PROSODIC PARAMETRES VARIATION IN THE SPEECH OF CANADIAN PROVINCE NEW SCOTIA REPRESENTATIVES

Abstract

The given article focuses on the variation of prosodic parametres of Canadian Variant of English which have been analyzed on the examples of the speech of province New Scotia representatives. The research has been performed within the scientific paradigm of functional linguistics. The national identity of New Scotia representatives as well as the character and peculiarity of historical penetration of the British variant of English to the territory of Canadian province are in the centre of attention. The interest in the study of national versions of English is dictated by a number of reasons, including, on the one hand, the cultural expansion of English on a global scale, which contributes to the emergence of new versions, on the other – the destruction of old stereotypes. Melodic, frequency and temporal characteristics have been studied in the article and mutual prosodic traits have been revealed. With the help of auditory and computer analysis main units of speech melody, namely, terminal tones and scales have been defined, frequency and temporal parametres with the account of gender belonging have been studied. The frequency of Scales and terminal tones usage allows to state that New Scotia representatives' speech is under the influence of British English. Among prosodic characteristics peculiar for the British-Descending Stepping Scale, Falling, Rising and Falling-Rising terminal tones, wide frequency range dominate. Temporal and melodic prosodic parametres serve as informative data of regional speech and can also identify speaker's gender belonging. The results of the study make it possible to determine the prospects for further study of the prosodic features of the Canadian version of the English language, taking into account age, gender, and occupational differences.