Intonation in Palenquero

TLDR

The least understood aspect of Palenquero phonology is its intonational system, a gap that highlights striking prosodic differences from Caribbean Spanish and lacks detailed research. The study aims to remedy this gap by investigating Palenquero’s intonation. The authors examine intonational patterns and discuss their possible origins, particularly the influence of Spanish prosody interpreted as lexical tone. They find that Palenquero consistently uses invariant word‑level contours (H on stressed, L on unstressed), a sustained high or mid phrase‑final contour in final‑syllable‑accented declaratives, and a long fall in penult‑accented declaratives, and that these features resemble Equatorial Guinea Spanish, suggesting that Spanish prosody was historically interpreted as lexical tone.

Abstract

The least understood aspect of Palenquero phonology is its intonational system. This is a serious gap, as it is precisely in the realm of prosody that the most striking phonological differences between Palenquero and (Caribbean) Spanish are apparent. Although several authors have speculated that African influence may be at the source of Palenquero’s peculiar intonation, to date published research offers no detailed information about the intonation of the creole. The goal of this study is to remedy this situation. Here we identify several specific intonational features where conservative (or older-generation) Palenquero differs from (Caribbean) Spanish. One of these features is a strong tendency to use invariant word-level contours, with a H tone on the stressed syllable and L tones on unstressed syllables, in all sentential contexts, including prenuclear positions. A second feature that we have identified is the use of a sustained phrase-final high or mid level contour in declaratives accented on the final syllable, and a long fall in declaratives accented on the penult. The final section addresses the issue of the possible origin of these intonational features. We point out similarities with Equatorial Guinea Spanish and conclude that, at some point in the history of Palenquero, the Spanish prosodic system was interpreted as involving lexical tone, in conformity with claims in the literature regarding several Atlantic creoles.