基于语音语料库的韩语塞音VOT变异研究

Korean stops show a three-way contrast of aspirated vs. lax vs. tense stops, and the study of Korean stops is a hot topic in phonetic research overseas recently. This study investigates the variability in VOTs of Korean stops, using read speech data in Global Phone speech corpus. The study finds that: 1)VOTs of aspirated stops and lax stops are closer for females and young speakers than for males and old speakers; 2)when the following vowel is non-high, the differences between VOTs of aspirated stops and lax stops are smaller; 3)VOTs of aspirated stops and lax stops are closer in fast speech than in slow speech. From the perspective of sound change, this paper discusses the origins of VOT variability in age, gender, vowel height, and speech rate. Based on the results and discussions, the paper provides some suggestions for teaching Korean stops in China.