太魯閣語之母音分散

Vowel Dispersion in Truku

本研究探討太魯閣語中母音空間與距離的分散現象，以及性別和重音對此母音分散的影響。本研究依照發音人對太魯閣語母音數目的認知，將他們分為五母音組、四母音組及三母音組。實驗的語料包括七十七個雙音節單字，由發音人唸過之後再測量其母音共振峰的值。結果顯示，相較於四母音組較不規則的母音分散型態，五母音和三母音組呈現較為可辨別的分散型態。本研究引用兩種分散理論來解釋五母音與三母音組之間的母音分散空間和距離的差異。性別因素對於母音空間的影響也與過去的研究結果相符。此外，本研究也發現重音對母音分散的影響是同時作用於「母音空間」及「母音間距離」這兩個層面。

This study investigated the dispersion of vowel space and vowel distance in Truku, and how these two factors interact with gender and stress. The participants were grouped into 5-vowel, 4-vowel, and 3-vowel categories, according to the number of vowels they perceived to be in their language. Acoustic analysis of the participants’ production of 77 disyllabic words revealed that more discernable patterns could be attributed to the 5-vowel and 3-vowel groups, whereas the 4-vowel group exhibited fewer discernable patterns. Two versions of Dispersion Theory are used to interpret the observed differences between 5-vowel and 3-vowel groups in terms of both vowel space and vowel distance. Gender differences in the size of overall vowel space corroborated previous research. In addition, stress was found to influence vowel distribution with respect to overall space and distance between vowels. 本研究探討太魯閣語中母音空間與距離的分散現象，以及性別和重音對此母音分散的影響。本研究依照發音人對太魯閣語母音數目的認知，將他們分為五母音組、四母音組及三母音組。實驗的語料包括七十七個雙音節單字，由發音人唸過之後再測量其母音共振峰的值。結果顯示，相較於四母音組較不規則的母音分散型態，五母音和三母音組呈現較為可辨別的分散型態。本研究引用兩種分散理論來解釋五母音與三母音組之間的母音分散空間和距離的差異。性別因素對於母音空間的影響也與過去的研究結果相符。此外，本研究也發現重音對母音分散的影響是同時作用於「母音空間」及「母音間距離」這兩個層面。