New Zealand English phonology explained
pronounced as /notice/
This article covers the phonological system of New Zealand English. While most New Zealanders speak differently depending on their level of cultivation (i.e. the closeness to Received Pronunciation), this article covers the accent as it is spoken by educated speakers, unless otherwise noted. The IPA transcription is one designed by specifically to faithfully represent a New Zealand accent, which this article follows in most aspects (see table under).
Vowels
Lexical set! rowspan="2" | Phoneme | Phonetic realization |
|---|
| Cultivated | Broad |
|---|
| pronounced as //e// | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ |
| pronounced as //ɛ// | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ |
| pronounced as //ə// | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ |
| pronounced as //iə̯// | pronounced as /[ɪə̯]/ | pronounced as /[iə̯]/ |
| pronounced as //eə̯// | pronounced as /[e̞ə̯]/ |
| pronounced as //æɪ̯// | pronounced as /[æɪ̯]/ | pronounced as /[äɪ̯]/ |
| pronounced as //aɪ̯// | pronounced as /[ɑ̟ɪ̯]/ | pronounced as /[ɒ̝ˑɪ̯]
[ɔɪ̯]/ |
| pronounced as //aʉ̯// | pronounced as /[ɵ̞ʊ̯]/ | pronounced as /[äʉ̯]/ |
| pronounced as //æʊ̯// | pronounced as /[äʊ̯]/ | pronounced as /[e̞ə̯]/ | |
Monophthongs
The vowels of New Zealand English are similar to that of other non-rhotic dialects such as Australian English and RP, but with some distinctive variations, which are indicated by the transcriptions for New Zealand vowels in the tables below:
! colspan="2" | Front | Central | Back |
|---|
| | | | | |
|---|
| Close | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ | | pronounced as /link/ |
|---|
| Mid | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ | | pronounced as /link/ | |
|---|
| Open | | pronounced as /link/ | pronounced as /link/ | | |
|---|
- chain shift
pronounced as /pronounced as /link/ > pronounced as /link/ > pronounced as /link/ > pronounced as /link//- The original short front vowels pronounced as /[{{IPAplink|æ}}, {{IPAplink|e̞}}, {{IPAplink|ɪ}}]/ have undergone a chain shift to pronounced as /[{{IPAplink|ɛ}}, {{IPAplink|e̝}}, {{IPAplink|ə}}]/. Recent acoustic studies featuring both Australian and New Zealand voices show the accents were more similar before World War II and the short front vowels have changed considerably since then as compared to Australian English.[1] Before the shift, these vowels were pronounced close to the corresponding RP sounds. The stages of the shift are described below.
- was raised from near-open pronounced as /link/ to open-mid pronounced as /link/.
- was raised from mid pronounced as /link/ to close-mid pronounced as /link/.
- pronounced as /link/ was first centralised to pronounced as /link/ and then was lowered to pronounced as /link/, merging with the word-internal allophone of pronounced as //ə// as in abbot pronounced as //ˈɛbət//. This effectively removes the distinction between full and reduced vowels from the dialect as it makes pronounced as //ə// a stressable vowel.
- The now-close-mid pronounced as /link/ was further raised to near-close pronounced as /link/. This encroaches on the vowel space of .
- Realisation of varies between near-close front pronounced as /link/, near-close near-front pronounced as /link/, close-mid front pronounced as /link/, or close-mid near-front pronounced as /link/.
- Cultivated NZE retains the open pronunciations pronounced as /link/ for and pronounced as /link/ for and has a high central (pronounced as /link/).
- The difference in frontness and closeness of the vowel (pronounced as /[{{IPAplink|ɪ̈}} ~ {{IPAplink|ə}}]/ in New Zealand, pronounced as /link/ in Australia) has led to a long-running joke between Australians and New Zealanders whereby Australians accuse New Zealanders of saying "fush and chups" for fish and chips and in turn New Zealanders accuse Australians of saying "feesh and cheeps" in light of Australia's own vowel shift.
- In the morpheme-final position, the distinction between pronounced as //ə// and pronounced as //a// is neutralized towards the open pronounced as //a// in the word-final position and towards the mid pronounced as //ə// elsewhere. For instance, the plural of sofa pronounced as /[ˈsaʉ̯fa]/ is pronounced as /[ˈsaʉ̯fəz]/, with the mid pronounced as //ə//. Because of that, the names of the lexical sets and are not used in this article.
- Before the velar nasal, the vowel is much more close and front (pronounced as /link/) than in other environments. Some speakers also use this variant before pronounced as //ɡ// and, less often, before other consonants. It is transcribed with a plain (IPA|ə) in this article and so not differentiated from other allophones of pronounced as //ə//.
- Initial unstressed is at times as open as, so that inalterable pronounced as //ənˈoːltəɹəbəl// can fall together with unalterable pronounced as //anˈoːltəɹəbəl//, resulting in a variable phonetic – merger. This is less common and so it is not transcribed in this article.
- The vowel pronounced as //iː// may be realised with a slight on-glide when the word is stressed, with pronounced as //fliːs// becoming pronounced as /[fləis]/. This onglide is increasingly becoming the main way to differentiate from in younger speakers as the latter vowel is a very closed pronounced as /link/ and there is a negligible length difference between the vowel pronounced as //iː// and short vowels.[2]
- The unstressed close front vowel in happy and video is tense and so it belongs to the pronounced as //iː// phoneme: pronounced as //ˈhɛpiː//, pronounced as //ˈvədiːaʉ̯//.
- The vowel pronounced as //ʉː// is very central, and may be realised with an on-glide, with pronounced as //ɡʉːs// becoming pronounced as /[ɡəʉs]/.
- The vowel pronounced as //øː// is not only higher and more front than the corresponding RP vowel pronounced as //ɜː//, but it is also realised with rounded lips, unlike its RP counterpart. John Wells remarks that the surname Turner pronounced as //ˈtøːnə/ [ˈtøːnɐ]/ as pronounced by a New Zealander may sound very similar to a German word Töne pronounced as //ˈtøːnə// (meaning 'tones'). Possible phonetic realizations include near-close front pronounced as /link/, near-close central pronounced as /link/, close-mid front pronounced as /link/, close-mid central pronounced as /link/, mid front pronounced as /link/ and open-mid front pronounced as /link/. It appears that realizations lower than close-mid are more prestigious than those of close-mid height and higher, so that pronunciations of the word nurse such as pronounced as /[nø̞ːs]/ and pronounced as /[nœːs]/ are less broad than pronounced as /[nøːs]/, pronounced as /[nɵːs]/ etc. Close allophones may overlap with monophthongal realizations of pronounced as //ʉː// and there may be a potential or incipient – merger.
- ,
- pronounced as //a// forms a short-long pair with pronounced as //aː//, which means that hut pronounced as //hat// contrasts with heart pronounced as //haːt// purely by length, like in Australian English. The quality of those vowels is that of retracted cardinal pronounced as /link/: pronounced as /[{{IPAplink|a|a̠}}, {{IPAplink|a|a̠ː}}]/, open central pronounced as /[{{IPAplink|ä}}, {{IPAplink|äː}}]/, or somewhat higher pronounced as /[{{IPAplink|æ|æ̠(ː)}} ~ {{IPAplink|ɐ|ɐ(ː)}}]/.
- – split
- New Zealand English has the – split: words like dance pronounced as //daːns//, chance pronounced as //tʃaːns//, plant pronounced as //plaːnt// and grant pronounced as //ɡɹaːnt// are pronounced with an pronounced as //aː// sound, as in Southern England and South Australia. However, for many decades prior to World War II there existed an almost even split between the pronunciation of dance as pronounced as //daːns// or pronounced as //dɛns//, plant as pronounced as //plaːnt// or pronounced as //plɛnt//, etc.[3] Can't is also pronounced pronounced as //kaːnt// in New Zealand (like Australia but unlike the North American pronunciation pronounced as //kænt// with the vowel). Some older Southland speakers use the vowel rather than the vowel in dance, chance and castle, so that they are pronounced pronounced as //dɛns, tʃɛns, ˈkɛsəl// rather than pronounced as //daːns, tʃaːns, ˈkaːsəl//.[4]
- The vowel may have an off-glide, typically word-finally, turning more pronounced as //moː// into pronounced as /[moːə]/.[5]
- The vowel is open-mid, close to pronounced as /link/ and pronounced as /link/.
- The vowel may sometimes be unrounded.[2]
- The vowel pronounced as //ʊ// is close-mid (close to pronounced as /link/), and may become centralised, even when stressed, so words like good pronounced as //ɡʊd// are pronounced closer to pronounced as /[ɡəd]/, and could and kid may sound the same, pronounced as /[kʰəd]/.
- Changes before pronounced as //l//
- Before pronounced as //l//, pronounced as //ʉː// is retracted to pronounced as /[uː]/, and pronounced as //e// is lowered to pronounced as /[ɛ]/ (see salary–celery merger), yielding a merger with . These changes make words like too pronounced as /[tʰʉː]/ sound different from tool pronounced as /[tʰuːl]/ and leads to Ellen and Alan both being pronounced pronounced as //ˈɛlən//. Mergers before pronounced as //l// may occur between pronounced as //iː// and pronounced as //iə̯// (as in reel pronounced as //ɹiːl// vs real pronounced as //ɹiə̯l//, the only minimal pair) and pronounced as //ʊ// and pronounced as //ʉː// (pull pronounced as //pʊl// vs pool pronounced as //pʉːl//).
- Māori English
- Māori English has a more fronted and lowered vowel.[2]
- The vowel is less central, and is used in unstressed syllables where schwa would be expected[2] (due to the merger of and schwa).
- The vowel is lowered compared to General New Zealand English.[2]
- The vowel may be more fronted in Māori English.[2]
- The vowel may be more rounded and more fronted.[2]
- Pasifika English
- Features identified as being part of a unique Pasifika English sociolect include a raised vowel, reduced diphthonisation of and, a lowered, and for some a retracted and lowered .[2]
Diphthongs
Diphthongs| Closing | pronounced as /æɪ̯ aɪ̯ oɪ̯ æʊ̯ aʉ̯/ |
|---|
| Centring | pronounced as /iə̯ eə̯ ʉə̯/ | |
|---|
- Phonetic quality
- On the Cultivated end of the spectrum, the starting points of the fronting-closing diphthongs pronounced as //æɪ̯// and pronounced as //aɪ̯// are front pronounced as /[æɪ̯]/ in the first case and central pronounced as /[äɪ̯]/ or advanced back pronounced as /[ɑ̟ɪ]/ (both hereafter written with (IPA|aɪ̯)) in the second case. These are the usual NZE realizations. On the Broad end of the spectrum, they are both retracted, so that pronounced as //æɪ̯// acquires a central onset pronounced as /[äɪ̯]/, whereas the first element of pronounced as //aɪ̯// is retracted and rounded to pronounced as /[ɒɪ]/, sometimes with raising to pronounced as /[ɔɪ]/ (both hereafter written with (IPA|ɒɪ)), approaching the vowel pronounced as //oɪ̯// but without an actual merger. This means that the diphthong pronounced as /[aɪ̯]/ can stand for either vowel, depending on the variety of NZE. However, unlike the front vowel shift, rounded variants of are stigmatised, and younger female speakers tend to opt for the conservative variants of those diphthongs even when they exhibit the most advanced variety of the front vowel shift, which leads to the white rabbit pronounced as /[ˌhwaɪ̯t ˈɹɛ̝bət]/ phenomenon (note the Cultivated pronounced as /[aɪ̯]/ but Broad pronounced as /[ɛ̝]/).
- The ending points of pronounced as //æɪ̯//, pronounced as //aɪ̯// and pronounced as //oɪ̯// vary between close-mid front pronounced as /link/ and close front pronounced as /link/. In Cultivated NZE, pronounced as /[æe̝]/ consistently has a higher offset than pronounced as /[ae̯]/, much like in General Australian English, but in Broad NZE they normally have the same ending point pronounced as /link/: pronounced as /[ae̯, ɒe̯]/. In General NZE, they have been reported to differ as pronounced as /[æe̯]/ (with a close-mid ending point) vs. pronounced as /[ae̞̯]/ (with a mid ending point) by one source. Elsewhere in the article, the offsets of the fronting diphthongs are written with (IPA|ɪ) regardless of their precise height, following the way they are usually transcribed in English.
- The onset of pronounced as //æʊ̯// is normally raised open front, pronounced as /link/, whereas its ending point varies between the close back pronounced as /link/ and the close central pronounced as /link/. Unlike in Australian English, the open-mid back ending point pronounced as /link/ does not occur. In Broad NZE, the starting point is higher, giving pronounced as /link/ or pronounced as /link/, whereas the offset is centralized and unrounded to pronounced as /link/, effectively turning into a centring diphthong that encroaches on the Cultivated realization of . This pronounced as /[ɛə]/ realization is gaining ground among younger speakers of the General variety. The Cultivated realization is pronounced as /[äʊ̯]/ (hereafter written without the diacritic), a glide from the open central position to the close back position, which differs from the General NZE pronounced as //aʉ̯// only by the backness of the second element. According to one source, pronounced as /[aʊ̯]/ is sometimes also used in General NZE, though more commonly with a somewhat more front onset: pronounced as /[æ̠ʊ̯]/.
- The starting point of pronounced as //aʉ̯// is pronounced as /link/, whereas its ending point is close to cardinal pronounced as /link/, making it a glide from to . In certain phonetic environments (especially in tonic syllables and in the word no), some speakers unround it to pronounced as /link/, sometimes with additional fronting to pronounced as /link/, making no sound like nigh. In the Cultivated variety, the onset is mid central and rounded, whereas the ending point is more back: pronounced as /[ɵ̞ʊ̯]/.
- The starting points of pronounced as //iə̯// and pronounced as //eə̯// are identical (pronounced as /link/) in contemporary NZE. However, conservative speakers distinguish the two diphthongs as pronounced as /[ɪə̯]/ and pronounced as /[e̞ə̯]/.
- Sources do not agree on the exact phonetic realizations of certain NZE diphthongs:
- The onset of pronounced as //oɪ̯// has been variously described as close-mid back pronounced as /link/ and mid near-back pronounced as /link/, both overlapping with the allophonic range of pronounced as //oː//.
- The starting point of pronounced as //ʉə̯// has been variously described as near-close central pronounced as /link/ and near-close near-back pronounced as /link/.
- The diphthong pronounced as //ʉə̯// (as in "tour") is becoming rarer, and tends to be found only following pronounced as //j//.[5] Most speakers use either pronounced as //ʉːə// or pronounced as //oː// instead.
- – merger
- The – merger (of the diphthongs pronounced as //iə̯// and pronounced as //eə̯//) is on the increase, especially since the beginning of the 21st century[6] so that the phrase that's neither here nor there is pronounced pronounced as /[ˈðɛts niːða ˈhiə̯ noː ˈðiə̯]/ in General NZE, with here rhyming with there. In Cultivated NZE, the distinction is maintained: pronounced as /[ˈðæts niːða ˈhiə̯ noː ˈðeə̯]/. Similarly, beer and bear as well as really and rarely are homophones: pronounced as /[biə̯]/, pronounced as /[ˈɹiə̯liː]/.[7] There is some debate as to the quality of the merged vowel, but the consensus appears to be that it is towards a close variant, pronounced as /[iə̯]/. The proportion of teenagers showing the merger increased from 16% in 1983 to 80% in 1999.[8] The merger is nearly complete, with most younger speakers being unable to tell the two diphthongs apart.[2] As the merger is not yet fully complete, it is transcribed only in phonetic transcription, whereas in phonemic transcription the distinction is maintained: pronounced as //ˈðɛts niːða ˈhiə̯ noː ˈðeə̯//, etc.
- Changes before pronounced as //l//
- Before pronounced as //l//, pronounced as //aʉ̯// becomes pronounced as /[ɒʊ̯]/, making go pronounced as /[ɡaʉ̯]/ sound different to goal pronounced as /[ɡɒʊ̯ɫ]/. This vowel change may lead to a merger with (pronounced as //ɒ//) (doll pronounced as /[dɒɫ]/ vs dole pronounced as /[dɒʊ̯ɫ]/), especially when the pronounced as //l// is vocalised. This has been labelled the lexical set by .
Transcriptions
Sources differ in the way they transcribe New Zealand English. The differences are listed below. The traditional phonemic orthography for the Received Pronunciation as well as the reformed phonemic orthographies for Australian and General South African English have been added for the sake of comparison.
New Zealand English! rowspan="28" | | | | | Example words |
|---|
| | | | |
|---|
| pronounced as /iː/ | pronounced as /iː/ | pronounced as /iː/ | pronounced as /i/ | pronounced as /ɨj/ | pronounced as /iː/ | pronounced as /iː/ | pronounced as /iː/ | fleece |
| pronounced as /i/ | pronounced as /i/ | pronounced as /i/ | happy, video |
| pronounced as /ə/ | pronounced as /ə/ | pronounced as /ɘ/ | pronounced as /ɪ/ | pronounced as /ə/ | pronounced as /ɪ/ | pronounced as /ɨ/ | pronounced as /ɪ/ | ring, writing |
| kit |
| pronounced as /ə/ | pronounced as /ə/ | rabbit |
| pronounced as /ə/ | accept, abbot |
| pronounced as /a/ | sofa, better |
| pronounced as /ʌ/ | pronounced as /ɐ/ | pronounced as /ʌ/ | pronounced as /ʌ/ | pronounced as /a/ | pronounced as /ɜ/ | pronounced as /ʌ/ | strut, unknown |
| pronounced as /aː/ | pronounced as /aː/ | pronounced as /ɐː/ | pronounced as /a/ | pronounced as /a/ | pronounced as /aː/ | pronounced as /ɑː/ | pronounced as /ɑː/ | palm, start |
| pronounced as /iə̯/ | pronounced as /iə̯/ | pronounced as /iə̯/ | pronounced as /iə̯/ | pronounced as /ɪə̯/ | pronounced as /ɪə̯/ | pronounced as /iə̯/ | pronounced as /ɪə̯/ | near |
| pronounced as /ʊ/ | pronounced as /ʊ/ | pronounced as /ʊ/ | pronounced as /ʊ/ | pronounced as /ʊ/ | pronounced as /ʊ/ | pronounced as /ɵ/ | pronounced as /ʊ/ | foot |
| pronounced as /ʉː/ | pronounced as /uː/ / pronounced as /yː/ | pronounced as /ʉː/ | pronounced as /u/ | pronounced as /ʉ/ | pronounced as /ʉː/ | pronounced as /ʉː/ | pronounced as /uː/ | goose |
| pronounced as /ʉə̯/ | pronounced as /ʊə̯/ | pronounced as /ʉə̯/ | pronounced as /ʊə̯/ | pronounced as /ʊə̯/ | pronounced as /ʉːə/ | pronounced as /ʉə̯/ | pronounced as /ʊə̯/ | cure |
| pronounced as /ʉː/ | fury |
| pronounced as /oː/ | pronounced as /ɔː/ / pronounced as /oː/ | pronounced as /oː/ | sure |
| pronounced as /oː/ | pronounced as /ɔ/ | pronounced as /ɔ/ | pronounced as /oː/ | pronounced as /ɔː/ | thought, north |
| pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | pronounced as /e/ | dress |
| pronounced as /øː/ | pronounced as /ɜː/ / pronounced as /øː/ | pronounced as /ɵː/ | pronounced as /ɜ/ | pronounced as /ɞ/ | pronounced as /ɜː/ | pronounced as /øː/ | pronounced as /ɜː/ | nurse |
| pronounced as /ɛ/ | pronounced as /æ/ | pronounced as /ɛ/ | pronounced as /æ/ | pronounced as /ɛ/ | pronounced as /æ/ | pronounced as /ɛ/ | pronounced as /æ/ | trap |
| pronounced as /ɒ/ | pronounced as /ɒ/ | pronounced as /ɒ/ | pronounced as /ɒ/ | pronounced as /ɒ/ | pronounced as /ɔ/ | pronounced as /ɑ/ | pronounced as /ɒ/ | lot |
| pronounced as /æɪ̯/ | pronounced as /ʌɪ̯/ | pronounced as /æe̯/ | pronounced as /ei̯/ | pronounced as /ʌj/ | pronounced as /æɪ̯/ | pronounced as /eɪ̯/ | pronounced as /eɪ̯/ | face |
| pronounced as /eə̯/ | pronounced as /eə̯/ / pronounced as /eː/ | pronounced as /eə̯/ | pronounced as /eə̯/ | pronounced as /eə̯/ | pronounced as /eː/ | pronounced as /eː/ | pronounced as /ɛː/ | square |
| pronounced as /aʉ̯/ | pronounced as /ʌʊ̯/ | pronounced as /ɐʉ̯/ | pronounced as /oʊ̯/ | pronounced as /ʌw/ | pronounced as /əʉ̯/ | pronounced as /œʊ̯/ | pronounced as /əʊ̯/ | goat |
| pronounced as /oɪ̯/ | pronounced as /ɔɪ̯/ | pronounced as /oe̯/ | pronounced as /ɔi̯/ | pronounced as /ɔj/ | pronounced as /oɪ̯/ | pronounced as /ɔɪ̯/ | pronounced as /ɔɪ̯/ | choice |
| pronounced as /aɪ̯/ | pronounced as /ɑɪ̯/ | pronounced as /ɑe̯/ | pronounced as /ai̯/ | pronounced as /ɑj/ | pronounced as /ɑɪ̯/ | pronounced as /aɪ̯/ | pronounced as /aɪ̯/ | price |
| pronounced as /æʊ̯/ | pronounced as /æʊ̯/ | pronounced as /æo̯/ | pronounced as /aʊ̯/ | pronounced as /æw/ | pronounced as /æɔ̯/ | pronounced as /ɐʊ̯/ | pronounced as /aʊ̯/ | mouth | |
Consonants
New Zealand English consonants are consistent with those from those found in other varieties of English, such as Received Pronunciation.
New Zealand English consonant phonemes | Labial | Dental | Alveolar | Post-
alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal |
|---|
| Nasal | pronounced as /ink/ | | pronounced as /ink/ | | | pronounced as /ink/ | |
|---|
| Plosive | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | | | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | |
|---|
| Affricate | | | | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | | | |
|---|
| Fricative | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ pronounced as /ink/ | | | pronounced as /ink/ |
|---|
| Approximant | | | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | | |
|---|
- Rhoticity
- New Zealand English is mostly non-rhotic (with linking and intrusive R), except for speakers with the so-called Southland burr, a semi-rhotic, Scottish-influenced dialect heard principally in Southland and parts of Otago.[9] Older Southland speakers sound the pronounced as /link/ variably after vowels, but today younger speakers use pronounced as /link/ only with the vowel and occasionally with the vowel. Younger Southland speakers pronounce pronounced as /link/ in third term pronounced as /[ˌθøːɹd ˈtøːɹm]/ (General NZE pronunciation: pronounced as /[ˌθøːd ˈtøːm]/) but not in farm cart pronounced as //ˈfaːm kaːt// (same as in General NZE).[4] Among r-less speakers, however, non-prevocalic pronounced as /link/ is sometimes pronounced in a few words, including Ireland pronounced as /[ˈaɪ̯(ə)ɹɫənd]/, merely pronounced as /[ˈmiə̯ɹɫiː]/, err pronounced as /[øːɹ]/, and the name of the letter R pronounced as /[aːɹ]/ (General NZE pronunciations: pronounced as /[ˈaɪ̯ə̯ɫənd, ˈmiə̯ɫiː, øː, aː]/). Some Māori speakers are semi-rhotic, although it is not clearly identified to any particular region or attributed to any defined language shift. The Māori language itself tends in most cases to use an r with an alveolar tap pronounced as /[ɾ]/, like Scottish dialect.[10]
- Pronunciation of pronounced as //l//
- pronounced as //l// is velarised ("dark") pronounced as /[ɫ]/ in almost all positions, and is often vocalised to some sort of near close back vowel in syllable codas, so that ball is pronounced as pronounced as /[boːɯ̯ ~ boːʊ̯ ~ boːɵ̯]/. Even when not vocalised, it is darker in codas than in onsets, possibly with pharyngealisation. Vocalisation varies in different regions and between different socioeconomic groups; the younger, lower social class speakers vocalise pronounced as //l// most of the time.
- Pronunciation of (wh)
- Many younger speakers have the wine–whine merger, which means that the traditional distinction between the pronounced as //w// and pronounced as //hw// phonemes no longer exists for them. All speakers are more likely to retain it in lexical words than in grammatical words, therefore even older speakers have a variable merger here.
- Flapped pronounced as //t/ and /d//
- As with Australian English and American English, the intervocalic pronounced as //t// and pronounced as //d// may be a flapped pronounced as /[ɾ]/, so that the sentence "use a little bit of butter" may be pronounced pronounced as /[jʉːz ɐ ˈɫəɾɯ bəɾ‿əv ˈbɐɾɐ]/. Evidence for this usage exists as far back as the early 19th century, such as Kerikeri being transliterated as "Kiddee Kiddee" by missionaries.[11]
- Glottal reinforcement
- There is an increasing tendency for syllable-final plosives (pronounced as //t// and to a lesser extent pronounced as //p, k//) to be either reinforced or replaced with a glottal stop.
- Pronunciation of pronounced as //hj//
- Like other accents, pronunciation of syllable-onset pronounced as //hj// may be realised as pronounced as /[ç]/.
- Retraction of pronounced as //s//
- The pronounced as //s// at the beginning of consonant clusters, typically pronounced as //stɹ// and pronounced as //stj//, may instead be pronounced as pronounced as //ʃ//, making words like student and stupid pronounced pronounced as /[ˈʃtʃʉːdənt]/ and pronounced as /[ˈʃtʃʉːpəd]/ respectively.[5]
- Yod-dropping
- The dropping of pronounced as //j// is uncommon but variable, and occurs more regularly in the word new pronounced as /[nʉː]/.[5] The yod is sometimes also dropped in debut, hence pronounced as /[dæɪ̯ˈbʉː]/.[12]
- Pronunciation of (th)
- A relatively recent phenomenon is (th) fronting, where interdental pronounced as //θ, ð// are realised as labiodental pronounced as /[f, v]/. This feature was not present in New Zealand English until the end of the 20th century. A 2003 analysis found that word-final (th) sounds are fronted roughly half the time, with the word with being fronted more commonly than other words, and (th) sounds in other places are fronted around a quarter of the time. This realisation is not consistent even within the same sentence.[13] (th) fronting is also common in Pasifika English, and may be instead stopped, producing pronounced as /[t, d]/ for pronounced as //θ, ð//.[2]
- In Pasifika English, pronounced as //θ, ð// may be realised as stops pronounced as /[t, d]/ as well as the aforementioned pronounced as /[f, v]/.[14]
Other features
- Some New Zealanders pronounce past participles such as grown pronounced as //ˈɡɹaʉ̯ən//, thrown pronounced as //ˈθɹaʉ̯ən// and mown pronounced as //ˈmaʉ̯ən// with two syllables, the latter containing a schwa pronounced as //ə// not found in other accents. By contrast, groan pronounced as //ɡɹaʉ̯n//, throne pronounced as //θɹaʉ̯n// and moan pronounced as //maʉ̯n// are all unaffected, meaning these word pairs can be distinguished by ear.
- The trans- prefix is usually pronounced pronounced as //tɹɛns//; this produces mixed pronunciation of the letter A in words like transplant pronounced as //ˈtɹɛnsplaːnt//. However, pronounced as //tɹaːns// is also heard, typically in older New Zealanders.
- The name of the letter H is almost always pronounced as //æɪ̯tʃ//, as in North American, and is almost never aspirated (pronounced as //hæɪ̯tʃ//).
- The name of the letter Z is usually the British, Canadian and Australian zed pronounced as //zed//. However the alphabet song for children is sometimes sung ending with pronounced as //ziː// in accordance with the rhyme. Where Z is universally pronounced zee in places, names, terms, or titles, such as ZZ Top, LZ (landing zone), Jay Z (celebrity), or Z Nation (TV show) New Zealanders follow universal pronunciation.
- The word foyer is usually pronounced pronounced as //ˈfoɪ̯.ə//, as in Australian and American English, rather than pronounced as //ˈfoɪ̯.æɪ̯// as in British English.
- The word and combining form graph is pronounced both pronounced as //ɡɹaːf// and pronounced as //ɡɹɛf//.
- The word data is commonly pronounced pronounced as //ˈdaːtə//, with pronounced as //ˈdæɪ̯tə// being the second most common, and pronounced as //ˈdɛtə// being very rare.
Pronunciation of Māori place names
The pronunciations of many Māori place names were anglicised for most of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, but since the 1980s increased consciousness of the Māori language has led to a shift towards using a Māori pronunciation. The anglicisations have persisted most among residents of the towns in question, so it has become something of a shibboleth, with correct Māori pronunciation marking someone as non-local.
| + Examples |
| Placename | English pronunciation | Māori pronunciation |
|---|
| Cape Reinga | pronounced as //ˌkæɪ̯p ɹiːˈɛŋə// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈɾeːiŋɐ/ |
| Hāwera | pronounced as //ˈhaːweɹa, -wəɹ-, -aː// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈhɑːwɛɾɐ/ |
| Ōakura | pronounced as //ˈɒkɹə// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈoːɐˌkʉrɐ/ |
| Ōtāhuhu | pronounced as //ˌaʉ̯təˈhʉːhʉː// | in Maori pronounced as /oːˈtɑːhʉhʉ/ |
| Ōtorohanga | pronounced as //ˌaʉ̯tɹəˈhaŋa, -ˈhɒŋə// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈoːtɔɾɔhɐŋɐ/ |
| Paraparaumu | pronounced as //ˈpɛɹəpɹɛm/, /ˌpɛɹəpɛˈɹæʊ̯mʉː// | in Maori pronounced as /pɐɾɐpɐˈɾaumʉ/ |
| Pāuatahanui | pronounced as //ˌpaːtəˈnʉ.iː/, /ˈpæʊ̯ətaːhənʉːi// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈpɐʉɐtɐhɐnʉi/ |
| Taumarunui | pronounced as //ˌtæʊ̯məɹəˈnʉːiː// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈtaʉ̯mɐɾʉnʉi/ |
| Te Awamutu | pronounced as //ˌtiː əˈmʉːtʉː// | in Maori pronounced as /tɛ ɐwɐˈmʉtʉ/ |
| Te Kauwhata | pronounced as //ˌtiː kəˈwɒtə// | in Maori pronounced as /tɛ ˈkaʉ̯fɐtɐ/ |
| Waikouaiti | pronounced as //ˈwɛkəwaɪ̯t, -wɒt// | in Maori pronounced as /ˈwɐikɔʉˌɐiti/ | |
Some anglicised names are colloquially shortened, for example, Coke pronounced as //kaʉ̯k// for Kohukohu, the Rapa pronounced as //ˈɹɛpə// for the Wairarapa, Kura pronounced as //ˈkʉə̯ɹə// for Papakura, Papatoe pronounced as //ˈpɛpətaʉ̯iː// for Papatoetoe, Otahu pronounced as //ˌaʉ̯təˈhʉː// for Otahuhu, Paraparam pronounced as //ˈpɛɹəpɛɹɛm// or Pram pronounced as //pɹɛm// for Paraparaumu, the Naki pronounced as //ˈnɛkiː// for Taranaki, Cow-cop pronounced as //ˈkæʊ̯kɒp// for Kaukapakapa and Pie-cock pronounced as //ˈpaɪ̯kɒk// for Paekakariki.
There is some confusion between these shortenings, especially in the southern South Island, and the natural variations of the southern dialect of Māori. Not only does this dialect sometimes feature apocope, but consonants also vary slightly from standard Māori. To compound matters, names were often initially transcribed by Scottish settlers, rather than the predominantly English settlers of other parts of the country; as such further alterations are not uncommon. Thus, while Lake Wakatipu is sometimes referred to as Wakatip pronounced as //ˈwɒkətəp//, Oamaru as Om-a-roo and Waiwera South as Wy-vra pronounced as //ˈwaɪ̯vɹə//, these differences may be as much caused by dialect differences – either in Māori or in the English used during transcription – as by the process of anglicisation. An extreme example is The Kilmog pronounced as //ˈkəlmɒɡ//, the name of which is cognate with the standard Māori Kirimoko.[15]
Notes and References
- Zoë . Evans . Catherine I. . Watson . 2004 . 10.1.1.119.6227 . An acoustic comparison of Australian and New Zealand English vowel change . 195–200 .
- Web site: An Acoustic Analysis of New Zealand: English Vowels in Auckland . Victoria University of Wellington . 2018 . 2021-11-21 . Brooke Chantel Ross.
- Web site: The New Zealand accent: a clue to New Zealand identity? . 47–48 . Victoria University of Wellington .
- Web site: 5. – Speech and accent – Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Teara.govt.nz . 2013-09-05 . 2017-01-15.
- Web site: NZE Phonology. Victoria University of Wellington. 2021-11-14. 2021-10-24. https://web.archive.org/web/20211024033424/https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/research/projects/grinze/publications/NZE_PhonologyPW.pdf. dead.
- Web site: 4. Stickmen, New Zealand's pool movie – Speech and accent – Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Teara.govt.nz . 2013-09-05 . 2017-01-15.
- News: Simon Bridges has the accent of New Zealand's future. Get used to it . 18 October 2020 . NZ Herald . 26 February 2018.
- Web site: Tracking the New Zealand English NEAR/SQUARE merger using functional principal components analysis. September 15–19, 2019.
- Web site: Other forms of variation in New Zealand English . Te Kete Ipurangi . Ministry of Education . 26 June 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130603174158/http://englishonline.tki.org.nz/English-Online/Exploring-language/Other-Forms-of-Variation . 3 June 2013 . dead .
- Hogg, R.M., Blake, N.F., Burchfield, R., Lass, R., and Romaine, S., (eds.) (1992) The Cambridge history of the English language. (Volume 5) Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 387. Retrieved from Google Books.
- Web site: Earliest New Zealand: The Journals and Correspondence of the Rev. John Butler, Chapter X. New Zealand Electronic Text Centre. 24 October 2011.
- Book: Laurie Bauer . Paul Warren . Burridge . Kate . Kortmann . Bernd . https://books.google.com/books?id=zNNCKcMml8MC&pg=PA60 . Varieties of English 3: The Pacific and Australasia . 2008 . Mouton de Gruyter . Berlin; New York . 60 . New Zealand English: phonology. 9783110208412 .
- Web site: TH fronting: the substitution of f/v for θ/ð in New Zealand English. Elizabeth. Wood. 2003. University of Canterbury. 2021-11-14.
- Bell . Allan . Gibson . Andy . Stopping and Fronting in New Zealand Pasifika English . University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics . 2008-11-21 . 2023-06-12.
- Goodall, M., & Griffiths, G. (1980) Maori Dunedin. Dunedin: Otago Heritage Books. p. 45: "This hill [The Kilmog]...has a much debated name, but its origins are clear to Kaitahu and the word illustrates several major features of the southern dialect. First we must restore the truncated final vowel (in this case to both parts of the name, 'kilimogo'). Then substitute r for l, k for g, to obtain the northern pronunciation, 'kirimoko'.... Though final vowels existed in Kaitahu dialect, the elision was so nearly complete that pākehā recorders often omitted them entirely."
See also
Further reading
