Abstrakt
This study (i) investigates the timing properties of Dogri singleton and geminate voiceless stops in CVCV word form, and (ii) compares the findings with a related Indo-Aryan language, Western Punjabi. LMER tests for part (i) confirm that the lengthened duration of the intervocalic consonant (C2) and contraction in the duration of the preceding vowel (V1) among geminates serve as the primary phonetic cues in differentiating Dogri geminate from a singleton.
The comparison of singleton - geminate distribution between Dogri and Punjabi in part (ii) reveals that the main cue of difference between the two languages lies in the flanking vowels. Whereas the contracted V1 duration appears promising in Dogri, Punjabi, instead, relies upon reducing the duration of V2.
The study concludes that different treatment to maintain singleton - geminate contrast in the two genealogically related languages is due to the respective phonotactics that governs the distribution of duration across segments.