Abstract

De Saussure’s idea that phonological systems are based on distinctive oppositions crystalizes in the work of Jakobson and his collaborators with the “dichotomous scale” of distinctive features. For these scholars, the way a language works, as well as the way it is acquired and lost, depends on the hierarchical organization of the distinctive features. The work of Dresher and his collaborators recovers the importance of this fundamental conception of phonological systems, with the name “contrastive hierarchy”. In this paper, I show that the acquisition of the Spanish vocalic system by Quechua speakers and of the Quechua vocalic system by Spanish speakers amounts to the acquisition of L2 oppositions on the basis of L1 oppositions.

Highlights

  • Resumen La idea saussureana de que los sistemas fonológicos se basan en oposiciones distintivas se hace concreta en la obra de Jakobson y sus colaboradores con la propuesta de la “escala dicotómica” de rasgos distintivos

  • The work of Dresher and his collaborators recovers the importance of this fundamental conception of phonological systems, with the name “contrastive hierarchy”

  • I show that the acquisition of the Spanish vocalic system by Quechua speakers and of the Quechua vocalic system by Spanish speakers amounts to the acquisition of L2 oppositions on the basis of L1 oppositions

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Summary

Introduction

Resumen La idea saussureana de que los sistemas fonológicos se basan en oposiciones distintivas se hace concreta en la obra de Jakobson y sus colaboradores con la propuesta de la “escala dicotómica” de rasgos distintivos. Los bilingües quechua-castellano incipientes muestran una percepción condicionada por las oposiciones determinadas por la jerarquía contrastiva de su lengua materna: distinguen /a/, por un lado, de /ɪ/ y /ʊ/, por otro, mediante la oposición [+/–bajo]; y distinguen estos últimos fonemas entre sí mediante la oposición [+/–posterior].

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