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Part of
Perspectives on Arabic Linguistics XXXIV: Papers from the Annual Symposium on Arabic Linguistics, Tucson, Arizona, 2020
Edited by Mahmoud Azaz
[Studies in Arabic Linguistics 12] 2023
► pp. 33–56

Generational changes in VOT in Qatari Arabic

ORCID logo | Qatar University
| Qatar University
| Qatar University
The current study investigates variation in production of VOT in voiceless stops in Qatari Arabic. In line with Labov’s Cascade model, longer VOT in this dialect might be viewed as a new variable developing in the metropolitan area of Doha, Qatar. The results of the acoustic study of VOT in initial voiceless stops produced by 40 female native speakers reveal that variation in VOT can be explained by speakers’ age and social affiliation. VOT was 10 ms longer in younger speakers than in older speakers, and 10 ms longer in Hadar speakers than in Bedouin speakers. The results suggest that young urban females in Qatar produce long-lag VOT (M = 69 ms) comparable with VOT in aspirating languages like English.
Keywords: sociolinguistics, sociophonetics, Qatari Arabic, VOT
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Background
    • 2.1VOT and aspiration in languages
    • 2.2The Qatari dialect of Arabic
    • 2.3Urbanization and dialect development
  • 3.Current study
  • 4.Method
    • 4.1Participants
    • 4.2Materials
    • 4.3Procedure
    • 4.4Acoustic analysis
  • 5.Results
    • 5.1Data analysis
    • 5.2Effects of stop and vowel category
    • 5.3Effects of speaker age and social group
    • 5.4Interactions
    • 5.5Relationship between VOT and years of age
  • 6.Discussion and conclusion
  • Acknowledgments
  • Notes
  • References
  • Appendix
Published online: 6 January 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/sal.12.02kul
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