日语清辅音浊化现象之考察—「田」的个案研究

An Investigation of Consonant Voicing in Japanese Nominal Compounds—A Case Study of the Word “ta”

摘要: 日语的复合语有时会产生清辅音浊化的现象，前人研究中指出其浊化与否跟音韵结构、词汇特性、语法、语义、选择限制、社会语言学等因素有关。本论文发现日语元音的高低位置也是造成清辅音是否浊化的原因，例如「秋田」[akita]及「早稲田」[waseda]中后一成分「田」有着清辅音[ta]及浊辅音[da]的差异。站在日语教学的立场上，如何有系统地说明上述现象，藉由音韵规律来帮助学习者记忆是相当重要的课题。本论文透过「田」这一个案研究，说明两方面的问题：1. 根据历史语言学的观点推导现代日语清辅音浊化的音韵规则；2. 在教学现场，利用音韵规则来有效地掌握辅音浊化与否的现象。

Abstract: In Japanese, nominal compounds occasionally exhibit consonant voicing. Previous studies indicate that this phonological process is ascribed to syllabic structures, etymology, syntax, semantics, selection restriction and sociolinguistics. In this paper, we argue that the high-low articulating positions are also a contributing factor to consonant voicing in Japanese. A sounding example is the distinction between the voiceless consonant [ta] in the word [akita] “秋田” and the voiced consonant [da] in the word [waseda] “早稲田”. To account for this phenomenon appears to be an essential task in second language teaching of Japanese; especially under the teaching method of using phonological rules to learn sounds changes. This paper deals with two issues by taking the phonological alternation of the word [da/ta] “田” as an illustration. Firstly, we reconstruct the phonological rule of Japanese consonant voicing from the diachronic perspective. Secondly, we urge to use the phonological rule for comprehending the consonant voicing for second language learners.