Resumen de L2 dialect acquisition of German vowels: The case of Northern German and Austrian dialects

Laura Catharine Smith, Wendy Baker

• This study examines how the dialect of a second language (L2) affects how accurately the L2 is perceived and produced. Specifically, we examined differences between the production and perception of German vowels /i:/, /y:/, and /u:/ by learners of either Austrian German (AG) or Northern German (NG). Vowels across these dialects differ due to how salient the /i:/–/y:/–/u:/ contrast is marked: there is (more) derounding of /y:/ in AG than in NG. This derounding in AG leads to the loss of an acoustic cue marking /i:/–/y:/, but a potentially enhanced acoustic cue for the /y:/–/u:/ contrast. As a result of these differences, both dialects have opposing cues by which to contrast /i:/, /u:/ and /y:/. Results indicate that AG learners are at times more accurate than NG learners in their perception and production of these German vowels. These results may have occurred because AG learners had a greater exposure to many dialects, and a greater desire to speak (high) German accurately than did the NG learners.