The sound to be analysed is the voiceless alveolar fricative /s/, which is represented as /s/, [h] and [x] in the transcription of the title of the novel [el iŋˈɡleh ðe lox ɣwesoh]. I'm absolutely sure many of you would like me to give some sort of explanation. And I will try to satisfy your need.
María Isabel Recamán, contrary to what many phonetcians state, explains in her article “Oh ‘S’ esquiva!” that the /s/ is not actually deleted when it is produced in final position or before another consonant, but it is realized through its allophonic variants. The most common realization, she asserts, is the [h] at the end of the word and before most consonants. Some of the examples she gives are deshielo [dehˈjelo] and manos [ˈmanoh]. I had the pleasure of attending her lessons and I can remember how she used to put emphasis in contrasting phrases such as la mano [la ˈmano] and las manos [lah ˈmanoh] to aid the perception of the different outcomes, thus, highlighting the pronunciation of the “s”.
Recamán lists some exceptions in which the /s/ is realized as its allophonic variations according to the sounds which follow it. She explains that, before nasals /m/ and /n/ the /s/ is produced as a devoiced [m̥] and [n̥], eɡ. mismo [ˈmim̥mo], las nenas [lan̥ ˈnenah]. In case the “s” is followed by a “ñ” /ɲ/ or voiced palatal nasal, a voiceless palatal fricative[ç] is pronouncedː los ñandúes [loç ɲanˈdueh]. A voiceless velar fricative [x] (the sound Rioplatense Spanish speakers produce when we read the letter “j”) is produced before a velar consonant /g/ and /k/ as in [sexɡo] and [boxke]. Finally, and depending on the regional dialect, a voiceless palatal fricative /ʃ/ is used before words written with “y” and "ll" (realized as a voiced palatal fricative /ʒ/ or a voiceless palatal fricative /ʃ/ accordinɡ to reɡion, social status or ɡeneration) yunque [loʃ ʃuŋkeh] [loʃ ʒuŋkeh] and llave [laʃ ʃaveh][laʃ ʒaveh].
Salcedo (2010), on the other hand, tries to state her point assertinɡ that the tendency in Rioplatense Spanish is the [h] aspiration or complete deletion [o] of the consonant phoneme /s/ in phonological processes occurring for inner word syllable final position. She explains that the function of the /s/ within the sentence influences its deletion. In words where /s/ has no grammatical function, deletion is more common because phonemic understanding will not be affected. On the other hand, when the /s/ is used to make the second person singular, deletion could affect comprehension if the pronoun is unspoken. If the /s/ forms the ending of the first person plural, it is not the only indicator. Its deletion would not alter comprehension. As regards phrases where the /s/ indicates plural, since they have various indicators as to whether the subject is singular or plural, perceiving one /s/ would suffice to interpret the whole phrase as plural.
Salcedo (2010) concludes that “the phonetic representation of the phoneme /s/ as either the allophone [o], [h], or [s] is applied systematically by the speaker. Deletion depends on the number of syllables of the lexical or verbal word, and the grammatical redundancy of the plural marker /s/. Conservation depends on the type of segment in the phonetic environment that follows.”
Βoth phoneticians agree on stating that the /s/ can be realized through its allophonic variant [h], but they disagree on the fact that it is often deleted. This gives ground for further research. Why don’t you start recording casual speech and analyse the samples to draw your own conclusions?
The challenge is raised.
REFERENCES:
RECAMAN, M. (¿?) “Oh “S” esquiva!” In Revista Idiomanía (pp.25-26).Buenos Aires.
SALCEDO, C. (2010) “The Phonological System of Spanish.” in Revista de Lingüística y Lenguas Aplicadas (pp.195-209)
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