings reading “Please call Stella“. 1 Glasgow, Sc 2 New Sth Wales, Aus 3 Strabane, NI 4 Manchester, Lanc. 5 Camberley, Surrey C/20pts/ 1 2:46, played once, 5pts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PWSJH02krs A stand-up comedian recalls practising his father’s language. a) The comedian’s name (T.N.): Trevor Noah b) Where he spent the first two decades of his life: South Africa c) The two official languages of that country: English, Afrikaans d) The political régime while he was a child: Apartheid e) The language of his father: German 2 2:04, played once, 5 pts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkmUktJ94jg You´ll hear a professional recording of a monologue in which a woman speaks about a trauma she has suffered, in quite a pronounced accent. a) Localize her accent: Yorkshire b) The kind of trauma she has suffered: rape 3 1:54, played once, 5 pts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qS7mBbXxJYA You´ll hear the beginning of a TED talk about living in a cult. Decide what the young woman’s pronounced accent is. How long has she lived in the cult for? New Zealand. Extremely close vowes, /e/ becoming /ɪ/ and /ɪ/ becoming a schwa. 18 years. 4 1:36, played once, 5pts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsUvcjk8J5c A report on losses and strays on a sheep farm. Localize the accent and give evidence. Eire. The county of Kerry is in Ireland. Specific intonation, clear L’s, rhotic but not like in the Scottish accent.