Language Contact, Language Ecology, and Intonational Variation in the Yami Community.

Area of Science:

• Linguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Phonetics

Background:

• Yami, an indigenous language in Taiwan, faces intense contact with Mandarin.
• Socioprosodic variation and language contact can lead to linguistic change.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate socioprosodic variation in Yami, focusing on intonational differences across speech styles.
• To examine the impact of Mandarin language contact on Yami intonation.
• To understand how younger bilinguals are reshaping Yami intonation and expressing identity.

Main Methods:

• Recruited 32 bilingual (Yami-dominant, balanced, Mandarin-dominant) and 5 Yami-monolingual participants.
• Used an Interactive Card Game to elicit semi-spontaneous speech for neutral questions (NQ), default declarative questions (DQ1), and declarative questions with lighter incredulity (DQ2).
• Analyzed intonational features such as nuclear configuration, pitch level, and pitch span.

Main Results:

• Yami yes/no question intonation is highly variable.
• The distinction between DQ1 and DQ2 is absent at the community level.
• Bilingual Yami speech exhibits prosodic hybridization and innovation, with significant differences in NQ and DQ1 productions.
• Younger bilinguals show evidence of a hybridized DQ2, indicating language restructuring.
• Intonational changes are linked to expressing ethnocultural identity, not weakened identity.

Conclusions:

• Yami intonation is undergoing significant restructuring, particularly among younger bilingual speakers.
• Language contact with Mandarin is driving prosodic innovation in Yami.
• Younger bilinguals are utilizing socioprosodic features to assert their Indigenous identity, even with reduced language fluency.