Vowel Coalescence Phenomenon in the Dialects of the Shimanami-Kaido Region(<Feature Articles>Phonetics and Phonology of Shikoku Dialects)

Abstract

This paper describes vowel coalescence in the dialects of Shimanami-Kaido (a highway between Hiroshima and Ehime prefecture) region. The discussion includes not only a description of the phenomenon but also a difference of region and age. The result is that vowel coalescence is easy to occur in the environment which include morpheme boundary, for example /V+i/ or /V+u/(V=vowel). From the viewpoint of region, it is easy to occur relatively in the side of Hiroshima. And there is a difference between the older, middle age and the younger age. The younger age often uses the common forms.