Dingxi Mandarin /n/-/l/ Merger and its Transfer to L2 English

In Dingxi, a remote place in Gansu province of China, the alveolar nasal /n/ and the lateral /l/ merge in the local Mandarin dialect. The author, born and raised in Dingxi, observes that himself and local people have difficulties in producing English words with syllable-initial [n-], e.g., Nike, nice, neighbor, noodle, national etc.

Similar /n/-/l/ merger is attested in a variety of Mandarin dialects (Sichuan, Hubei, Yunnan, Shanxi, Shandong), as well as in Cantonese, South Min, and other Chinese languages. Literature on the Cantonese /n/-/l/ merger appears in English and some Chinese literature addresses the same phenomenon in Mandarin as well as its transfer to L2 English.

This paper deals primarily the nasality of [n/l]-initial words in Dingxi Mandarin and L2 English using acoustic cues (F2-F1, A1P0, F3, BW1, DeltaA1, Relative RMS), and investigates the realization of the /n/-/l/ merger in various phonological environment in both Dingxi Mandarin and L2 English. To preview the results, both the acoustic and phonological analysis confirm that the /n/-/l/ merger in Dingxi Mandarin transfers to L2 English. Importantly, I introduce a velum coarticulation hypothesis that explains these phenomena-- from the reduced nasality of alveolar nasal in Dingxi Mandarin, to the reversed F2-F1 pattern in Dingxi Xi rhymes [i y] comparing with native English speakers, and to the convergence of the F2-F1 value of /n/ and /l/ in Hon rhymes [a o e u]. I also show that the nasality measurement illustrates a convergence of /n/ and /l/ to an acoustic realization that lies between /n/ and /l/, a phenomenon that has not been described previously.