Do words in the native language influence second‐language speech perception? Evidence from Japanese listeners’ perception of English words that exist as Japanese loanwords.

Abstract

It is well known that native‐language (L1) sound structure influences adult learners’ perception of second‐language (L2) speech. However, it is not as clear whether L2 speech perception can also be influenced by L1 mental lexicon. Specifically, L2 words may be inaccurately perceived if familiar loanword counterparts exist in L1 and if these loanwords have different sound patterns from the original words. To examine this, the present study took advantage of Japanese loanwords from English (e.g., Japanese /sutoresu/ from English “stress”), which typically undergo syllable structure changes, and investigated whether Japanese listeners can accurately perceive the syllable structure of English words even when loanwords exist in Japanese. Thirty native Japanese listeners were asked to count syllables in 189 English words spoken by a native English talker, and rate their subjective familiarity with the English words and their loanword counterparts transcribed in Japanese katakana orthography. Results indicated that syllable‐counting accuracy (65% on average) was not influenced by familiarity with the English words nor with the Japanese loanwords. Results suggest that even though loanwords resemble the original words in their sound and meaning, knowledge of such words in L1 does not necessarily influence perceptual processing of L2 words. [Work supported by MEXT and JSPS.]