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Variation and Evolution: Aspects of language contact and contrast across the Spanish-speaking world
Edited by Sandro Sessarego, Juan J. Colomina-Almiñana and Adrián Rodríguez-Riccelli
[Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics 29] 2020
► pp. 163–186

Chapter 7
Sheísmo in Montevideo Spanish

Not (yet) identical to Buenos Aires

| North Carolina State University
| North Carolina State University

Studies have documented an ongoing change from /ʒ/ to /ʃ/ in Rioplatense Spanish, and research indicates that the change to /ʃ/ is complete for young speakers of Buenos Aires (BA) Spanish. However, sheísmo in the neighboring country of Uruguay has not been thoroughly studied. The present study finds that, unlike in BA, the change to /ʃ/ is not yet complete in Montevideo, as determined by persistent sex differences among young speakers (Cameron, 2011; Chang, 2008), and differences in voicing rates between /ʒ/~/ʃ/and phonologically voiceless /s/, indicating that observed voicing is not due solely to gestural overlap (Rohena-Madrazo, 2015). Uruguay is at least one generation behind BA for this change, distinguishing the Spanish spoken in the two regions.

Keywords: Rioplatense Spanish, Montevideo, Sheísmo, sociolinguistics
Article outline
  • 1.Rioplatense Spanish
  • 2. Zheísmo and sheísmo in Rioplatense Spanish
  • 3.Methodology
    • 3.1Participants
    • 3.2Analysis
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Variants of /ʝ/
    • 4.2Analysis of voicing
    • 4.3Completion of the change in Montevideo and comparisons with BA
      • 4.3.1Sex differences as a criterion for completed sound change
      • 4.3.2Comparison with /s/ as a criterion for completed sound change
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 11 August 2020
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/ihll.29.07mic
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