Icelandic regional pronunciation, attitudes and real-time change: Latest developments

Abstract

In this paper we present selected results from the first data collection phase of the Regional Pronunciation, Attitudes and Real-Time Change (RePARC) research project together with results from two pilot studies that preceded the project. The article focuses on four regional variants of phonological variables, i.e., so-called hard speech and voiced pronunciation, which are primarily associated with the north-eastern part of Iceland, and so-called hv-pronunciation and monophthongal pronunciation, which are regarded as south-eastern features. Informants from two different age groups and three different regions (northern Iceland, southern Iceland, and a so-called neutral area) did a pronunciation test, listened to and gave their attitudinal responses to recordings of speech exhibiting features different from those of their own speech, and answered a questionnaire on their attitudes towards their own pronunciation variants. The results indicate that both voiced pronunciation and hv-pronunciation are fading out, while monophthongal pronunciation and, in particular, hard speech are maintained in their respective core areas. With regard to attitudes, it appears that participants generally consider speech that contains northern features to be clearer than speech that does not. Similarly, participants appear to find these northern features to be more easily recognisable, and at the same time, these features seem to be more closely linked to speakers’ self-identity than other regional features.