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Cross-linguistic variation in language similarity classification.

Authors: MaryAnn Walter;

Cross-linguistic variation in language similarity classification.

Abstract

This study aims at identifying factors that make language sound structures seem more or less similar to English, and how those similarity judgments change according to the listener’s native language. Listeners from four different native language groups (English, Mandarin Chinese, Korean, and Turkish) sorted a group of 17 genetically and geographically diverse languages in terms of their sound-based distance from English. Placements of individual languages were analyzed, as well as groupings of similarly ranked languages and correlations among overall ranking structures of the different groups. Bilingual listeners exhibit more variability in their rankings than monolingual English speakers, rank their own language as less similar to English than other groups do, and rank languages of neighboring groups the least similar to it of all. Ranking correlations between language groups are significant, varying somewhat in magnitude depending on geographical proximity and typological/genetic relatedness of the listener group languages. This reflects the presence of consistent groupings within ranking structures for all language groups, which depend on sound-based factors such as the presence of perceptually salient speech sounds. These results enable predictions about relative intelligibility among international English users, native and non-native. [Work supported by a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship awarded by the Woodrow Wilson Foundation.]

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
1
Average
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