Mind your /ti/’s and q’s: A subsegmental approach to affrication in Québec French

Abstract

This paper presents experimental evidence for an additional phase in affrication in /ti, ty/ sequences in Québec French. Namely, beyond the standard stop release and fricative-like portion of what is standardly transcribed [ts], a phase resembling a partially voiceless vowel or aspiration frequently manifests itself before (or in the absence of) the full vowel. Phonetic correlates of this phase are intermediate voicing and a mid-point decline in centre of gravity, in stark contrast with target fricative /s/. This sort of multi-phased affricate tentatively lacks counterparts in the literature on unaspirated affricates. While the final representation of these segments and the motivation of their internal composition are left for future work, the potential consequences of the addition of this intermediate phase are briefly explored, in particular with reference to Q Theory.