SIGNS OF WELSH INTONATION IN THE SPEECH OF AUSTRALIANS

Abstract

The article reports on the study of the interferential influence of Welch intonation on the speech of Australians. Special focus is given to historical factors which influence the phonetic realization of Australians’ speech. The article contains overview of the results of lingual and historical analysis proving that the first emigrants of Australia were representatives of the lowest social classes, native Cockney, Venaculas speaker from different parts of Britain. Investigators consider that Australian English is more likely to be close to Cockney dialect with a touch of Welsh, Irish and a definite share of Scottish dialects. In the frame of the conducted complex investigation on the basis of auditory and computer analysis melodic and frequency characteristic of Australian speech were studied and the influence of English speech of the first emigrants from Britain was traced. In the result of the auditory analysis the prevalence of the Falling terminal tone was fixed, which is the peculiarity of the British intonation, and also high frequency of Rising and Rising-Falling nuclear tones. Such tendency is the result of the Welsh intonation influence on the speech of Australians. Computer analysis showed the frequency characteristics in the speech of the investigated informants vary which depend on gender and territorial belonging of the speaker. Uniqueness of Australian English has been revealed in the paper, which was formed in the run of historical development of the country under the influence of emigrants’ speech as well as from different areas of Britain and other countries. The analysis of segmental characteristics which were formed under the influence of regional factors inside and outside Australia are to be the subject of the future investigation.