A Preliminary Study of Interrogative Intonation in Shanghai Chinese

Abstract

This paper examines interrogative intonation in Shanghai Chinese from two perspectives: shēngdiào yīnyù (tonal range) and boundary tone. The former refers to the paradigmatic pitch range proposed by intonation studies in China, while the latter has been assigned at the end of sentences within the framework of Intonational Phonology. Preliminary analyses of Shanghai interrogatives reveal that the previous interpretation of boundary tones is not supported; however, it is still unclear whether the interpretation of the tonal range is applicable to the results.