Is the Canadian shift inevitable in all dialects with the father-bother and cot-caught merger? Why is it a more consistent feature in Canada than in the Western US? Is it because the cot-caught merger has existed for a longer time in Canada than in the Western US? Or is it because the vowel in Canada is mergedd to a higher and more rounded vowel? Do some places in the Western US merge to the same sort of higher and more rounded vowel? Will the shift be completed, and what will the final results be? Will cot and caught both become [O] or just [Q]? Will women and men have it to the same extent?
Canadian shift: inevitable?
<<Why is it a more consistent feature in Canada than in the Western US? >>
I'm not so sure this is true. I did some field work some time ago (some might remember). I tested several people from various regions (from Seattle down to Arizona) on the West Coast, and I only found one subject--from Sacramento--who retained the cot/caught distinction. Some research showed me that, indeed, the distinction has been retained in only a few areas in and around the San Francisco area.
Assuming for a moment that my sample numbers were sufficient (they probably weren't), the cot/caught merger is spreading rapidly on the West Coast.
I'm not so sure this is true. I did some field work some time ago (some might remember). I tested several people from various regions (from Seattle down to Arizona) on the West Coast, and I only found one subject--from Sacramento--who retained the cot/caught distinction. Some research showed me that, indeed, the distinction has been retained in only a few areas in and around the San Francisco area.
Assuming for a moment that my sample numbers were sufficient (they probably weren't), the cot/caught merger is spreading rapidly on the West Coast.
>>
Assuming for a moment that my sample numbers were sufficient (they probably weren't), the cot/caught merger is spreading rapidly on the West Coast. <<
Yeah, I know that. I've never actually met anyone from the West that told me that they had the distinction. But the Canadian shift is something that according to the "Linguistic Atlas of North American English" by Labov, exists all over Canada as well as to a much smaller extent the Western US. It is not the cot-caught merger, itself, but is triggered by it. E.g. yellow->yallow.
Assuming for a moment that my sample numbers were sufficient (they probably weren't), the cot/caught merger is spreading rapidly on the West Coast. <<
Yeah, I know that. I've never actually met anyone from the West that told me that they had the distinction. But the Canadian shift is something that according to the "Linguistic Atlas of North American English" by Labov, exists all over Canada as well as to a much smaller extent the Western US. It is not the cot-caught merger, itself, but is triggered by it. E.g. yellow->yallow.
As for Cali English:
1.
e---> a is frequent before L:
yellow-->yallow
myself-->mysalf
but it is less frequent before other consonants
2.
o--->aw is frequent before M, N and L
mom-->mawm
dollar->dawlar
but it is less frequent before other consonants
(e /E/, a /{/, o /A/, aw /Q/)
PS
3. /{/--->/a/ is a much more frequent shift than 1. and 2., so many
Californians lack 1. and 2.
There is a Californian tv station you can watch online.
Most people there have the low back merger (to /A/) but lack the Californian shift:
MMS://WMLIVE.VITALSTREAMCDN.COM/LIVE_CTV_VITALSTREAM_COM_TV30LIVE
1.
e---> a is frequent before L:
yellow-->yallow
myself-->mysalf
but it is less frequent before other consonants
2.
o--->aw is frequent before M, N and L
mom-->mawm
dollar->dawlar
but it is less frequent before other consonants
(e /E/, a /{/, o /A/, aw /Q/)
PS
3. /{/--->/a/ is a much more frequent shift than 1. and 2., so many
Californians lack 1. and 2.
There is a Californian tv station you can watch online.
Most people there have the low back merger (to /A/) but lack the Californian shift:
MMS://WMLIVE.VITALSTREAMCDN.COM/LIVE_CTV_VITALSTREAM_COM_TV30LIVE
You may like to get to know other Canadian accents:
New Brunswick accent:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=hYlltEFXRoY
Windsor accent:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=euUyxaD5evc
/A/ remains strong as a merged vowel in Atlantic Canada...
New Brunswick accent:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=hYlltEFXRoY
Windsor accent:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=euUyxaD5evc
/A/ remains strong as a merged vowel in Atlantic Canada...