Tonal preservation verse prosodic transfer in L3-Mandarin question intonation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36505/TheLinguisticProceedings/2025/16/01/026/000686Keywords:
prosodic transfer, L3 acquisition, Mandarin, Cantonese, boundary toneAbstract
This study examines prosodic transfer in L3 Mandarin among Cantonese L1 speakers, focusing on how pitch height and boundary timing signal interrogativity. Cantonese typically marks questions with a prominent final-syllable F0 rise, whereas Mandarin uses overall pitch elevation while preserving final lexical tones. Twenty Cantonese-English-Mandarin trilinguals produced statements and questions in a reading conversation task, and their Mandarin proficiency was evaluated by native speakers. The results revealed asymmetric transfer patterns: L1 boundary tone timing persisted in certain question types, while Mandarin-specific fall-rise tonal contours were maintained. Higher Mandarin proficiency was associated with more target-like pitch height modulation. The findings demonstrate a duality in L3 acquisition in which prosodic transfer from the first language coexists with target-like tonal production, highlighting the role of tonal typology in shaping bilingual intonation.
References
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