(t,d) in East Anglia: Morphological and Phonological Patterns

Abstract

(t,d) deletion is widely investigated in US English, yet comparatively much less research has been carried out in the UK, where (t,d) was mainly examined in northern British English varieties. This paper examines (t,d) deletion in the speech of thirty-six East Anglian speakers, stratified by social class, age, and sex. Data was gathered by means of sociolinguistic interviews, reading passages and word lists, and was examined through mixed-effects Rbrul regression analysis. While the robust morphological effect found in studies of American English dialects has not consistently surfaced across British varieties, we find a strong constraint promoting deletion among monomorphemes in East Anglian English. Secondarily, we explore a more nuanced analysis of neighbouring segments. In the following phonological environment, nasals are the most deletion-favouring context, whereas /h/ behaves differently from other fricatives. In the preceding environment, nasals again favour deletion the most, while laterals do so more than expected. We uncover novel findings with consequences for future research.