The Phonetic Analysis of Z Rime Alternation Phenomena in Changyuan Dialect of Henan Province

Abstract

By analyzing the Z rime alternation phenomena in Changyuan Dialect of Henan Province, the present study argues that the phenomenon of one word having two different kinds of Z rime alternation forms in this dialect is due to it that the basic rime of the word preserves the Z rime alternation form that is formed before and after the sound change of the basic rime respectively. At the mean time, the development speed of Z rime alternation forms is slower than that of the basic rimes, so the Z rime alternation form preserves the glide of its corresponding basic rime of the early period and that’s exactly what leads to the differences between the glide of the present basic rime and that of the corresponding Z rime alternation form. Besides, the monophthongization phenomenon occurs between the main vowel and the [-u] ending in the compound final that is formed by sound combination during Z rime alternation process generally appears only in Jin language area of Northern Henan Province and doesn’t appear in Mandarin-speaking area of Henan Province.