The timing of phrase-initial tones in Seoul Korean: a weighted-constraint model

Abstract

This paper examines the timing of the L and H tonal targets that constitute the phrase-initial pitch rise in the Seoul Korean LHLH intonation pattern. Two hypotheses, the segmental anchoring hypothesis and the constant duration hypothesis, are examined, by varying speech rate. The segmental anchoring hypothesis states that the beginning and the end of a pitch rise are independently aligned with respect to segments. The alternative hypothesis holds that the interval between the L and H tones should remain stable. It was found that segmental alignment and duration targets simultaneously affect the timing of L and H tonal targets. The model proposed here, the ‘Alignment-Duration’ model, takes these two factors as weighted constraints, which require alignment and duration targets to be realised. The actual timing of the F0 events is determined as the values that minimise the summed cost of violations of these constraints, yielding a compromise between their demands.