Preaspiration in the Nordic Languages: Synchronic and Diachronic ...

(i.e., short mVOffT and long mVOT). For unaspirated and preaspirated
stops, there is often a considerable time lag between modal voice offset
and stop closure, but not between stop release and modal voice onset
(i.e., long mVOffT and short mVOT). Such a difference in timing relations
cannot be attributed to articulatory reduction, and there is no reason
to assume that preaspirated stops are derived from postaspirated stops by
some type of articulatory or aerodynamic mechanism. At the same time,
this does not mean that articulatory and/or aerodynamic factors are irrelevant
in an explanation of why some CSw speakers exploit preaspiration
(see Ch. 5).
Other aspects of variation in fortis stops can be attributed to hypospeech.
For example, instances in which the fortes are fricated and do not
have a full stop closure can be seen as articulatory reduction. Also, the
within-speaker variation in the amount of postaspiration or preaspiration
produced may be a function of the hyper-hypo continuum.
Lastly, it may be suggested that postaspiration in CSw fortis stops
functions as a boundary marker (i.e., a “Grenzensignal,” cf. Trubetzkoy
1962:255), marking the onset of a word or a stressed syllable. Likewise,
the absence of postaspiration, and the concomitant presence of preaspiration
for some speakers, signals the absence of a word boundary (“negatives
Grenzensignal,” ibid.) and indicates that the following vowel is unstressed.
In CSw lenis stops, there does not seem to be such a functional
division between word-initial and word-medial positions.
4.3 Tórshavn Faroese
In this section, the stop production of four Tórshavn Faroese
speakers is analysed, both from a quantitative and a qualitative point of
view. First, in order to make it easier to refer to stops in different contexts,
they will be designated to specific word types (section 4.3.2.1).
Then, some problems regarding the phonological distribution of preaspirated
stop variants in Faroese are adressed. These problems become
evident when the literature on Faroese preaspiration is reviewed (cf
section 3.3). The approach adopted here is to analyse the stop duration
data without making a priori assumptions as to their phonological status
as fortis or lenis stops (sections 4.3.2.3 and 4.3.2.4). Section 4.3.2.4 also
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