Editorial: Tonal language processing and acquisition in native and non-native speakers

Weifeng Han, Xin Wang, Liang Chen

Research output: Contribution to journalEditorial

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Abstract

Over 60% of world languages use pitch patterns to distinguish individual words or the grammatical forms of words. Some tonal languages involve moving pitch patterns or contour tones, e.g., from a flat pitch to a rising pitch, in distinguishing the morphosyntactic and semantic features. Tonal language acquisition and processing present a distinct linguistic challenge (Best, 2019). In contour tonal languages like Mandarin, Vietnamese, and Yoruba, these pitch patterns vary dynamically, imposing additional complexity on both native speakers, who rely on tones from an early age, and non-native speakers who struggle with the novel tonal distinctions. The five articles in this Research Topic explore tonal language processing and acquisition from both native and non-native perspectives, examining how multimodal cues, intonation, statistical learning, and perceptual compensation impact learners' abilities to recognize and reproduce tonal patterns. Collectively, these studies highlight the nuanced nature of tonal language acquisition and contribute essential insights for language pedagogy, cognitive science, and applied linguistics.
Original languageEnglish
Article number1531218
Number of pages2
JournalFrontiers in Education
Volume9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 6 Dec 2024

Keywords

  • tonal language
  • non-tone language
  • language processing
  • language acquisition
  • native speaker
  • non-native speaker

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