Émérillon stress : a phonetic and phonological study 1

This paper explores phonetic and phonological features of the stress system in Émérillon, a Tupi-Guaraní language spoken by approximately 400 people in French Guiana. Stress placement in both elicited wordlist and natural discourse data is examined. Three potential acoustic correlates of stress (fundamental frequency, duration, and intensity) are examined in order to provide quantitative verification of the discovered stress patterns. Results indicate that the domain of stress is the phrase with the metrical parse involving the formation of moraic trochees counting from the right edge of the phrase. The acoustic correlates of stress differ depending on the speaker and whether the data consists of words uttered in isolation or in connected discourse. The results for Émérillon are discussed within a broader context of comparative Tupi-Guaraní stress.