70-13,996

CHIDAINE, John Gabriel, 1922- A PATOIS OF SAINTONGE: DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF AN IDIOLECT AND ASSESSMENT OF PRESENT STATE OF SAINTONGEAIS. The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1969 Language and Literature, linguistics

University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan

•3 COPYRIGHT BY

JOHN GABRIEL CHIDAINE

1970

THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED A PATOIS OF SAINTONGE :

DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF AN IDIOLECT AND ASSESSMENT

OF PRESENT STATE OF SAINTONGEAIS

DISSERTATION

Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University

By

John Gabriel Chidaine, B.A., M.A.

******

The Ohio State University 1969

Approved by

Depart w .. w PLEASE NOTE:

Not original copy. Some pages have indistinct print. Filmed as received.

UNIVERSITY MICROFILMS PREFACE

The number of studies which have been undertaken with regard to the southwestern dialects of the langue d'oi'l area is astonishingly small. Most deal with diachronic considerations. As for the dialect of Saintonge only a few articles are available.

This whole area, which until a few generations ago contained a variety of apparently closely related patois or dialects— such as

Aunisian, Saintongeais, and others in Lower Poitou— , is today for the most part devoid of them. All traces of a local speech have now’ disappeared from Aunis. And in Saintonge, patois speakers are very limited as to their number even in the most remote villages.

The present study consists of three distinct and unequal phases: one pertaining to the discovering and gethering of an adequate sample of Saintongeais patois, as it is spoken today* another presenting a synchronic analysis of its most pertinent features; and, finally, one attempting to interpret the results of this analysis in the light of time and area dimensions.

Such an undertaking, in spite of its limited scope, could not have been carried out by the writer alone. Indeed, it is impossible to acknowledge personally all those who helped during the field work phase. But, of course, it is to the Chalard family of Saint-Dizant-du-Gua that the author is most deeply indebted.

Without their intelligent interest and dedication this study would not have been possible. With regard to the second phase of the work, the writer wishes to express his gratitude to all persons who offered him advice and guidance, especially to Professors P.R. L^on,

University of Toronto, and D.H. Obrecht, University of Rochester, who kindly placed their laboratories and spectrographs at his disposal, and to S.M. Sapon, University of Rochester. The major part of this gratitude is addressed to Professor D.A. Griffin,

Ohio State University, for his competent suggestions and criticisms, and his patience.

iii VITA

July 27, 1922 Born - La Rochelle, France

1955 B.A., University of Arizona, Tucson, .Arizona

1957 and 1959 Instructor, Department of Romance Languages, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona

I960 M.A., University of .Arizona, Tucson, Arizona

I960 Instructor, U.S. Army School of Languages, Monterey, California

1965 Instructor, Department of Romance Languages, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio

196'- Assistant Professor, Department of Linguistics University of Rochester, Rochester, R.Y.

1965-1969 Associate Professor, Department of French, Victoria College, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario

PUBLICATIONS

"ch et ^ en saintongeais et en frangais canadien," Etudes de linguistique franco-canadienne. J.D; Gendron and G. Straka, edi Paris: Klincksieck, 19&7• pp. I1,5-51-

FIELDS OF STUDY

Major Field: Romance Linguistics

Studies in Romance Lingustics. Professors David A. Griffin and E. Bulatkin

Studies in General Linguistics. Professors William S. Wang and Leonard Rewmark

Studies in Anthropology. Professors Edward H. Spicer and Harry T. Getty (University of Arizona)

iv TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page PREFACE ...... ii

V I T A i v

LIST OF CHARTS ...... vi

LIST OF MAPS ...... vii

INTRODUCTION ...... 1

Chapter

I. GATHERING THE DATA ...... 7

II. GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SETTINGS...... 30

III. LINGUISTIC PAST OF SAINTONGE ...... fcO

IV. PHONETICS ...... 57

V. P H O N E M I C S ...... 128

VI. M O R P H O L O G Y ...... 160

VII. S Y N T A X ...... 180

VIII. LEXICON ...... 186

IX. HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICALCONSIDERATIONS . . 20’'

APPENDIX

A...... 267

B ...... 278

C ...... 28U

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 306

v LIST OF CHARTS

Page 1. Phonetic Inventory : Consonants...... 60

2. Phonetic Inventory : Vowels ...... 6l

3. Palatalized Forms and Variations ...... 97

Ji. Palatalized Forms and Variations ...... 98

5. Palatalized Forms and Variations ...... 99

6 . Phonemic Inventory of Consonants ...... 130

7. Phonemic Inventory of Vowels ...... 1^5

vi LIST OF MAPS

Page 1. Location of Map II with Reference to France ..... 21

2. Location of Lorignac with Reference to Saintonge, Aunis, and Poitou . . 22

3. Boundary between -ac and non-ac communities..... h5 h. /h/ 210 5 . m ...... 213 6 . Approximate distribution of /k/ Forms ...... 2l8

7. Approximate distribution of /g/, /d/, /l/ Forms . . . 223

vii INTRODUCTION

Utilizing as a corpus the idiolect of a single speaker of

Saintongeais as a basis, the object of this study is threefold:

(l) primarily to present a synchronic descriptive analysis of the type of speech used in a section of the former province of

Saintonge; (2) to furnish a comparative listing and evaluation of features which characterize Saintongeais and differ from French;

(3) to assess and, hopefully, justify the value of the linguistic material contained in the corpus to evaluate the linguistic material from the standpoint of French dialectology. However, certain questions will have to be examined with special care. We shall need to define certain concepts, even at the risk of occasional arbitrariness, in order to avoid an excess of imprecision in our terminology. As Martinet pointed out,'*' terminology is indeed one of the issues which has plagued the field of dialectology.

Of foremost importance is the question: should the use of a single idiolect be considered justifiable and sufficiently significant for a study of this nature? It would be futile to revive here old quarrels, such as the aged debate between Meyer and Ascoli on the nature of dialects. This matter can be examined from a more modern point of view. If the concept of idiolect is

1Andre Martinet, "Dialect." Romance Philology, VIII (l95,0^ pp. 1-11.

1 to be accepted as "an individual's set of linguistic habit,"

then it comes close to being a synonym of Saussurian parole, "an

individual manifestation of a langue;" and if the latter term is.

defined as "the ensemble of speech habits of a social community,"

in turn it becomes almost identical with the concept of dialect in

its most widely accepted sense. The relationship between the terms

"idiolect" and "dialect" is lucidly expressed by R. Hall in these

terms:

Its use also enables us to give a clearer definition of the term dialect, i.e. as involving only those features of linguistic usage which are common to an entire speech-community. The only linguistic realities, in the sense of directly observable or deducible phenomena, are idiolects and the elements into which they may be analyzed; all other linguistic entities are abstractions, arrived at by either naive or scientific analysis.

Within such a framework of reference, the use of a single idiolect of Saintongeais would be justified, providing it is judged as being a "fair" representation of what is meant by

Saintongeais (in this respect the following chapter relates the reasons which motivated this particular choice). Today,

Saintongeais is a form of speech so rare as to its occurrence and so varied as to a number of its aspects that it could hardly be identified as representing the "ensemble of speech habits" of

^Robert A. Hall Jr., "idiolect and linguistic super-ego," Studia Linguistica, V (1951), pp.21-27.

^Ibid., pp.22-25. the Saintonge area; rather, it represents various types of speech habits used by few members of limited and relatively isolated groups.

Comparison between this corpus and French was made on the basis of three types of features which were identified in the

course of analysis: features similar to Standard French, others resembling features found in Popular French, and still others differing from either preceding type. Standard French was chosen as the prime basis for comparison: it is the type of French which is recognized as being national and "ideal," which is used by the classe cultivde because of its dependence on the written and literary type, and which is described and taught in schools as being both normative and prescriptive. Popular French is considered as representing a type of substandard French spoken by "lower class people,"**' uneducated members of the larger urban centers,^ and whose features have been described especially by Bauche^ and 7 Guiraud. Features which differed from either Standard French or

Popular French were considered as being distinctive and characterizing

Saintongeais; as such they were described as exhaustively as possible.

^Albert Dauzat, "Le fra^ais populaire et les langues sp^ciales," Oti en sont les etudes de franpais (Paris: d'Artrey, 19^9), pp. 200-09.

^Marcel Cohen, Kistoire d'une langue: le franpais (Paris: Hier et Aujourd'hui, 19WJT~PP-~319-20

^Henri Bauche, Le langage populaire (Nouvelle Edition; Paris: Payot, 1951). 7 'Pierre Guiraud, Le franpais populaire (Paris: PUF, 19&5). Obviously, the mere descriptive aspect of this work, alone, would be of little significance without attempting a genuine

interpretation of the results thus obtained within the general

framework of reference of French linguistics. These results had to be assessed in function of the social, geographical, and chronological dimensions of French: did che corpus represent a patois, a type of

Regional French? What was its external history? Does it contain any

traits of Occitanic origin? What was the exact nature of its relationship, if any, with French spoken in Canada? Definite and precise answers to these questions proved to be difficult, mainly because of a dearth of data about Saintongeais and the conditions under which it exists today. A local authority on the subject describes these conditions in the following manner:

Meprise, prive de toute discipline, de 1 'autorite que conffere la consecration officielle, de dialecte, tombe au rang de patois, n'a cesse depuis un si&cle de se det&riorer et n'est plus qu'un neo*saintongeais expirant sous le protectorat franqais.

Before attempting to provide answers to these questions, it' was necessary to first define as precisely as possible a number of terms whose meanings or implications have been rather lax.

In this respect Martinet's definitions of patois and dialect are fully endorsed. Patois has apparently no equivalent outside of

France: it is a form of rural speech that the individual learns first and which he uses with members of his immediate family; its use is

^Raymond Doussinet, Le paysan saintongeais "dans ses bots" (La Rochelle: Editions Rupella, 1963), p.7- restricted to natives of a very small speech community or of a set g of tightly knit such communities;' a patois speaker can also use a more standard type of speech in his dealings with outsiders within his community. In a sense, though indirectly, this definition connotes Dauzat's diachronically oriented notion of patois: "a social and literary decay resulting from a former dialect."

By contrast, a dialect may be spoken in urban centers as well as in rural areas; it is a generalized type of speech rather uniformly spread over larger areas, such as whole provinces; it is "a form of speech peculiar to a section of the domain of a 'language';"'^'*' and its speakers know no other form of speech.

Regional French can be defined as the product of fusion between Standard French and a patois or dialect; it results from the influence of local forms of speech on Standard French; it is an intermediary form of speech close to French and somehow related to 12 a patois. In numerous publications Dauzat has devoted lengthy— and rather confusing— descriptions of the characteristecs of Regional 13 French.

It is hoped that the foregoing definitions and statements,

^Andre Martinet, Elements de linguistique generale (3e Edition; Paris: A. Colin, 1963), pp.15^-56.

^Martinet, "Dialect," op. cit.. p.8 .

Ibxd.. p.3 .

■^Albert Dauzat, Les Patois (Paris: Delagrave, 1927), pp.33-3^•

•^Albert Dauzat, "La diffusion du frangais en France et le frangais regional," Le Frangais Moderne, I (1933), pp.l33-Jt-3. though perhaps very briefly presented, will provide suitable assistance in helping to make clearer the bases upon which the aims of this study were established.

Finally, it should be pointed out that in the subsequent analysis of the corpus examined in this work it was deemed preferable to discuss the matter of phonetics before that of phonemics. A number of phonetic features in Saintongeais are well-characterized and quite different from Standard French, and as such they were considered to be more significant than the phonemic inventory which corresponds closely to that of Standard French. CHAPTER CUE

GATHERING THE DATA

From the viewpoint of the dialectologist France has now become little less than a desert. Changes of all sorts, especially changes of a socio-economic nature, have been occurring at an accelerated pace during the past decades over most of the country. These changes have recently been encouraged and instigated by the action of the increased power of the strongly centralized national government, whose political motives aim at the eventual leveling off of any local differences that still remain in existence in the nation.

Among the many effects of this peaceful, though forceful, trans­ formation is the ever-expanding use of Standard French, which has spread over the whole country, even into the smallest and remotest communities. Rare, indeed, are the regions in Southern France where one can find concrete manifestations of a typically local speech, and they are even rarer in the northern half of the country. As the result of this trend, dating from the twelfth century, dialects were long ago reduced to the status of mere patois. At present, patois, and particularly patois belonging to the langue d'oil group, have become all but eradicated in most areas. The speech that is found generally outside the main urban centers is a type of Standard French spoken with a semblance of local flavor, what is usually called today simply "regional French."

7 8 .

The region which corresponds to the former province of

Saintonge, situated in the southwestern corner of the oil speaking area, is in this respect no exception. In 1961, during the preliminary phase of this investigation the major portion of Lower

Saintonge was crisscrossed on numerous occasions, and nowhere, not even in the remotest villages, was there any evidence of a spoken dialect being used exclusively as a normal means of communication.

All natives were found to possess a thorough knowledge of spoken

Standard French, which they were able to use fluently, though it was occasionally colored by local features and thus resembled a type of Regional French. Only a few of the people encountered admitted their ability to speak a different form of language which they professed to be Saintongeais. However, so limited was their number and so diverse were their forms of local speech that the original project of this research, which aimed at gathering in a selected area or community sufficient data to be utilized for a representative description of Saintongeais speech, had to be abandoned.

I - Field Work Survey

The investigator who undertakes such a type of inquiry in the field is beset with a multitude of problems. Most of these problems stem from the very nature of the social contacts operating between the milieu in which he is to be working and himself. Since the success of the research rests largely on the degree to which he is accepted and since the natives judge his behavior in terms of their own norms of social behavior and cultural values, it is therefore absolutely necessary that the investigator be thoroughly

familiar with the culture in which he is going to operate.

- The most effective way of gaining access to the field consists

in winning the confidence of the most influential natives, who in

turn can make use of their own prestige to find informants. As a

rule this is the simplest and easiest method of approach because

such individuals are generally inclined to understand the linguist's

motives. Throughout the whole inquiry it is of utmost importance to

gain and to maintain the trust of informants. However, in such an

endeavor success is often difficult to achieve because of the natives'

attitude towards the presence of this stranger in their midst: they

fear his prying secrets out of tbeir intimate lives, and above all

they dread the possibility of becoming subjected to his derision.

With regard to the foregoing aspect of field work, the writer has the distinct advantage of having spent the first twenty years of his life some fifty miles from Lower Saintonge. In the course of his youth, while traveling in the region, he was exposed on several occasions to a number of Saintongeais speakers. Though he does not speak patois, he is sufficiently families with it to be able to understand it. His earlier training in social anthropology brought him in contact with various types of rural cultures. In addition, he was fortunate to know beforehand people likely to provide him with a helpful introduction into this region. In fact, it was because of his familiarity with the area and its people that he deliberately chose to study the speech of Lower Saintonge, all evidence of Aunisian patois, which used to be spoken around his 10

hometown, La Rochelle, only a generation or so ago having now

disappeared.

A - TYpes of Informants

As usually occurs in any sort of field work, two different

types of informants were found. They will be termed respectively—

and arbitrarily— "know-it-all" and "bona fide" informants, the

first type being the easier to detect and also the more willing to

co-operate.'*'

To "know-it-all" informants anything that smacks of what

they term Saintongeais patois is both worthy and funny. Worthy because in their opinion it represents some elements of the past culture, already lost; funny because it reminds them of the sort of patois stories which reflect the shrewdness and cleverness.,--as well as the naivete and crudeness, of the stereotyped image of

Saintongeais peasants. Such an attitude leads them to consider themselves as being the most "authoritative" exponents and apologists on the topic. They are eager and proud to talk, or to say almost anything, about the peasant and his form of speech.

For the most part these enthusiastic informants are avid fans of the type of pseudo-patois humorous literature published on occasion in the local newspapers, of older songs and stories now commercially recorded, and of plays popular a few decades ago but now seldom performed. .Although no movement comparable to that of

•'•Sever Pop, La dialectologie, apergu historique et methodes d*enauetes linguistiques, Seconde Partie: Dialectologie non-romane (Louvain: Bibliothfeque de l'Universite, 1950), pp. 1156-63. li­

the Felibrige ever occurred in Saintonge, some thirty or forty years

ago a timid resurgence of a literary and folkloristic nature was

attempted. Little of it survives today, except among a few rather

sophisticated individuals.

By contrast, "bona fide" informants display with regard to

Saintongeais a definitely covert type of behavior: they hesitate to make use of what is in their opinion a "low-grade" or "degenerate" form of French. In. their estimation, any admission as to their ability to speak it amounts to a confession of their social inferiority and lack of education. An informant of this type is convinced that his use of patois will expose him to that most fearful form of social sanction, ridicule, and, what is worse, to ridicule on the part of that city-dweller he is facing and who knows how to speak so well.

Yet, if such an informant succeeds in overcoming his fears, he soon divulges how unsure he is of his local speech. Probably because he is aware of the great changes that have taken place in recent years, he does not hesitate to express that his patois is not

"what it should be," that it is no more than a "frangais ecorche," a caricature of "real" French. For some reasons of his own he seems to believe that the patois he can still use does not correspond to the sort of patois he either employed or heard as a child. He may even go so far as discriminating between some vague notions of

"pure" versus "contaminated" patois, identifying the latter with the present type or the "fake" type which is found in those amusing stories occasionally printed in the local papers. B - Types of Approach

The field procedure usually considered most effective for

finding adequate informants consists of utilizing friends or

acquaintances as go-betweens. In this manner, a valuable chain of

contacts based on direct introduction or personal recommendation

can be fruitfully established; and not only can a larger number of

natives be reached, but their confidence can be gained with

appreciably fewer difficulties.

Such a procedure proved to be ineffective in Saintonge.

The writer's friends and contacts belonged to the better educated

group and were, therefore, relatively removed from the rural element

of the population. Inevitably, they led— or rather misled— the

writer to informants of the first type, the "know-it-all" informants.

This method of approach resulted in contacting only individuals

who had either learned some patois from texts or plays as dilettantes

or who, having been often superficially exposed to it in their

youth, were no longer active in using it as a functional and

effective means of communication. These would-be informants were

more inclined to voice their authoritative advice and presciptive

comments than to provide any data of an adequate and reliable nature.

Misunderstanding the real objective of this research, they were, in

addition, either unable or unwilling to give the names of genuine rural speakers they might have known.

Consequently, this method of approach had to be substituted for one that would place the investigator in a more direct, though random, contact with actual and regular users of the patois. What 15 was to ultimately develop into the most fruitful method consisted

of traveling by car over most of the region, inquiring from

village to village. Every possible opportunity was utilized to

discover "adequate" Saintongeais speakers, i.e. people who would

be using the local speech as a daily and regular means of

communication among themselves. The search was preferably directed

at the more remote places where, it was assumed, such speakers would

more likely be found.

Inquiries were conducted at local stores and shops, such

as the cafe, tobacco shop, bakery in the smaller communities; or

at the restaurant, the hotel in the larger ones. The mairie and the

school were also contacted, for the mayor, his secretary, and the

instituteur (who often combines these two functions) not only know

the people within their jurisdiction well but also are influential

individuals who enjoy a manifest degree of prestige among other members of the community. The curate, however, was avoided as a possible go-between for two reasons: the influence of the Roman

Church among the rural population of this part of Saintonge is held at a low level, and the writer felt personally incompetent to deal successfully with a representative of the Catholic Church.

In short, this method of operation was in many points similar to the one used by any traveling salesman in search of leads. Once a lead was uncovered, it was promptly investigated, and this in turn often produced some new leads. Yet, this intensive search yielded the meager results mentioned earlier: there remained too few adequate Saintongeais speakers over the whole area to warrant the survey which had originally been the purpose of this

investigation. These long, erratic, sometimes tedious, sometimes

far from unpleasant expeditions from La Rochelle into Lower

Saintonge lasted altogether five weeks, spread over a total

period of three months.

II - Methodological Considerations and Problems

In any dialectological survey, whether it is limited to

one single speech community or whether it is more extensive and

covers a relatively larger geographical area, serious consideration

must be given to two different aspects involving the gathering of

data, sampling and recording.

A - Ideal Methods

Sampling cannot be limited to the mere taking of a

"statistically significant" number of individuals chosen at

random among the universe made up of all the community's members.

Sociological, cultural, linguistic, time and space factors, all

closely intertwined, must be taken into consideration, each

separately and in function of one another. Only general rules

have been formulated with regard to field procedures— such as the p ones outlined by Nida about linguistic surveys. However, no

detailed rules can be prescribed in this respect since these

factors vary as to their nature and importance with each community.

Consequently, the accuracy— and the success— of a survey of this

o Eugene A. Nida, Morphology: the descriptive analysis of words (2nd. ed.; Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 19^9), pp. 175-91. 15 . type rests entirely upon the investigator's ability and experience:

he is the one who can— or should— be able to discern the various

elements among all these factors, discriminate their mutual inter­

relationships and weight their relative significance. Thus a

careful and judicious selection of informants must supersede

random sampling.

In order to prevent the gathering of any data extraneous

to the speech community, such a selection must be based solely on

individuals born and raised in the community and, as much as

possible, should represent an accurate socio-cultural cross-section

of all its native members. Thus, all informants must be chosen in

direct proportion as to sex, age groupings, social strata (which in

most cases simultaneously reflect levels of wealth and education),

economic functions, prestige standing, cultural contacts with the

outside, and any other differentiating feature. Within such a

framework of reference, the ideal informant is a native who has been totally immersed in as many aspects of the culture of his community as possible and who, conversely, has been exposed to as few cross-cultural contacts as possible (this, assuming the absence of cross-cultural problems within the community itself).

A selection of informants based on such ideal conditions, which could be refined almost ad infinitum, is in practice impossible to realize: it would involve spending a long period of time in the field, require a complex set-up, and need a de-personalised investigator. Furthermore, as to the present situation in France, it would be next to impossible to find 16

informants who have never, at any time, been away from their community or subjected to influences of a cross-cultural nature.

A rigid application of the foregoing conditions for selection would inevitably result in the almost complete elimination of all natives as qualified informants.

With regard to recording, foremost consideration must be given to data quality. Any method of recording is valid as long as it ensures that data thus collected are "pure,” i.e. untainted by any external agent or influence. Accordingly, data uttered by the informant must be elicited in such a way as to prevent interference on the part of anyone present during the recording operation. Hence, only a monolingual approach is to be observed, translation of any kind must be avoided, and during recording sessions the informant— or informants— must remain undisturbed in the presence of the investigator, whose function is solely to operate the tape recorder and eventually provide guidance only in case of absolute necessity. Naturally, it is most advisable that the investigator possess a knowledge of the dialect as thorough as possible.

The one method of inducing informants to speak freely, without outside interference, and yet with some degree of guidance, which has been devised so far is based on the Pictorial Linguistic

Interview Manual— PLIM for short— , an attempt devised by Sapon in * 1957* This manual is composed of a series of numbered pictures

David deCamp, "Review of Pictorial Linguistic Interview Manual, by Stanley M. Sapon," Language, XXXV (1951), PP- 59^-^02. which the informant is required to describe in his own way. The informant progressively loses most of his initial inhibitions as the pictures increase in complexity. As a result, he is led to produce a greater vocal output. From short, simple, and constrained at the beginning of the recording session, statements uttered by the more relaxed informant become increasingly more complex and eventually turn into detailed explanations or even full-fledged discussions.

The advantages of this method, which has never been refined, are invaluable: the informant is left all to himself, undisturbed by others, and guided solely by the pictures he beholds he soon becomes unaware of the investigator's presence. Furthermore, picture frames and their corresponding numbers provide a handy means of reference for laboratory analysis. It has been objected, however, that the conditions required by this method are extremely difficult to observe in the field: it is practically impossible to prevent all external interference as well as to isolate informants completely while they are being recorded. It. Such methodological considerations are not new. Arguments between the proponents of passive observation in the field and the 5 champions of active observation have been going on. for a long time.

Some eighty years ago, Abbe Rousselot^ advocated with subtle insight,

^Pop, op. cit.. Premi&re Partie: Dialectologie romane. pp. 59-1*1*.

^Dauzat, Les patois, op. cit., pp. 175-81*.

^Abbe J. Rousselot, "introduction It 1'etude des patois," Revue des patois gallo-romans. Tome I (1887), pp. 18-21. 18 and probably by way of a compromise, that the following steps be taken for field interviews: (l) listening to the natives' conversation without their knowing it, or (2 ) holding private conversations with them, (3 ) avoidance of the dangers of translating from or into

French, (^) awareness of age and social differences among informants.

As far as this research project was concerned, none of the first set of conditions mentioned for sampling could be met, and those required for recording could only be partially realized.

Not even the semblance of a single speech community using

Saintongeais exists today. Despite numerous inquiries and thanks to the generally warm welcome offered everywhere, only a few, often widely separated informants could be uncovered; most of them belonged to the "bona fide" category. All displayed a wide degree of disparity as to their cultural and linguistic characteristics.

They ranged from a few very old— and deaf— farmers to younger and more sophisticated people, such as a village seamstress married to a truck driver, a part-time railroad worker and sharecropper whose patois was heavily scented with some of the latest Parisian argot, a few farming families whose conservative members strived to maintain alive what they felt to be the most colorful expressions. All of these, except for a delightful, toothless, and deaf eighty-two year old lady resident in a poorhouse, admitted that they seldom made use of the patois as a normal and regular means of communication even among themselves at home. B - Difficulties encountered

Conditions under which the recording sessions had to take

place were equally disappointing. All but one of the informants

discarded PLIM somewhat disdainfully, estimating that the mere

description of its pictures was either below their dignity or

much too boring. It must be mentioned, however, that the writer was

using the PLIM pictures which S.M. Sapon has specifically designed

to suit a survey he had conducted in Catalonia; a whole new set

of pictures adequately selected to fit Saintongeais culture and

cultural values— and also to elicit certain linguistic problems—

would undoubtedly have been less coldly received. Instead, they

insisted in contributing what would be in their opinion much more valuable data, and as such they preferred to sing old songs, recite

or read patois stories or parodies of French literature, carry on

an artificial conversation with other members of the family, or

occasionally recount some old memories. Naturally, all the folks of every household that was visited, from the youngest to the oldest member, would eagerly flock together for the occasion: attendance was de rigueur, merriment the mot de passe. Few informants were . allowed to speak for long before being interrupted by a member of the audience who wished to express his views as to the "proper" or "improper" pronunciation of some word, the "correct" or "incorrect" use of some expression, all this often accompanied with loud, raucous, and unrestrained discussions and laughter. In addition to this deplorable situation, it must be added that the acoustical conditioning in the rooms of these rural dwellings left much to be desired. 20 .

Yet, in compliance with the notion that informants should

be allowed to remain as much as possible undisturbed within their

own cultural and linguistic environment, the writer never attempted

to misrepresent his goals and intentions, to forcefully impose his

views, or to urge any sort of discipline and order. Instead, he

preferred to voice subtle remarks and suggestions, hoping that at

least some portions of the uncontaminated data thus gathered would

be suitable for laboratory analysis.

Ill - Procedure adopted in the Field

This continual running from informant to informant, from

one hamlet to another, eventually led to the village of Lorignac,

situated along the northern embankment of the Gironde. In the

course of fieldwork, Lorignac had previously been mentioned

by a number of farmers as being the "only" place where Saintongeais

was still prevalent. In this village, the mayor and his secretary

were most co-operative in providing a number of leads, but they

did not fail to remark that at present only a few scattered

families were making use of patois among themselves. The people who had thus been recommended proved to be either unwilling or unable to collaborate as useful informants. Some of them, however, ultimately led the investigator's steps to a most remarkable

family, the Chalards. This family lives in an isolated hamlet,

Barateau, which consists of some three old farmhouses and of a

couple of newer houses tightly huddled together. Barateau is

situated some two and half miles east of the bourg of Saint-Dizant- 21

Paris

• Poitier If La Rochelle

• Bordeaux

MAP I

LOCATION OF MAP II WITH REFERENCE

TO FRANCE 22

DEUX-SEVRES VENDEE

Poitiers

Kiort T>a Roche i-ie

S -CHARENTE * r\ \ MARITIME

Saintes A n g c m e m e

Barhezieux- Jotfzac

0 Bordeaux GIRONDE

MAP II

LOCATION OF LORIGNAC WITH REFERENCE

TO SAINTONGE} AUNIS, AND POITOU 23

du-Gua (8lO inhabitants in 1963) which, in turn, is about a mile

from Lorignac ( 7^9 inhabitants in 1963)•

A - Selecting the Informant

The Chalard family, which is composed of a couple and their

son, not only welcomed the weary traveler, but immediately understood his plight. Their kind and intelligent co-operation was truly

appreciated.

The older Chalards are in their fifties. Mr. Chalard was born and raised in Barateau, where his aged parents still live in a separate house. He has remained there most of this life, except for the compulsory two year military period which he spent in the world outside in his early twenties. Mrs. Chalard was born and raised in Saint-Dizant-du-Gua. When in her late teens or a little older, she used to leave her home for a few months at a time to work or to spend her vacations in some other villages in Saintonge.

Both of them tell that in their youth they used Saintongeais in their everyday conversation with other members of their immediate environment. However, both were exposed to Standard French at the local school and had to learn its spoken and written use. During the period between the two World Wars a large number of traits of

Parisian culture, Standard French especially, penetrated deeply into most of rural France and thus induced a wide range of cultural changes, causing the nearly total destruction of local speech. Saintonge did not escape this inexorable process. As a result, the Chalards are perfectly able to write and speak French; yet, certain phonetic and lexical features, characteristic of Saintongeais, slightly affect its spoken form, which thus should appropriately be termed

Regional French. Yet, they feel proud to know the local patois and

are not ashamed to use it regularly in the home. Their feelings

toward it are that it is a perfectly legitimate and "expressive"

way of speaking. Unlike most peasants in the region, they display

no inhibition about it. Vivacious Mrs. Chalard has read some of

the major works of French literature, and the Chalards' mental

inquisitiveness, which is above the level of most peasants, is

manifest.

Such intellectual alertness was probably far from being

detrimental to the Chalards' two sons, both of whom were able to

attend technical schools. The elder is at present a civil engineer

in the Republic of Gabon. The other, Freddy, now barely thirty

years old, went to an agricultural school where he soon became one

of the brightest students in his class. Homesick, he suddenly

abandoned his studies, preferring as he unhesitatingly puts it

the "hard but poetic and envigorating life of a poor peasant

to the easier but enslaved existence of a white collar worker."

Freddy is an intelligent, literate, and articulate fellow whose help in the present research was much appreciated. He is active in various local organizations, such as the local farmers' association and the group of amateur theater players.

The Chalards' farm is antiquated. It is of the most commonly found type, now beginning to disappear fast due to the present reorganization taking place in rural France. It covers a small acreage, most of it exploited under the system of sharecropping called metayage. in which a multiplicity of crops and animals are raised.

Its equipment is old and obsolete; its farming methods mostly

traditional. Crops range from wine— which in this cognac producing region is sold to distillers— wheat, sugar beets (prime suppliers

of cash), to a variety of vegetables and fruits which are primarily used for home consumption. Four cows provide money with their milk

and meat, and the few hogs, hens, rabbits, ducks, geese are for

the most part consumed at the farm. All work is performed by

the Chalards themselves according to a well-established division of labor. The farmers’ co-operative association to which they belong

supplies the heavy mechanical equipment, and sometimes the extra hands, needed for certain types of seasonal operations.

Each member of this family became at one a most enthusiastic informant. After the first recording sessions, however, it was discovered that the father's articulation was somewhat wanting and that the son's Saintongeais had been noticeably affected by

Standard French, especially with regard to some particular phonetic and lexical features. Mrs. Chalard was chosen as the most adequate informant for the purpose of this study because of the quality of her articulation, her glibness, and what appeared to be her more

"conservative" type of speech.

In the writer's opinion, Mrs. Chalard's patois, when compared with that of other informants, contained at all levels of linguistic analysis the least number of Frenchified features; in some respects it resembled more the patois found in texts written a few generations ago; and it corresponded— though this was a subjective impression— 26 .

to the form of patois he had heard during his youth. Altogether,

these considerations, combined with all other qualifications

— including an enthusiastic desire to co-operate— , could be found

in no other informant. In fact, Mrs. Chalard was not so much an

exceptional informant as a very nearly unique one.

B - Recording

The major portion of the present study is based on the

last recording made by Mrs. Chalard in August 1963. During this

session she spoke alone, under the best conditions available in

the main room of the farm, trying to reminisce about some of the

most colorful events of her youth. She most emphatically preferred

this type of performance to the use of PLIM, which she very

graciously tried but quickly discarded for reasons she did not

express. No attempt was made to impose this method of interview

on her, the risk of alienating the good will of such a rare and valuable informant being too great. A phonetic transcription of

this portion of the corpus can be found under Appendix A and its

French translation under Appendix C.

Because of the limited length of this part of the corpus, it was felt advisable to add a second portion— Appendix B— which

is based in part on citation forms and verb paradigms specifically chosen to elucidate certain problems of a phonetic and lexical nature and in part on PLIM. In order to stimulate discussion, this portion of the corpus was made with the help of the whole family gathered for the occasion. However, except whenever cases of free variation were discovered, only the recording made by Mrs. Chalard was transcribed in Appendix B. 27 .

All these data were recorded on a Philips tape recorder at

7-5 inches per second.' A number of spectrograms were made of some

portions of the tape on a Kay Sonagraph. No palatograms were attempted.

Such a lengthy discussion was deemed necessary. Its very

candor was purposely intended to bring into light not only the

obstacles that dialectologists are likely to encounter in the

field, but also the difficulties which resulted from this specific o assignment. Indeed, it is felt that too many dialectologists have

devoted too little attention— if any at all— to the sources of

their data, the social aspect of their research, and their methods

of approach. They also have too often displayed a marked tendency

to present their linguistic analysis with such an impressive stamp

of neatness and impeccability that at times it almost leads one

to question the reliability of the facts.

In conclusion, conditions under which data were gathered for

this study were far from ideal. Field procedures which had to be used

were quite different from the ones advocated. Furthermore, the data

which have been analyzed here derive from one single speaker. It

is hoped that from the parole of this one informant will be derived,

or inferred, the langue of Saintongeais, defined here as the

remnant of a patois which used to be spoken in the Lorignac area

7 'A copy of the tape can be made available. Q One of the more notable exceptions was Abbe P.J. Rousselot's doctoral thesis, Les modifications phonetiques du langage etudiees dans le patois d'une famille de Cellefrouin (Charente) (Paris: H. Welter, editeur, 1891). 28

a generation or so ago, that is immediately prior to the time it

was replaced by French. Saintongeais as a dialect disappeared a

long time ago; as a patois, it just died. Eighty years ago, about

another part of Saintonge, Abbe Rousselot complained:

Mais la gdn^ration attachee au patois a disparu; et aujourd'hui, pour obtenir qu'on veuille bien parler avec moi, j'ai besoin d'oser de stratag&me ou de solliciter cette faveur comme un service. Cependant, jusqu'k ces dernieres annees, le patois seul etait en usage dans les relations entre les indigenes et n'avait d'autre ennemi que l'ins- tituteur. Mais voila que les pferes de famille se sont mis de la partie. Pour epargner & leurs enfants la honte de parler patois, ils ont rendu obligatoire autour d'eux l'usage du frangais ... Le patois, banni de quelques foyers domestiques, continue h. r6gner sur la place publique. C'est lk qu'il saisit d^sormais les enfants que l ’on voulait soustraire & son influence ... Mais evidemment il a regu le coup de mort, et ses jours sont comptes.-^

From the synchronic aspect, the lacunae which will be found in this analysis should eventually be complemented with additional material provided by the study of speech of other informants at least as qualified as Mrs. Chalard. A few such persons must still exist, but they will have to be discovered soon. Furthermore, to make a study of this type complete, a diachronic analysis should be attempted by means of a thorough examination of the limited number of texts that are available.

Although in all likelihood it is more contaminated by

French than was the patois spoken at the time of Abbe Rousselot, the corpus analyzed here represents a segment of the patois of Lower

Saintonge. It is neither as altered as other varieties found

% b i d . , p. 159* sporadically in the area nor a form of Regional French. In this respect alone, it should be regarded as a highly valuable document.

Since no other data of a reliable nature could be obtained, this corpus will be assumed to represent the patois of Lower

Saintonge. As such, the patois of Lower Saintonge is defined here as being the patois spoken in Lorignac, Charente Maritime, and expressed through the idiolect of one of its natives, Mrs. Chalard. CHAPTER TWO

GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL SETTINGS

Unlike present day departements, French provinces during

the Ancien Regime were more them mere political units. Each of

these provinces represented a different type of culture, or sub­

culture, established within the natural boundaries of some well-

defined geographical region. Thus, a province was roughly the

equivalent to a culture— or sub-culture— area.

Defined in such terms, the former province of Saintonge

occupied in southwestern France the region located between the

Atlantic Ocean and the Massif Central on the one hand; the mouth

of the Gironde and the southern extension of the Brittany land mass on the other. The hills of Poitou, Limousin and Perigord,

first ripples of the Massif Central foothills, formed its boundaries running from the northeast to the southeast; the marshes of Gulf of Poitou and the Vendean Plateau were its northern­ most limits. Because of its position in relation to the hard-to- penetrate Massif Central, Saintonge was essentially a zone of transition, forming a western link between the northern half and the southern half of France;'*' and, in this respect, it was rather similar to the Saone-Rhone zone of transition on the eastern

•'•Louis Papy, Aunis et Saintonge (Grenoble: B. Arthaud, 1937), PP. 11-12.

30 31

side of the Massif Central. The two main points of entry into

Saintonge were: in the north, the narrow Seuil du Poitou, between

the Vendean and the Poitevin hills, connected with the Great

Northern Plain of Europe; in the south, a rolling country squeezed

between the hills of Perigord and the Gironde embankments and

permitting access from the Plain of Aquitaine.

This whole region resembles a shallow basin covering an

area some ninety miles long from east to west and about fifty

miles wide in the transverse direction. From an altitude of some

nine hundred feet in the east it gently slopes down toward the

ocean. The major portion of this basin rests on a solid cretaceous

structure which is crossed lengthwise by the slow and meandering

Charente River, originating from Limousin hills. The valley of

this river is wide, filled with alluvions and is frequently

flooded; it is framed along its sides by a series of narrow and

gradually higher plateaus cut by numerous streams and rivulets

which run into the main river. The most fertile soil is found on

these plateaus, which today are covered with vineyards. At one

time the higher half of the valley formed in the east the former province of Angoumois, whose capital city was Angouleme, while

Saintonge proper was then reduced to the lower half, in the area

surrounding Saintes.

To the north lies a flat, dry platform of jurassic limestone, tightly wedged between the Vendean marshes and the Charente valley.

This region eventually became the smallest of all French provinces,

Aunis, covering little more than five hundred square miles. 52 '

The division of the original Saintonge into these three rather undifferentiated provinces resulted from a variety of factors,

such as population increase, population migrations, economic and

cultural differentiation, and ultimately political partition. As a result, the term Saintonge carries two connotations, one which refers in a large sense to the whole geographical area just described, and the other restricted to the territory covered by the former province, and sometimes called Lower Saintonge. It is in this sense that the term Saintonge will be used in the course of this study.

The system of political divisions called departements was created at the time of the French Revolution with the obvious purpose of destroying the solid identity of each of the provinces.

The new system was a device aimed at the unification and centralization of the entire country around the all-powerful hub, Paris. This systematic breaking-up of former provinces was carried out with a deliberate contempt with regard to features of a geographical character or to considerations of a social nature. As a result, the

Departement de la Charente Maritime (which until the mid-1930's was called Charente Inferieure) embraces all of former Aunis, most of

Saintonge, and a small portion of Guyenne. On the other hand, the

Departement de la Charente covers the remainder of Saintonge, most of Angoumois, and portions of Marche, Perigord and Limousin. The modern expression "les Charentes" refers to these two departements, but more specifically it generally connotes the area formerly covered by the province of Saintonge. 35 .

In the course of more recent geological periods, the whole

coastal region extending from Brittany to the Pyrenees was subjected

to a series of successive uplifting and sinking motions. In this

process the massive rock structures of Vendee and Aunis resisted best to the attacks from the ocean, but at times the sea penetrated

deeply inland between them. The last period of sinking probably

started about the time of the Roman conquest and ended some nine or ten centuries later. Then began the progressive upward motion of the coast which is still continuing today. The resulting effect of this uplifting was the gradual disappearance of the Gulf of Poitou, which at present consists largely of drained marshes, and the joining together of numerous islands which probably existed centuries ago. It should be noted, in addition, that this draining of marshes was appreciably helped by man's efforts over the past millenium. Formerly active and prosperous ports have today become utterly dead towns surrounded by low grazing lands. Such is today the fortified town of Brouage, birthplace of Champlain. The retreating sea has left only a few islands, Re, Oleron and Aix being the larger ones.

History begins with the arrival of the Romans in the region.

Almost nothing is known about the Santones--or Santoni— , the Celtic tribe which, was occupying the area at that time, except perhaps that they had come from the Garonne valley, supposedly via the ocean. Celtic presence is evidenced by the frequent occurrence of place names ending in the characteristic — euil derived from various

Cletic forms, such as -jalo, -dial(on), or -olio, "place."2

Caesar's De Bello Gallico mentions that it was towards the

territory held by the Santones that the Helvetii tribe had chosen to

migrate and settle, thus creating the series of tribal turmoils which

supposedly brought up Roman intervention into Gaul. Defeated by

P. Crassus in 57 B.C., the Santones, who in all likelihood seemed

to belong to the more docile Aquitanians, co-operated with the

greatest ease with their victors. They even agreed to supply some

fifty-six vessels to help Caesar in his campaign against the Veneti.

In the lower portion of the Charente valley, at the

crossing point of four important roads, stood the city of

Mediolanum, which soon changed its name to Civitas Santonum, the

future Saintes. Some forty years after the conquest the capital

city of the Santones was turned into a free Roman city.

The Santones, who were fast becoming assimilated to Roman

ways, soon succeeded in forming a wealthy and powerful nation. Their

green and fertile fields, which extended from the coastal lowlands

to the hills of Perigord, produced wheat, fed cattle and other

domestic animals in large quantities. Their capital city manufactured a variety of products, some of which were known as

far as Rome. Saintes had becomes one of the largest and most beautiful cities in Aquitaine, surpassing Burdigala in importance

2Charles Rostaing, Les noms de lieux (Paris: P.U.F., 196l), pJ'O. Also, Hermann Grohler, Uber Ursprung und Bedeutung der franzosischen Ortsnamen (Heidelberg: Carl Winter, Vol. I 1915; Vol. II 1953), I, p. 118. and radiance.^ Today, the city still displays some architectural remains of this most brilliant period in its history; a large amphitheater, Roman baths, an imposing arch erected in the honor of the supposed visit of Germanicus in 21 A.D.

The fourth century Bordelese poet, Ausonius, celebrates his frequent trips to his villa, which was located in the vicinity of

Saintes, praises the taste of oysters coming from the nearby coast— presumably just as famous then as today— , and does not fail to eulogize the serenity of the fertile fields, green vineyards, and wooded hills of Saintonge. Except for partial deforestation,

Saintonge has probably changed little since.

By Ausonius1 time, however, the importance of the whole region had already begun to decline appreciably. Set in too remote an area, possessing no harbor along it swampy coast, Saintonge and its capital were losing out against the fast-growing cities of Bordeaux and Poitiers.

For the next seven centuries there follows a period of successive invasions and socio-economic chaos which caused ruin and untold hardships to the local population soon subjected to the domination of its Germanic masters. Even though Saintonge belonged to Aquitaine, it was in fact an intermediary zone between the Franks in the north and the Wisigoths in the south.^

3papy, op. cit., pp. 15-1 6 . About the tenth century a sudden change took place in the

former Pagus Alienensis, Aunis: the creation of La Rochelle.

Situation on a newly emerged island recessed between two rocky points,

protected by the sea on one side and surrounded by marshes on the

other, inhabited by a conglomeration of diverse and adventurous

settlers, La Rochelle soon became a powerful maritime city. Its

unique geographical isolation plus generous political and economic

privileges granted by Eleanor of Aquitaine turned it into a de

facto semi-autonomous republic entirely devoted to trade. The

economic importance of La Rochelle during the Middle Ages rested

not only on the daring initiatives of its enterprising citizens but equally on its exceptional location, at the northern-most limit of production of wine and salt. This port exported quantities of these indispensable staples— as well as others, such as wheat— to the northern countries of Europe, particularly England, the United

Provinces, and the Germanic states. For some five centuries the history of Saintonge remained closely tied to that of Aunis and

La Rochelle, its economic outlet. From then on the two provinces are seldom mentioned separately.

The Hundred Years War, however, interrupted on several occasions this economic prosperity. Covetous of the wealth of

Saintonge and anxious to hold a beachead at La Rochelle, England did not hesitate to carry intensive war operations over the whole region. Santonge, in particular, was so devastated at the beginning of the fifteenth century that in some places the rural population is said to have completely disappeared, leaving the 37

fields fallow for so long that woods had begun to grow where crops

used to be gathered. Even the wolves would eat the bodies that had

been buried outside the walls of several towns. But with the return 5 of peace, Saintonge recovered very rapidly from such desolation.

The Reformation movement found fertile ground among the

individualistic and cosmopolitan Rochelese. It spread rapidly

and made important progress inland. It was the Reformation, however,

which indirectly brought about important economic perturbations and

which ultimately became responsible for the complete ruin of the

region. As a result of the growth of Protestantism, the countries

of northern Europe substantially decreased their wine imports. In

order to reduce its huge surplus and avoid an economic depression,

La Rochelle resolved to utilize a convenient means, distillation.^

But in his drive for a political unification of the French kingdom,

Richelieu felt compelled to destroy the powerful and quasi­

independent government of La Rochelle, bulwark of Protestantism.

In one of the most horrid war episodes of the times, La Rochelle was

crushed in 1628 after some fourteen months of siege. The dismantled

city, which had lost some nine tenths of its population, never recovered. Faced with either forced conversion or death, most of

the Huguenots of Aunis and Saintonge— the wealthiest and most

^L. Canet, Textes et recits d'histoire locale: L 1Aunis et la Saintonge (3 vols; La Rochelle: F. Pijollet, 1933-3*0, II, pp. 5U -59 and 128-2 9 . g ' E. Trocme et M. Delafosse, Le commerce rochelais de la fin du XVe siecle au debut du XVIIe (Paris: A. Colin, 195^), pp. 112-Ik. 58

enterprising segment of the population— preferred to flee abroad,

leaving the whole region in a state of economic torpor. The

gravity of this situation increased with the Revocation of the

Edict of Nantes in 1685. And during this troubled period a large

number of people found refuge in various parts of the world,

especially in Acadia, Canada, and the American Colonies.

Some two centuries later, particularly between 1&75 and

1880 a new disaster struck: phylloxera destroyed practically

every vineyard and caused another important population flight.

But thanks to the fertility of its soil Saintonge gradually came

to achieve its present degree of economic significance, made possible by its wheat, meat, dairy products, and especially by its aged brandy distilled from 'the wines of Saintonge and Aunis which gave a world fame to the sleepy little town of Cognac, on the Charente.

With the exception of the coastal area, where intensive oyster culture is practiced, and the poor marshy zone immediately inland or at the mouth of the Charente, the rest of Saintonge— or

Charentes, to use the more modern expression— consists of a region of intensive farming. Farms are small and are usually exploited under some form of sharecropping. Cattle are raised on the lower and poorer lands.

The climate of Saintonge is temperate and oceanic. It is very mild. Snow is an object of wonderment, the temperature seldom fall below twenty degrees Fahrenheit, and rains brought over from the ocean by the westerlies are frequent and abundant, especially from November to April. Summer temperatures remain in the eighties. 59

The population of Saintonge has been variously depicted

as being individualistic, indolent, independent-minded, hospitable,

and above all highly appreciative of the "good things" in life.

It istrue that it would be hard to imagine a Saintongeais peasant without his pungent wine, his eau-de-vie, and his snails

— cagouilles. He is well-known for his shrewdness and for his special type of humor and wit, which used to be vividly expressed inpatois,^ although in recent decades this aspect of his character has probably been abused and exaggerated.

Marcelle Martin is quoted here to provide a short but vivid illustration of some of the peasant's favorite expressions:

... le femme est une beite k chagrin tandis que les enfants sont de la gueurne d 1ennui, de la graine d1ennui, ... d’une demoiselle qui veut faire l 1elegante on peut dire: atorse dau corp'gnon, elle tord du croupion; quant k l'homme bavard, on dira de lui: son bet fourme pas me qu'in thiu de cane, sa bouche ne ferme pas davantage qu'on derriere de cane; sur la jeune fille k marier on fera cette reflexion: cha fagot trout sa iort. chaque fagot trouve son lien; quant k celui qui vient de mourir on dira de lui: il e-t-alle sucer les rabanas peur la racine (les rabanas sont de petites raves sauvages). Enfin une expression, celle de "qui vivra verra," devient en Saintongeais: empres la foere ,jhe compterons les bouses.

fpoussinet, op. cit.

®Marcelle Martin, "Le saintongeais, etude structurale et comparative" (unpublished Master of Arts thesis, Department of Linguistics, Universite de Montreal, 1962), p. 15. CHAPTER THREE

LINGUISTIC PAST OF SAINTONGE

In a broad sense, older historical documents furnish

abundant details about political events, but little else. Documents

relating to the history of Saintonge are no exception in this

respect: they offer a disheartening dearth of data with regard to

the non-political aspects of man's past in this province. The

economic evolution of the region can tentatively be inferred from .

the meager information these documents provide. However, practically

no light is shed about some of the most important events of social

history: the investigator faces a wide realm of possible conjectures.

Nothing, in particular, is revealed as to population

migrations which must have occurred in Saintonge during the last

fourteen or fifteen centuries. Any sliver of information on this

subject would provide helpful and interesting indications about

the sequence of linguistic changes not only in that region but

also in the whole southwestern portion of France, especially with

regard to a presumed shift in the boundary between the langue d'oil

and the langue d'oc. Saintongeais belongs definitely to the former, yet some evidence points to the fact that it came to replace at a

^•Jacques Pignon, L 1 evolution phonetique des parlers du Poitou (Vienne et Deux-S&vres) (Paris: Bibliotheque du "Franqais Moderne," i9 60), pp. ^2b-2^.

bO Ifl

relatively late date, probably over a long period of time, some

form, or forms, of the latter.

On the basis of a single but significant toponymic criterion,

it would seem probable that the Charente River served at one

time in the past as the dividing boundary between these two major

speech areas.

During the Gallo-Roman period the Celtic suffix -acos was utilized under its latinized form, -acum, to designate a large 2 number of agricultural exploitations, the villae. This suffix was added to the cognomen of the owners, and its variant, -iacum, to names ending in -iusP This custom became widespread over most of Gaul and lasted from the second century to probably the time of the Great Invasions. This suffix, an unmistakable mark of Roman colonization, was subsequently subjected to the norms of phonetic evolution taking placed within each dialectal area. The form -acum eventually became -ay or and -iacum turned into -ec or -y in oi'l dialects; they remained -ac or -a(t) in Occitanic dialects.**

Except for four or five overlapping points, the dividing line between these northern and southern forms in Saintonge is remarkably clear-cut and follows approximately the course of the Charente River.

Ferdinand Brunot et Charles Bruneau, Precis de grammaire historique de la langue franpaise (5e edition; Paris: Masson et Cie., 19^9), p. 106.

^Albert Dauzat, Les noms de lieux (Paris: Delagrave, 1952), pp. 77 and 113-16.

^Ernest N&gre, Les noms de lieux en France (Paris: A. Colin, 1963), pp. 79-85. Ii2

In addition, this line coincides rather closely to a

division between langue d'oi'l and langue d'oc derivatives of Latin

past participles -aturn, -atam, and as such separates northern place

names in or -ee from southern place names in -at or -ade.^ Thus,

on one side of this line one will likely find Les Pr£s, La Pierre

Lev£e and on the other Les Pras, Le Prat, La Prade, La Pierre

Levade. ^

Although any conclusions that rest solely on the basis of

toponymic data should be accepted with a certain degree of caution,

this situation, as it exists today, would suggest the following:

1. Roman colonization took place throughout Saintonge,

though in varying degree of concentration, as evidenced by the geographical distribution of place-names bearing the original suffix -acum or its variant (see Map III).

2. Northern speaking influence must have been sufficiently strong between the seventh and tenth centuries to effect phonetic changes into -ay, -e and -y in the northern portion of Saintonge.

It is interesting to notice today the opposing occurrences of place names like Lorigne or Cresse in northern Saintonge or

Marsilly in Aunis versus others like Lorignac, Cressac, or

Marcillac in the south. With regard to this phonetic evolution,

^G. Millardet, "Linguistique et dialectologie romanes," Revue des Langues Romanes, (Vol. 6l, 1921-22; Vol. 62, 1923); Vol. 6l, pp.325-29.

^Raymond Doussinet, Le parler savoureux de Saintonge (La Rochelle: Editions Rupella, 1958), pp. 25-27. > 3

Abbd Rousselot^ notes the change in the name of a little village

just west of his native Cellefrouin, in Angoumois, from the medieval form of Echausec to the modern one, Echoisy. In this respect, it may be of interest to mention that -(i)ec forms are found

Q in the transition zone separating Oil and Oc languages. To admit

that the present dividing line between these two different types . I of suffixes represents the actual division between the language of

01*1 and that of Oc as it existed in the early part of the Middle

Ages is not an unreasonable proposition for lack of better information. A similar situation with regard to French and Breton dialects is corroborated by historical documents in the western part of Brittany.9 This hypothesis with regard to Saintonge, however, presupposes that no changes of any sort, such as borrowings or replacements for example, ever occurred since that period.

3- This northern speaking influence eventually spread southwards and penetrated deeply into the area located south of the Charente River, thus progressively replacing the Occitanic dialect that must have been spoken there prior to the tenth

^Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 2 8 9 . O P. Nauton, "Les formes en -iec du suffixe -IACU," Melanges de linguistique offerts Albert Dauzat (Paris: d'Artrey, 1951), pp. 233-2^3•

^Dauzat, Les noms de lieux, op. cit., p. j8. See also Map in Charles Rostaing, Les noms de lieux (Paris: P.U.F., 1961), P- 75* century. With regard to this matter, Millardet,^® with limpid

logic, offers two hypotheses: either present day inhabitants of

Saintonge are former Occitanic speakers who, for some reasons

(prestige, for instance), progressively over the past centuries

adopted a language of the northern type, or they constitute a

segment of northern, Oil-speaking, population which replaced the

original Occitanic speakers and maintained unchanged the names

of the communities in which they had settled. Millardet suggests

that, on a linguistic basis, the second hypothesis is the more

likely. But probably his position is too categorical: this total

population displacement and replacement which he proposes would

undoubtedly have induced changes in other aspects of the local

culture, some of them just as radical as the linguistic changes

themselves. This does not seem to have been the case, as Pignon

suggests, though timidly, with regard to some agricultural methods

used in Poitou.

Aside from this aspect of toponymy, certain linguistic

features of Saintongeais indicate a characteristic Occitanic

influence. In fact, this is not special to Saintongeais itself,

but also to a number of dialects of Western France south of the

■'■^Millardet, op. cit. Also, "Reponses a quelques critiques, Revue des Langues Romanes. Vol. 62 (19210, pp. bl6-Yl.

-^Pignon, op. cit., pp. 52^-2 5 . 1*5

• / • • • • ••

Southernmost limit of non-ac communities Northernmost limit of -ac communities © Isolated non-ac communities O Isolated -ac communities XJCM Oc/Oi’l boundary

MAP III 46

Loire River. A rapid survey of this aspect as well as bibliographical comments can be found in Scharten12 and Pignon. 3 5

A. Brun proposes that the oc/oil differentiation is not due to the impact of Romanization and Germanization on Gaul, but rather that it is simply a matter of Celtic and pre-Celtic lk substratum. This original suggestion may have some values of minute significance; however, it should be rejected as a whole: language and anthropomorphic traits can "mix" very well, indeed, and independently from one another.

Since, unfortunately, no single historical record found to this date shows any evidence of penetration of speakers of langue d'oil into the southerjjpart of Saintonge, only a series of possible facts and events can be listed as being deemed relevant, and from them certain inferences can be proposed:

1. It has been widely recognized and accepted that the

Oil-speaking area has kept expanding southwards ever since the

Franks' penetration from the north and that, on the other hand, the Oc-speaking area has been receding as a result of this expansion. The problem in this matter consists of determining, even approximately, the geographical extent of these two speech

1 P T. Scharten, "La posizione linguistica del 'Poitou'," Studj Romanzi. Vol. 29, (1942), pp. 5-12.

-^-^Pignon, op. cit. t pp. 13-24.

•^A. Brun, "Linguistique et peuplement," Revue de linguis­ tique romane. XII, (1936), pp. 165-251. areas with regard to time dimension. Von Wartburg^ goes so far as

stating that "in former times" the boundary between the Northern

and Southern idioms was situated along a line stretching from the

mouth of the Loire River to the Vosges mountains. Most authors

generally concur in the opinion that Occitanic influences lasted

for a longer period of time in the region extending south of the

Loire, as evidenced by characteristically Occitanic remnants^ of

various kinds and degrees found in some parts of Poitou and Saintonge,^

and that Occitanic dialects spoken in these regions eventually receded

southwards to their present position. Most of them agree that this

linguistic retreat southwards was already completed by the eleventh

■jO or twelfth century. A. Brun suggests that the real penetration of

written French started in the thirteenth century. He writes:

Dans I 1ensemble, on le sait, cette region occidentale dela langue d'oil, Poitou, Angoumois, Aunis, Saintonge, qui fut, durant une longue periode, l'enjeu et la victime d'ambitions rivales, a vu s'acclimater le franqais dfes le X H I e sifecle,— comme langue ecrite, s’entend, et comme langue des classes instruites,— de celles qui ont part aux affaires et aux offices, encore qu'il soit impossible de justifier

15Walter von Wartburg, Evolution et structure de la langue franchise (5e Edition revisee et augmentee; Berne: A. Francke, (1958), P- 6^. Also, W.D. Elcock, The Romance languages (New York: MacMillan Co., i960), p. 196.

^H. Suchier, Le franpais et le provenpal. traduction P. Monet (Paris: E. Bouillon, I89I), pp. 63-9^*

17'Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 291 and pp. 3h7-k8. 18 Walter von Wartburg, La fragmentacidn linguistica de la Romania, traducido Manuel Munoz Cortes (Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 1952), pp. 105-0 6 . b8

cette restriction. Et ici, il a triomphd de deux concurrents: non seulement il se superpose au dialecte local, mais il a de plus mis hors de cause 1'influence de la langue d'oc. On sait, en effet, que la lyrique provenqale y eut des adeptes ... : ils composaient dans une langue qui, sans doute, n'^tait pas la leux, mais leur choix denotait au moins une orientation; l'attrait de la littdrature m^ridionale s'exerqait: au X H I e sifecle, ce beau feu s'etait eteint: le Poitou et l'Angoumois sont decidement promis a la langue et & la culture franqaise.^9

Yet, few have attempted to retrace with any degree of

precision the position of the boundary between the Northern and 20 Southern languages at any period in the past, the task being

almost impossible. It seems reasonable to assume, therefore, that

Saintonge, because of its extreme location both south and west,

was subjected to a longer period of Occitanic influence than the

regions immediately north and east of it.

2. The fertile soil of Saintonge, particularly in the

area of low plateaus, was certainly a most favorable factor for

the immigration of populations living on the relatively poorer

soils of adjacent provinces to the north, like Vendee and

Poitou.

3- At various periods in the course of its history, external

events created a population vacuum. This was especially true during

the Hundred Years War; yet, after having been so thoroughly

devastated, the rapid recovery that the province experienced could

•^A. Brun, Recherches historiques sur 1*introduction du frangais dans les provinces du Midi (Paris: Champion. 1923). p. 30.

Scharten, op. cit., maps III and IV. h9

hardly have been possible without a substantial influx of farm hands from the outside. At the same time, the dreadful epidemic

of 15^6 must have also eliminated a large number of its

inhabitants. Later, during the seventeenth century and part of the

eighteenth, another population vacuum of lesser proportions but of longer duration resulted in the flight or eradication of the

Huguenots.

1)-. During periods of economic prosperity, a drain on the rural population often resulted from a numerical increase in members of the bourgeoisie. gathering in urban centers.2-*- Successful farmers were particularly inclined to flock to town, abandoning their fields in the hands of sharecroppers, usually outsiders. It seems very likely that the rate of birth among the indigenous population was then, as it used to be until recently in northern

Gascony, PP rather low.

5* The vigorous economic domination of La Rochelle over most of the hinterland as well as the development of other ports along the coast of Aunis and Saintonge helped to spread from the thirteenth century on linguistic changes up the Charente and eastwards inland. Because of the nature of their commercial relations the bourgeois of La Rochelle were in all likelihood using northern .dialects and preferring to adopt the language of

2^Pignon, op. cit.. p. 77*

22Abbe Th. Lalanne, "La limite nord du gascon," Le Franpais Moderne, XIX (1951), P- l M . 50

Paris. All these facts combined together, must have affected,

or at least influenced, speech habits of the rural people of

Saintonge.^

The only concrete example of population pressure from the

north and of population vacuum in the south is furnished by the oh area called Petite Gavacherie, an enclave of Saintongeais-

speaking peasants situated well inside Gascon territory, between

the Dordogne and Garonne rivers. Local documents dating as early

as the fifteenth century mention a progressive migration of

Saintongeais, Vendeans, Poitevins, and even Bretons into the

underpopulated parishes of this district.^5 This alien group, which has become considerably reduced in number since the

eighteenth century, is still being called the derogatory name 26 "gabay" by the surrounding Gascon population. In Gascon vernacular the term Petite Gavacherie is opposed to that of

Gavacherie— or Grande Gavacherie— which is applied to the

Saintonge area proper.

2 3pignon, op. cit., pp. 76-77 and 525« pi1 Suchier, op. cit.. p. 77*

2^Edouard Bourciez, "La conjugaison dans le gavache du sud," Revue des Universites du Midi, II (1896), p. 1^3-

^6 simin Palay, Dietionnaire du Bearnais et du Gascon modernes (Paris: Editions du C.N.R.S., 196l), under gabach, gabay. gabache.ja. Also, J. Corominas, Diccionario crltico etimologico de la lengua castellana (t vols.; Berne, 195^-57), Vol. 2 under gabacho. . 51 It is a known fact that today, or only a few generations

ago, there has been a steady, constant, silent, though limited,

migration of peasants from the north into the rural areas of Aunis

and Saintonge. These migrants, usually forming whole families of

sharecroppers, consist mostly of Vendeans coming especially from

the impoverished marshes of southern Vendee.

Summarizing this whole situation, Dauzat declares:

Vers: He Midi, une double poussee s'est exercee a l'ouest et a l'est du Massif Central. Poitou et Saintonge ont subi une penetration qui fut en partie ethnique (comme le montre 1'ilot de la "Petite Gavacherie" forme par des immigrants au XVIe siecle a l'est de Bordeaux); les noms de lieux de la region Cognac-Pontaillac accusent une phonetique occitanienne. '

A study of patronymic distribution, if feasible, might

indicate the importance and extent of this invasion from the north.

For instance, family names deriving from Latin faber and podium

occur in this area under a number of mixed French and Occitanic 23 forms. It might be of interest to observe in this respect that

the informant's name, Chalard, originates not from the South, but

from the northern portion of the Massif Central.^9

As a summary for the foregoing discussion, the following

assertions will be proposed as being correct and valid for lack of better evidence:

^Albert Dauzat; Tableau de la langue franpaise (Paris: Payot, 1939), p. 263. 28 Albert Dauzat, Les noms de famille de France, 2e edition (Paris: Payot, 19^9), pp. 320-26. oQ —^Albert Dauzat, Dictionnaire des noms de famille et prenoms de France. 3e edition (Paris: Larousse, 1951)* 52

1. The former dialect of Saintonge is to be regarded as one of the particular and local results of the generalized progression of the French language southwards into Occitanic-speaking regions. 30 Such a progression started about the twelfth century, and was carried out by a sustained, though uneven, migration of people from the north. By the thirteenth century it had already reached sufficiently large proportions so as to change or replace significantly most of the original Occitanic dialect. For reasons of prestige, because of strong economic ties with the north, or for a variety of other reasons as yet not precisely determined, each incoming northerner superimposed or reinforced most of the features of his own dialect on the speech of the local population. In this process a mutual exchange of linguistic forms took place in which the predominating northern features were in part influenced by other features belonging to the Occitanic substratum— a process mentioned by Rousselot with regard to the receding Limousin boundary which was taking place in his time. 31 This uneven degree of mixture of forms eventually gave rise to the very characteristics of

Saintongeais, essentially an Oil dialect.

2. This long penetration process south of the Charente was not sudden, but rather gradual. As a result, there was no clear- cut Oil/Oc geographical boundary that could indicate a sharp

^Pignon, op. cit., pp. 516 and 521.

5lRousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 3^9* 53.

cleavage between the two types of languages, but rather a transition belt, much as exists today in northern Gascony.^

3. Saintongeais penetration into Gascon territory stopped several decades ago simply because of the rapid disappearance of

Saintongeais, being replaced by a pseudo-standard type of French.

t. The chronology of these events can be divided into four main periods. Prior to the seventh or eight century, Saintonge as well as most of the region south of the Loire was Occitanic.^

Between the seventh or eight century and the tenth century, the border line between 0x1 and Oc languages was situated at the present northernmost limit of place names ending in -ac. From the tenth to the twelfth century the region south of the Charente was undergoing the process of replacing its Occitanic dialect by a northern one. Thereafter, with the occasional but relentless influx of northerners, linguistic borders between the two languages kept advancing farther south while langue d'oil traits and characteristics were being reinforced in the areas converted and eventually underwent an evolution of their own.

These assertions are in general agreement with most authors, especially with Scharten’s conclusions^ and Dauzat1s

32Lalanne, op. cit.. pp. 135-^5*

33Marcel Cohen, Histoire d'une langue: le frangais (Paris: Hier et Aujourd'hui, 19^7)> P- $0.

^Scharten, op. cit., p. 118. 5k views,55 and correspond to the Indications represented in A. Brun's map.56 However, it is probably because of its past history— Occitanic origins— that Pop surprisingly places Rousselot's work on

Cellefrouin among the studies dealing with Provenqal. 37 '

The earliest texts that can be ascribed to Saintongeais dialect are few. Most of them are markedly Northern in character, though they contain a few Occitanic forms. A limited number of texts, such as several charts which belong to the Cartulaire de l'Angoumois

(twelfth and thirteenth centuries), are said to be in langue d*oc.^

Some non-literary documents are reproduced in Schwan-Behrens, 39 ^ and various references to others are mentioned in works by Brun,*1®

Goerlich,,l‘*' and Rousselot.1'^ Documents of a more literary nature are the Chronique de Turpin, Coutumier de 1'lie d'Ol^ron, and Tote !t3 listoire de Prance. They date from the thirteenth century.

^Dauzat, Les patois, op. cit., pp. 69-70 and lJ.ii-Ji.2. 36 "Francisation du Midi," Atlas de France (Paris: Comite National de Geographie, 1933-'i5), planche No. 81.

*^Pop, op. cit., Premiere Partie, pp. 307-15*

5®Doussinet, Le parler..., op. cit.. p. 25.

5^Schwan-Behrens, Grammaire de l'ancien franqais, Fr. transl. par Oscar Bloch (Leipzig: O.R. Reisland, 1932), Part III, pp. 81-85.

*'®Brun, Recherche s..., op. cit., pp. ^8-h9.

,l^Ewald Goerlich, "Die siidwestlichen Dialecte der Langue d'oil, Poitou, Aunis, Saintonge, und Angoumois," Franzosische Studien, Vol. 3, Part 2 (1882) pp. 13-17* J O Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 175*

*'5For specific and more complete references, see Pignon, op. cit., pp. 56 -57 * 55 .

The number of texts of later periods is extremely limited.

These texts consist of a few official documents from the townhall

of Saint-Jean-d1Ang^ly--which belong to the fourteenth and

fifteenth centuries— , and some literary writings contained in the

"Manuscrit de Pons," as well as very few other texts, all from the

eighteenth century.

Prom then on, texts become fairly numerous. They range from

a series of translations from French, parodies of some French

literary works, local songs, and original works in Saintongeais.

Among the most famous authors, should be mentioned Burgaud des

Marets,*^' a poet of the last century, and Dr. A. Jean,^ playwright

of the first quarter of this century.

With regard to the boundaries between the langue d'oil and the langue d'oc. it was previously stated that they have not noticeably changed for a long time: the limits so painstakingly and meticulously established about a century ago by Tourtoulon and b& Bringuier correspond closely to others resulting from more recent ft 7 surveys.

^Burgaud des Marets, Fables et contes en patois saintongeais (Camille Baulieu, ed.), 2e £d. (La Rochelle: Editions Rupella, 1930)

^Yan Saint-Acere, La Mqrine h Nastasle (Saintes; M Savary, 1950). His most famous play.

k6Ch. de Tourtoulon et 0. Bringuier, "Rapport surla limite g^ographique de la langue d’oc et de la langue d'oi'l," Archives des Missions Scientifiques et Litteraires, Tome III, 3e Serie (IB76), pp. 565-97. w Jules Ronjat, Grammaire istorique des parlers provenoaux modernes ('+ vols.; Montpellier: Societe des Laixgues Romanes, 1930- J'l), Vol. 1, pp. 15-18. 5 6

The foregoing discussion attempts to establish the fact that in spite of a lack of definite evidence Saintongeais can reasonably be considered as being the result of a relatively recent fusion of

Oi'l and Oc dialects, the former prevailing markedly over the latfer.

In this respect, Dauzat states:

Vers le Midi, une double poussee s'est exercse h l'ouest et a l’est du Massif Central. L'influence provenqale avait d'abord gagnd Poitiers, dont un comte ecrivait en langue d'oc au Xle siecle. Fon seulement le Poitou s'est goustrait a cette influence, mais une veritable substitution linguistique s'est opdr^e dans la Saintonge et l'Angoumois, dont le parler primitif (les noms de lieux le prouvent) relevait du groupe d'oc.

This double penetration of French on either side of the

Massif Central suggests that a parallel exists between the

Saintongeais area and the Franco-Provenqal area. *'9 Their geographical positions are equivalent; their demographic history not very different.

More accessible and more fertile, Saintonge was more markedly influenced by immigrant settlers from the north who imposed their speech habits and thus reduced the original Occitanic dialect to the state of a weak substratum. On the other hand, the less accessible

Franco-Provengal area, subjected to different types and less intensive types of northern penetration, retained a large portion of its Occitanic features. In both cases, the results vary only in degree.

• O Albert Dauzat, Histoire de la langue franqaise (Paris: Payot, 1930), p. 5’16 .

k^jrfques Pignon, "Les formes verbales de Tote listoire de France, texts saintongeais due X H I e sifecle," Melanges de linguistique offerts 4 albert Dauzat (Paris: d'Artrey, 1951), PP* 258-59- CHAPTER FOUR

PHONETICS

Any fluent user of Standard French unfamiliar with

Saintongeais patois who would be listening to the corpus would

undoubtedly fail to "understand" most of its contents. Although

he might at times be able to guess the general meaning of whole

strings and recognize a fair number of short sequence and random

words, his inability to identify some of the segments would be

sufficient to impair an adequate decoding of the message. In

this respect, the patois represented by this corpus can be

termed as being "barely intelligible" to a French speaker.

Actually, the dissimilarities between Saintongeais and

French are more complex: they stem from phenomena of varying degrees

and kinds occurring at different levels of linguistic analysis. They

are most evident at the phonetic level with regard to some segments

and intonation patterns. They are fairly common at the lexical level.

Yet the phonemic level displays no differences from that of French,

and morpho-syntactical features remain practically unchanged, a fact which explains why this patois is not totally unintelligible to a

Frenchman.

In order to avoid a needless description of facts already well known about French, this chapter will attempt to compare only the phonetic features which differ from French: consonantic and

57 58

vocalic segments, matters of combinatory phonetics and prosody.

Whenever possible, these phonetic divergences from Standard French

will be presented under the three following aspects: auditory

impression, articulatory process and acoustical examination of a

number of spectrograms.

The transcription of the corpus, which figures in Appendices

A and B, was effected with painstaking care. It is as narrow as possible, but only in so far as it indicates divergences from Standard

French: for instance, voiceless [r] is not transcribed as such since

its rules of occurrence are the same as in French. This transcription was essentially based on auditory perception and carefully checked on numerous occasions; sonagrams were used only as a means of verification in the case of problems or difficulties.

The sonagrams were made at Professor Pierre R. Leon's laboratory at University College, University of Toronto. In most instances two different sets of sonagrams were processed. One set shows Intensity Scale and, below, Frequency Scale up to about U ,500 ~

(mostly broad band); the other contains only narrow band frequencies up to either 1,500 or 2,000 ~ and was made with the Scale Magnifier.

Since in this way frequencies between J|,500 and 8,000 ~ were omitted, a third set of sonagrams including the complete range of harmonics to 8,000 ~ was made whenever deemed necessary.

The analysis of these sonagrams presented a series of obstacles difficult to circumvent. One was that, the recording having been made by a woman's voice, whose fundamental is at least

100 ~ above that of a man's, a certain compensation had to be taken into consideration in the reading of sonagrams. 59 In addition, the writer felt that in order to prevent the

occurrence of errors due to his limited skill and experience in

such matters, it was advisable to use the utmost care in drawing

any definite conclusions as to his interpretation of the data fur­

nished by the sonagrams: such data may occasionally be open to

conjecture, and spectrographs are known to "behave" erratically

at times.'1'

Consequently, it was deemed prudent to consider these

data as acceptable as long as they concurred with and could be

checked against auditory impressions and articulatory processes

and in other cases singly to describe them as recorded by the 2 machine.

These acoustical data were compared with norms

established for Standard French and as reported by Delattre,^

^-A. Hakala and H. Savolainen, "Messproblem bei der Analyse von Sonagrammen," Phonetica, XIV (l966), pp. 91-6 O All publications utilized in this respect are listed in the Bibliography.

5pierre Delattre, "Un triangle acoustique des voyelles orales du franqais," French Review, XXI, 6 (May 19^8), pp. ^77-8^. Pierre Delattre, "Les attributs acoustiques de la nasalite vocalique et consonantique," Studia Linguistica, VII, 2 (195*0, pp. 103-09. Pierre Delattre, "Les indices acoustiques de la parole," Phonetica, II (1958), Nos. 1-2, pp. 108-l8j Nos. 5-*(■, pp. 226-51. All these articles, as well as others which were utilized, have been reprinted in: Pierre Delattre, Studies in French and Comparative Phonetics (The Hague: Mouton and Co., 1566).

i Labio­ Dento- Palato- Bilabial dental alveolar Alveolar Palatal velar Velar Uvular Pharyngeal

Occlusives P b t a k g

Fricatives f V s z 9 £ h h

Nasals m n n

Laterals 1

Vibrants r r r r 0 « O w Semivowels D N

CHART I

PHONETIC INVENTORY: CONSONANTS

ON o Palatal Velar

Unrounded Rounded

Oral Nasal Oral Oral Nasal

Close i y u

/ I "T u

e e 0 o 9 e e ce 0 0 >f Open se

Very Open a a a a

CHART II

PHONETIC INVENTORY: VOWELS 62

Lafon,1* and Straka.5 The greatest difficulty involved in this

comparison was to decide upon the degree of similarity— or dissimilarity— of vowel formants, especially with regard to nasals.

I - Nature of the Phonetic Inventory

All phones constituting the phonetic inventory of the corpus are listed on Charts I and II. First glance examination of the consonant chart reveals the presence of.a larger number of phones and a wider range of distribution (as to points of articulation) than in Standard French as well as an obvious "lack of symmetry" caused by the absence of a number of voiced fricatives. The vowel chart contains also a larger number of phones (especially with regard to nasals), but these are more evenly distributed.

A - Characteristic Consonants

The total number of consonants and semivowels identified in the corpus amounts to twenty-eight, that is seven more than for

French. The following are for the most part similar to French consonants: [p] [t] [k],[b] [d] [g], [f] [s], [v] [z], [m] [n] [n], [11,

[r] and [r], as well as [w] [ [ 3] - M l nineteen belong to the O' French inventory and offer no detectable difference as to modes and points of articulation from the ones found in Standard French.

However, the absence of French [s] and [zl must be noted.

Consonants which to not belong to the French inventory are: fricatives [)£], [h] and [h3 > [q]j and [3], and four types of

*\jean-Claude Lafon, Message et Fhonetique (Paris: PUF, 1961).

^Georges Straka, Album Fhonetique (Quebec: Les Presses de l'Universite Laval, 1965). 63 .

vibrants. A description of the phonetic features of these consonants

will be attempted in the subsequent headings with regard to auditory

perception, articulatory process and acoustical analysis.

1. Fricative [#].— This consonant corresponds to [s] in

Standard French. For example, we find in the corpus: [^er^e] (^3),^

"chercher"; [lazaret] (^3), "la charrette".

Though always voiceless, three auditory criteria set it

apart from French [s] : its duration is longer, (2) its friction

noise is less, (3 ) it gives the impression of being produced with

great energy.

Georges Musset describes the articulation of this consonant

with the mere remark: "... en soufflant, la bouche grande ouverte,

comme pour se rechauffer les doigts.. . The author, who was not a

phonetician, is perhaps trying to convey his impression that the

production of [)Q involves, indeed, a substantial amount of energy.

It is regrettable that he does not elaborate further.

Judging from first-hand observation it seems that during its

production air pressure in the trachea is often reinforced by means

of an appreciable contraction of the diaphragm. The airstream goes

through the glottis which, in all likelihood, offers an opening

normal for fricatives. Then, pressure is again reinforced by means

^Numbers in parenthese following a transcribed form refer to theline where such form can be found in the transcription of the corpus (Appendix A and C).

^Georges Musset, Glossaire des patois et des parlers de l'Aunis et de la Saintonge, (La Rochelle: Masson Fils et Cie., 1929-^8), II, p. XIV. 6k

of a vigorous and sustained contraction of the muscles of the

pharyngeal walls and of the root of the tongue. While the tongue

remains flat rather than grooved, a loose type of constriction takes

place between the post-dorsal portion of the tongue and, according

to the nature of the following vowel, either the velar or pre-velar

zones, thus forming a broad and deep slit. This point of constriction

corresponds approximately to the one used in the production of an

achlaut or a jota. In this respect, [}£] can be described as a velar

fricative. The tip of the tongue is lowered, with the apex located

at the base of inferior alveoli; the lips may be slightly rounded.

The articulation of [)0 differs from that of [x] in the

following respects: (l) the zone of constriction is wider and more

open, (2 ) the amount of energy and air-flow is substantially greater and lasts longer, (5) the dorsum is relatively flat, lower, and much less tense. As a result, air friction occurs over a wider area and can be felt during the whole production of the sound.

Examination of 11 sonagrams containing a [)Q reveals the following facts:

a) Its median length is about 12 or 15 cs. (with an extreme variation from 8 to 18 cs.). It is therefore relatively longer than most consonants.

b) Intensity levels, measured only at the highest points, appear to be moderate for fricatives: they vary between 12 and 21 db.

Q Lafon mentions 26 db. for French [s]). Intensity curves are

®Lafon, op. cit. , p. 12k. 65 characterized by several peaks (up to three), one more prominent.

(c) Three bands of friction can be identified. They are closely placed one on top of another and are generally light and diffuse:

one band raning from 2 ,000/2,500 ~ to 5,000 ~ (occasionally up to a maximum of 1*,000/1*,500 ~) seems to be characteristic of this consonant since it is found in all sonagrams (according to Lafon,^

French [£] exhibits a band from 5,000 to U,500~):

one band situated between 1,000 ~ and 2,000 ~, ± 500

another narrower band located between 1*00 ~ and 700 —

In all cases voice-bar is absent.

On the basis of the foregoing discussion, [/] is identified as a voiceless velar fricative.

2. Fricatives [h] and [h].— In most cases these consonants correspond to [z] in Standard French. The corpus offers such examples as: [eho] (170), 'un coq'; [mena:h] (ll6 ), 'menage.1 It is also found in initial position for a few words which in French usually start with an "aspirated h ,"'*'0 as in [ho] (9 ), 'haut' or [a*ho] (275), 'en-haut.'

Auditory impressions caused by these sounds closely resemble those produced by an English or German "h." However, the following differences should be noted with regard to the Saintongeais consonants: their friction noise is more prominent, and the energy involved in their production is more substantial.

%.afon, op. cit.

•^Pierre Fouche, Traite de prononciation frangaise (2e edition; Paris: C. Klincksieck, 1959), p. 252. 66

Probably as a result of subjective impression the ear seems

to perceive almost exclusively [h] (voiceless). The other [h] (voiced)

can be perceived only with difficulty and not without a certain

amount of uncertainty. It would appear that this voiced fricative,

which is common in a number of languages such as English, is less

readily identifiable than its voiceless counterpart.

The people of Saintonge are fond of describing the way one

should speak patois by saying: notre patois se parle a pleine goule,

"our patois is spoken with the mouth wide-open." This remark,

however, can be applied not only with regard to the production of

[h] and [h] but to that of [)£] as well. Nevertheless, it stresses

the fact that these consonants, though fricatives, require that the mouth be open as much as possible, that is with a minimum of

constriction.

In a few cases the first phase" in the articulation of [h]

or [h] in initial position may consist of a glottal stop (this seems

to be corroborated by acoustical analysis). However, in all cases involving [h], it is reasonable to assume that the glottis is suddenly and rapidly brought to almost complete closure and then immediately opened as in the normal production of fricatives. In the pharyngeal cavity air pressure is reinforced by means of a vigorous contraction of the muscles of the pharynx and of the root of the tongue— it should be noted that during the entire production of the sound the tongue remains pulled back towards the post-velar region. The dorsum is raised slightly towards the pre-velar or post-palatal zone, according to the nature of the following vowel. The air stream thus 67.

expelled by a vigorous contraction of the pharyngeal muscles

produces the characteristic friction noise.

Articulation process for [h] remains unchanged except for voicing, which is produced by the vibration resulting from the

opening (characteristically spindle-shaped) and closing of the

interligamentous margins of the glottis while the intercartilaginous

portion remains open.^

In both cases tongue elevation toward the palate or velum

is so slight that it hardly constitutes a constriction

inside the oral cavity; on the other hand, the muscular contraction which takes place in the pharyngeal cavity is such that the term

"pharyngeal fricative" seems to be fully justified to characterize the articulation of each of these consonants.

Examination of 32 sonagrams of these consonants reveal the following facts:

a) Segmental length varies considerably— from 3 to 18 cs.

Half of the occurrences are equal or inferior to 7 cs. The longest segments, which range from 13 to 16 cs., are found in final position.

One case of l8 cs. (262) is due to prosodic stress, and another of

2k cs. (^11) results from gemination.

b) Peak intensity levels vary appreciably. They range from

8 and 10 db. minimum to 29 and 30 db. maximum (11 are equal or superior to 19 db.). The number of intensity peaks for one consonant

■^Straka, op. cit., p. 7- 68

varies from one to three; they usually number two, the first one being the more intense.

c) The following friction bands could be identified:

one diffuse band occasionally (7 occurrences out of 32) found between 3,000 ~ and ^,000/^,500 ~;

in all cases but two, one band located between 1,800 ~ and

3,000 ~ (with a ± 500 ~ variation at either extremity), generally dark, compact clearly marked which could be recognized as characterizing these consonants;

below the 1,800 ~ level, a variety of formants which (as suggested by U s e Lehiste for English [h] )^ might result from a vocalic environment; however, a definite correlation between the position of Saintongeais [h] or [h] and that of the surrounding vowel(s) is difficult to ascertain since the presence, or absence, of these formants is not determined, according to these limited data, by the position of [h], whether initial, intervocalic, preceding or following another consonant;

A "voice bar" was found to be present and clearly distinct in ten cases (7 , 30, 196, 200, 208, 262, 282, til, til) and doubtful in two cases (17, 191) because of its faintness. No correlation could be found to exist as to the occurrence of the voice bar and the intervocalic position of the consonant. In four instances

[h] segment is divided into two unequal parts, the first part with a

? 1 Use Lehiste, Acoustical characteristics of selected English consonants (The Hague: Mouton and Co., 196*0- voice bar and the other without, or conversely: [#heti] (6 ), 1 j'dtais,1

and [f^io sxta.3 (^11), 'Georges,' which are group initials, start without

a voice bar, while [mehsfijao] (175), 'mais nous riions,' and

[affgma-h^] (190), 'a fromage,' end up without a voice bar. It may

well be indeed, if Delattre1s remarks are to be believed, that the

sole presence of a voice bar for a consonant does not necessarily

indicate voicing. 15 ^

The articulation process of consonants of this type is

complex; it involves several factors whose relative importance has

not been determined yet by phoneticians. This matter has apparently not been entirely elucidated with regard to English [h], about which .

a degree of inconsistencies and even controversy still exist.^

In the writer's opinion Saintongeais [h] differs from

English [h] with respect to the features outlined above. Yet this would need the support of a separate study involving the utilization of a variety of instruments such as a palatograph, of techniques such as X-ray photography, and also the systematic analysis of a large number of sonagrams.

Transcription of the voiced versus unvoiced forms of these consonants rests entirely upon auditory impressions: the occurrence

^-^Delattre, "Les indices acoustiques de la parole," op. cit.. p. 2k2.

^Von H. Koziol, "Die Artikulation der englischen h-Laute," Phonetica. I (1957), PP* 31-58.

■'■^Lutgarda M. Castelo, "The phonetic and phonemic treatment of English /h/," Phonetica, II (196*0, PP* 116-23. 7°

of [v>] was thus noted whenever it was felt that it could be recognized.

Accordingly, no claim to accuracy can be made in this respect.

3* Fricative Tg]•— This fricative sounds strange to the ears

of a French speaker not only because of its phonetic characteristics

but also because of its position as a segment in a string. It may

replace either Standard French [s] or [k], as in : [iqi] (5), 'ici';

[qetbu'tej] (86), 'cette bouteille'; [q^giusr] (7), 'quelques jours';

[inkoqi-j] (316), 'une coquille.'

This consonant produces an impression of friction, often

intense, which varies appreciably from a "softly" uttered affricate

of the [ts] type to a strongly palatalized consonant ranging from

[to], [sj] to [kj], or even to seme sort of a palatalized affricate such as [ ts j]. An example of the transcription adopted in the corpus is [tqy-ji] (193),'cueillir' (which varies with [qyji'] (331)).

Disregarding all these variations, this sound can be reduced to its most general type of occurrence which from the point of view of articulation is a voiceless dorso-palatal fricative, very much similar to German ich-laut: the apex remaining lowered, the dorsum of the tongue is drawn up flat toward the palate at a point back of the alveolar ridge, forming a rather broad horizontal slit.

Spectrographic analysis points out to a number of variations which confirm at least some of the auditory impressions. What appears to be true is that the articulation of this consonant, which most of the time closely resemble that of [q], is unstable.^

■^Pignon, op. cit., p. 385. 71

Altogether, 25 sonagrams of this sound were made. They reveal

the following information:

a) Length varies from 8 to 17 cs. (ll occurrences are at 10 cs.

or below, and 5 and 15 cs. or above). Its median length is slightly

shorter than that of [ /].

b) Intensity is higher than in the case of [/] and [h], a

fact which in all likelihood confirms that the zone of articulatory

constriction for [q] is appreciably narrower. Maximum intensity

ranges from 17 to 3^ db. (in 13 instances it is above 21 db.). More

than half the sonagrams display a double or triple peak of intensity

of approximately equal value.

c) Several bands of friction were identified on these

sonagrams. They are:

a compact and darker band extending from approximately 1,700/

2,000 ~ to 3 ,000/^,000 it seems to characterize this consonant

since it is found in all sonagrams except one; the aberrant one, in

[qela] (27), displays a diffuse band from l,y0 0 ~ to 2,800 ~ (it

should be pointed out that in this instance the speaker tries to add with

some degree of hesitation a parenthetical statement which is supposed

to start with a [9] but which turns into a [ s] or [3] probably because of a lapsus linguae);

a diffuse and lighter band, present in all cases but four,

is generally located immediately above the dark band and reaches

frequency levels between 4,000/6,500

in five of the eight Broad Band sonagrams (with frequencies going to 8,000 ~) there is a diffuse band extending from about 6,000 ~ to 8,000 7 2

three sonagrams display another light and diffuse band

situated somewhere between 800 ~ and 1,700 thus resembling the

pattern found for [/£] (a fact which auditory impressions do not

contradict).

d) Further examination of these sonagrams yields the following

information:

in three instances (6, 23, 153) the presence of a very short

occlusive (from 1 to 2 cs. in length) can be observed to precede [5];

this would confirm the "slightly" affricated impression that this con­

sonant produces at times upon audition;

six sonagrams (9, 19, 23, 193, 201, 291) display a rather

diffuse band located below the 1,000 ~ level which might suggest a

partially voiced variety of this consonant; this could be interpreted

as partial assimilation since in four cases [5] is immediately

followed by a [j]; for instance, in the case of [#?je:z] (291), 'quinze,1 recorded on a Narrow Band sonagram with frequencies up to 2,500~,

[9] is divided into two portions, one voiceless (3 cs.) and the other with voice bar and four harmonics going to 1,800 ~ (8 cs.), and is followed by well-marked [j].

It must be stated again that transcription was chiefly based upon auditory impressions: whenever the voiced type of this palatal fricative was heard, it was transcribed as [j], and in all other cases this consonant was assumed to be voiceless and thus transcribed as [9].

Fricative [£1.—A French native can perceive this consonant only with great difficulty. The impression that this sound produces to his ears are little different from those he experiences in his 73

standard speech which probably contains a certain proportion of

[ 5]'s mixed with [s]1s.

Yet, when listening to the corpus with discriminating

attentioh, the two sounds can be noticed: one perceived as a "clear

and sharp" sibilant, [s]; and the other, "less pure," closer to a

shibilant. and characterized by a vibration of lower frequency, [§].

From the articulatory point of view, [ s] is a predorsodental

fricative which requires that the tongue remain in a convex position,

while [§] is an apicoalveolar fricative which is produced with the

tongue maintained in a ccncave position (and probably allowing for

a wider and looser constriction). Yet, the division between these

two consonants is actually not so clear-cut, for there exists also

a predorsoalveolar type and, particularly in the case of French,

there probably exist as well all sorts of intermediary variants which are not only function of dialectal influences but also of idiolect alone.

Maliriberg states that French "normally" possesses the predorso­ alveolar type, English has "often" the apicoalveolar, while German displays both dorsal and apical types "indifferently."^ On the other hand, the apicoalveolar fricative is considered to be the

• I Q sole type existing in Castilian.

^Bertil Malmberg, Phonetics (New York: Dover Publications, 1963), p. h9. 1 fi Tomas Navarro, Manual de pronunciacidn espanola, (New York: Hafner Publishing Co., 1957), pp. 106-07. n The presence of [s], which has been noted in a number of 1 Q On French dialects, ^ might well deserve a thorough investigation

as to its mode(s) of articulation and as to its distribution.

However, Malmberg does not hesitate to state his position regarding

this matter:

L'unitd entre les deux types -qui, a ma connaissanee, ne sont jamais opposes phonologiquement- consiste dans I1identity de l’effet acoustique qu'ils produisent. Cette identity est assez grande pour que l’on se dispense de marquer les deux especes dans les transcriptions phonetiques. Leur emploi est trop peu stable -con­ sequence naturelle de leur ressemblance acoustique- pour qu'on se soit jamais donne la peine des les distinguer graphiquement. Ces deux variantes ont du echapper souvent aux diale ctologue s.21

In spite of the apparent instability of these fricatives as

to their occurrence and frequency, an earnest effort was made to discover by means of acoustical analysis whether a fricative of the

[§] type does exist in the corpus, thus confirming or disproving auditory impressions.

In all 27 sonagrams of "probable" (from audition) [£]'s were analyzed. This analysis consisted of comparing the bands of friction of this sound with the bands characterizing [s] and [S], assuming that the acoustical pattern of [ §] would stand somewhere between that of [s] and [s]. In order to establish a basis for this

-^Alvaro Galmes de Fuentes, Las sibilantes en la Romania (Madrid: Editorial Gredos, IS62), pp. 127-57•

^Ojean Seguy, Le franpais parle a Toulouse (Toulouse: Edouard Privat, 1951), P- 26.

^Bertil Malmberg, "Le probleme du classement des sons du langage et quelques questions connexes," Studia Linguistica, Annee VI, Ho. 1 (1952), p. 12. .75 comparison, the following data were used: (l) the figures drawn Op from Lafon's cross-sections for French [s] and [s]; (2) sonagrams

of [5] produced by a native Catalan speaker; (5) sonagrams of [s]

and [s] produced by two native French speakers.

With regard to [s] Lafon notes that the noise band starts

at 4,000 ~ and rises to 20 db. at 8,000 ~, this sound having the

highest frequency vibration. These facts were confirmed by examining

the U sonagrams of [s] made by the French speakers. On these the

noise band ranges from 3,000 ~ to 8,000 ~ and shows maximum intensity

between 6 ,500/7,500 one intensity was measured at 22 db., another

at 15 db.

As for [s], Lafon indicates that the noise band is located

between 3,000 ~ and 7,000 ~ and that the intensity peak reaches

26 db. at 4,500 ~. The two sonagrams of this sound made by the French

speakers reveal a noise band between 2,000 ~ and 7,000 ~ with a

peak of intensity located at 2,500 ~.

The 9 sonagrams made of Catalan [ §] exhibit a remarkable

degree of similarity: their noise bands range from 3,000 ~ to

7 ;C00 8 of them have maximum intensity located at 5,500 ~ and

the last one at 4,500 ~.

With regard to the' sonagrams of "probable" [§]'s drawn from

the corpus, the results show a notable lack of regularity:

a) In 17 cases (out of 27) the band of friction is situated between 2,000 ~ and 4,000 ~, that is much lower than for Catalan. In

other cases, it goes beyond 4,500 ~.

22Lafon, op. cit., p. 124. 7 6 .

b) The zone of maximum intensity is generally contained between

2,000 ~ and 3,000 ~; in 7 cases it reaches V,000~ and k,500 ~. In

this respect, [fi] would appear to resemble the Catalan fricative.

c) Of the 9 sonagrams recorded with frequencies up to 8,000 ~,

the friction band for one was from 2,000 ~ to 6,000 ~, for another one

from 2,000 ~ to 7,000 and one case exhibited a band from only 6 ,0 0 0~

to 7,000

On the basis of these observations, the following conclusions

can tentatively be formulated with regard to these allophonic

variants: (l) both Cs] and [g] are present in the corpus; (2 ) [g] has

a lower frequency than [s3; (3) its acoustic characteristics are closer

to those of a shibilant than to those of a sibilant; (!/.) though it

occurs under several and varied forms, at times its acoustic

characteristics resemble those of an apicoalveolar [g] (Catalan type).

Since transcription of the corpus was based on auditory perception, [s] was utilized to represent only the sound more closely

corresponding to the "normal" predorsal sibilant found in Standard

French, and [g] was used in the other cases.

5. Vibrants.— The gamut of vibrants existing in the corpus is such that it would be hopeless to try to identify all possible types of flaps and trills, and probably futile to determine their distri­ bution, for their various forms occur too often at random and are subject to frequent free variation from the part of the speaker. This situation is not unique Lc Saintongeais, it exists in most French dialects, and linguists have shown a particular reluctance to delve into this confused and confusing matter. 77

If to the ears of a speaker of Standard French these various

types of vibrants cause a wide range of impressions, some rather

puzzling, they do not impede in any respect his ability to identify

them as variants of the single vibrant which is part of his own

phonetic inventory.

A more discriminating ear can distinguish three basic types of

variants among the vibrants in the corpus: (l) one, [f], sounding like

a single flap, which approximates the type found in Spanish; (y) another,

[r], whose vibrations produce a "soft" trill and which is different

from the Spanish type of trill; (3) and one, [r], which at times closely

resemble the [R] of Standard French and at other times is more like

the type generally found in English.

Articulation of these three basic types can be described as

follows:

a) [f] represents the single flap articulated with the apex

of the tongue placed against the alveolar region; as such it can be

classified as an apicoalveolar flap.

b) [r] represents any type of trill ranging from uvular

(actually a dorsovelar articulation involving the vibration of the uvula) to apicoalveolar (similar to Spanish trill).

c) Cr] is ihe symbol used to represent any other type neither flap nor trill (it should be noted that it does not deserve the label of "vibrant" since the production of sounds of this type does not always involve vibration). It is any variety of dorso-palatal, -velar, or -uvular articulation which produces more a fricative than a truly vibrant sound. It is essentially a "transitional" sound. 78 •

To all these voiced consonants correspond their voiceless

counterparts, [ f], [?], and [r]. 0 0 o

An attempt was made to determine whether these three types

of vibrants could be identified on the sonagrams of 57 occurrences

of this phone. The criteria used were: length, intensity, voicing/ unvoicing, intensity peaks, presence and number of flaps. Only the last two criteria provide a system of classification which would confirm auditory impressions:

a) all 19 occurrences of [f] and [f] are characterized by o one single well-marked peak of intensity and one single closure, or flap; length varies from 3 to 7 cs.

b) [?] and [r] (6 occurrences) exhibit either two or three O clearly separated peaks of increasing intensity, the last one being the highest; length ranges from 6 to 9 cs. One interesting exception is: [e*ttsrijao | m^isfijao] (175)^ Et nous riions, mais nous riions. where because of emphasis the first vibrant consists of 7 peaks of varying intensity and lasts 20 cs. (the second vibrant, which is part of a non-emphatic statement, consists of one single flap of 3 cs.).

c) all other occurrences, which total 32, are made up of [r] and [r]. By contrast, these sonagrams do not display any marked peaks O of intensity, but either a depression, a rounded prominence, or an ascending (or descending) intensity curve. Their length varies from

2 to 9 cs., the longest consonant being generally found in final position.

In spite of the difficulties caused by a complete reliance on auditory impressions, the identification of each of these vibrants 79 was geniunely attempted while transcribing the corpus. Their

distribution being the same as in Standard French, voiceless variants were not transcribed as such.

B - Characteristic Vowels

A total of 22 vowels was identified in the corpus, that is 6 more than in Standard French. Of these, 1U are oral and 8 nasal. For the most part they correspond to the vowels of Standard French. The only French vowel missing in Saintongeais inventory is the questionable

C o e ], questionable especially in Standard Spoken French. The striking feature of Saintongeais inventory is the number of "unstable" vowels, unstable because they often occur with a great deal of free variation.

Indeed, in his study of Eastern Saintongeais Abb£ Rousselot did not fail to mention that there are "pas de rfegles precises pour fixer le timbre des voyelles.As a result, in addition to the French inventory, the corpus has two oral vowels, [i] and [u], and five nasal vowels, [T], [e], [o], [ae] and [a]. Vocalic length can be greater than in Standard French, a fact which accounts significantly for a difference in quality, especially with respect to nasals, for it often involves diphthongization or the presence of a glide.

The vocalic inventory presented here was painstakingly established on the basis of auditory impressions checked against a careful analysis of sonagrams of specially selected vowels. Only those vowels which do not belong to French will be examined.

23Rousselot, les modifications..., op. cit., p. $b. 8o .

1. Oral vowel [I].— This vowel is easily identified by the

ear: it fluctuates between [i] and le] from which it clearly differs.

Spectrographic analysis does not provide any definite clues since

varies from 250 to 300 ~ and F2 from 2,200 to 2,700 it can only

confirm the intermediate position of this vowel in relation with [iJ

and le]. Its rate of occurrence in a non-diphthongized nucleus is

very low.

2. Oral vowel [u].— The ear can easily recognize this vowel.

It stands between lu] and [o]. A survey of the lower formants of

this vowel reveals that F;j_ varies from 250 to 300 ~ and P2 is

situated at 700 ~ (while the respective values for [u] are 250/300 ~ and 500/600 and for lo] 500/600~ and 700 ~. These figures would

suggest that [u] is as close a vowel as [u] but more forward. A good comparison between these two vowels is provided by [lesuvni dmjnaf3:s]

(l) in which the respective values for and F2 are 250 ~ and 500 ~ for [u] and 250 ~ and 700 ~ for Cu]. However, the fact that lu] generally occurs in the environment of nasals and dentoalveolar fricatives might influence the nature, both auditory and acoustic, of this vowel.

3. Hasal vowel [*?].— Auditory impressions seem to indicate the possible, but rare, occurrence of a nasal probably more close than

[e], but this is difficult to ascertain. The absence of spectrographic analyses of this phone prevented a comparative study. However, solely on the basis of auditory impressions, some nasalized form of [ 1] was assumed to be present at times in association with [e] and as an off- glide. Sonagrams of these diphthongs provided no definite clue to confirm or disprove this assumption. 81 .

1|. Kasai vowel [ tT].— It was not possible to identify this

vowel from both the auditory and acoustic points of view without

comparing it with [?]. The ear can distinguish two types of this

nasal, one closer than the other. The examination of sonagrams would

confirm such auditory impressions, although little agreement seems

to exist as to the frequencies of the nasal formant. Sonagrams of

[e] show at 250/300 ~, F^_ at about 800 ~, and F2 at approximately

2,000 ~ (there is a great deal of variation). On the other hand,

sonagrams of [?] exhibit features resembling those of the French nasal

(in spite of differences due to the woman's voice): F(nj at 230/300 ~,

Fi at 750 ~, and F2 between 1,600 and 2,000. Although [?] is higher

as to its frequency distribution, it is impossible to oppose these

two nasals at the phonetic level: a whole series of intermediate variants fluctuates between these two extremes, close and open.

5. Kasai vowel [o],— As in the case of the preceding vowel,

[5] can be identified and recognized only when compared with the more open [0]. In fact, these velar nasals vary considerably as to their degree of closure, from [o] to [a], and it is often next to impossible to identify them when taken in isolation. Examination of sonagrams fails to provide a substantial proof as to the nature of acoustical differences between [o] and [0]. Formants for [o] are: F(n ) at

250/300 F^ at 800 ~, and Fg at 900 for [0] they are: F ^ at

250/300 ~, Fx at 800/900 ~, and F, at 900/1,000 ~. The first one appears to be more compact than the second, which shows great similarity with sonagrams of [a]. 82

Some errors resulting from faulty or dubious auditory

impressions are likely to be found in the transcription. However, the

decision of using these two separate phones as part of the vocalic

inventory was judged to be preferable to that of using only onej its

aim is to reveal the degree of variability of these nasals and also to

reflect subjective effects caused by auditory perception.

6. Nasal vowel [as].— This vowel is found only in diphthongs

of the type [sa] or [sea] which occur in final, or stressed, position.

Since the examination of several sonagrams fails to reveal any

significant features as to its formants, the identification of this

vowel is solely dependent upon auditory perception: it is more open

than [?], it is perceived as an intermediary between [e] and [a],

and it sounds like an [?] modified, or assimilated, by the second

element of the diphthong.

7. Nasal vowel [al.— This "very open" vowel is characterized

by its anteriority. It is perceived as being more closely related to

an [e] than to posterior [a]. In fact, these auditory impressions

are confirmed by acoustical analysis. Examination of sonagrams

reveal for [a] the following formants: F(n ) at 250/500 ~, at

800/900 ~, and F2 at approximately 1,500 ~. On the other hand,

sonagrams of [a] show these formants: F(n ) at 250/300 ~, F^ at about

800 ~, and F2 at 1,000 (thus rather similar in values to [o]'s formants). The distinction between [a] and [a] is clearly well- defined on the basis of these two criteria: anterior versus posterior articulation. 85

In numerous cases, discrimination between these vowels with regard to identification and selection was no easy task. The reasons are several and varied. Auditory perception, which is not always reliable, was hampered by the fact that several of these vowels do occur in free variation. As a result, it was felt judicious to check auditory impressions against spectrographic records. However, sonagrams failed at times to provide conclusive answers: (l) because the informant's voice was that of a woman, results already established for French norms based on a male voice had to be adjusted; (2) free variation and diphthongization was such, especially with regard to , oh nasals, that at times these norms provided little guidance.

Nevertheless, the results presented here have been carefully checked on numerous occasions and over a period of several months; within the limited scope of this part of the research they do reflect, in the writer’s opinion, the true nature of the phonetic inventory of the corpus.

II - Combinatory Phonetics

Compared with Standard French, Saintongeais offers a number of differences with regard to the nature of some of its phonetic segments and their mutual interrelationship when occurring in strings.

A discussion of the various aspects of these differences will be presented under this main heading.

2^Pierre Delattre, "La Nasality vocalique en franqais et en anglais," French Review, XXXIX, 1 (October 1965), pp. 92-109 8k.

A - Diphthongization

Saintongeais syllables do not differ from French syllables

as far as syllabation is concerned.

As in French, syllabic nuclei are generally stable: the

muscular tension which takes place during the articulation of vowels

remains sustained. This is particularly true when Saintongeais vowels

are short. However, whenever length is involved in the production of

some vowels, nasals especially, diphthongization or the occurrence of

a glide may take place, a phenomenon never present in French.

It is generally conceded (Grammont, Fouchd, Straka, and others) that French has no diphthongs or diphthongized vowels, but

"pure” vowels. The quality of French vowels, whether short or long, is at all times remarkably stable, a result of their mode of articulation which tolerates little or no variation in constriction once the maximum degree of tension is reached. It is of interest to note that in Saintongeais some vowels have a tendency to lengthen under certain conditions (some different from French) and that as a result their quality may become affected to the point of forming a diphthong or a diphthongized vowel.

Vowels that are subject to this type of modification are:

[e:] ~ [ei]

[e:] ~ [ee]

[^:] ~ [ce:] ~ [ce£

[o:] ~ [ou]

[o:] ~ [d o ]

[a:] ~ [ao] ~ [ctiu] 8 5

[e:] ~ [ei] ~ [ei]

[5:] ~ [56] ~ [oo]

[a:] ~ [Sa] ~ [asa] ~ [aa] ~ [aa]

[a:] ~ [ao] ~ [ao]

It would be interesting to know whether the corpus contains true diphthongs (i.e. two vocalic elements of different quality, one being more stressed than the other) or diphthongized vowels (i.e. the quality of the less stressed element does not change to a degree such as to have a quality not very different from that of the stressed vowel).Actually, this type of Saintongeais vowels are subject to so much free variation that it is impossible to classify them neatly into one or the other group. Acoustical analysis provides little assistance in this respect: in some cases, there seems to be two different sets of formants; in other cases, formants seem to be modified by pitch. Auditory perception conveys the same type of ambivalent impressions. Consequently, it is very likely that both diphthongs and diphthongized vowels exist.

The only definite statement that can be formulated about this phenomenon is that only the first vocalic element is more stressed than the second; diphthongs are of the descending type, and diphthongized vowels do have an off-glide. The second element may be partially devoiced in the case of oral vowels, it may be partially or totally denasalized in the case of nasal vowels. These observations are confirmed on a few sonagrams.

2^Pierre Delattre, "Voyelles diphtongu^es et voyelles pures," French Review. XXXVII, 1 (October 1965), pp. 6k-76. 86

Length, pitch, and stress parameters vary to such an extent

that neither acoustical analysis nor auditory perception, jointly or

separately, can provide sufficient discriminatory indications to

determine the exact nature of these "complex" vowels. Consequently,

it must be pointed out that some of the transcriptions adopted here may be open to criticism: the evidence upon which they have been established may be too flimsy. However, should they be accurate, it would appear that, when lengthened, such oral vowels tend to close and devoice and the nasals to denasalize and probably devoice.

A tentative explanation of this phenomenon, referred here under the generic term "diphthongization,11 is proposed: (l) lengthening of the more open vowels is such that toward its final phase it may induce, as free variation, a more or less marked degree of muscular laxness; (2 ) this muscular laxness increases as the open character of the vowel increases.

B - Schwa

General rules have been formulated with regard to the occurrence and distribution of [©] in French. These rules are hardly adequate because of the number of exceptions they avoid or conceal and because they apply to Standard French only. It is a matter of challenge for a few linguists who are trying to formulate new rules or o/T

^Pierre Delattre, "Le jeu de l'E^nstable interieur en franqais," French Review. XXIV, U (February, 1951), PP« 5U1-51*

^Pierre Leon, "Apparition, maintien et chute du 'E' caduc," La Linguistique. 2 (Paris: P.U.F., 1966). pp. 111-122. 87 .

occurrence and distribution of schwa are among the main characteristics

which at the phonetic level characterise and divide Standard French,

Popular French, and even Regional French. In this respect, i.e. in its

distribution, Saintongeais [s] is closer to Popular French,2® ’ 2^ but

still quite erratic and subject to free variation as evidenced by the

following examples.

a) Beginning of a syntagm:

following a consonant it may or may not'occur: [hSzwe StSdy]

(580), 1je l ’ai entendu,' ~ ChzwavS StSdy] (382), 'nous l'avons entendu1; Chsva] (7 k) ~ Lhva] (l8h), 'je vais'; [hSmStfepw?] (278),

' je ne monterai pas,' ~ [hraStfepytu] (279), 'je monterai plutot';

yet, in spite of these variations, the trend is to avoid schwa, even after a stop: [kvulevu] (51 ), 'que voulez-vous.'

b) Inside a syntagm, [s] is generally present when it is preceded by at least two consonants: [bosdorirr] (99), 'bosse de rire';

LkSfityr dspwelr] (137)* 'confiture de poires'; [a*bafb8zjpG (103), 'a

Barbezieux'; [idhsmSa] (283), 'une jqment'; [lahmSa] (283), 'la jument.'

c) In final position, schwa is always absent whenever emphasis or hesitation are not involved.

d) Syllables in succession may contain a [9] each (some of these occurrences may, however, have a prosodic value difficult to ascertain): [h9m9s/abo)£e] (15), 'je me suis embauchee'; [hsfeza] (250),

'nous faisons';

2®Henri Bauche, Le langage populaire (Nouvelle edition; Paris; Payot, 1951), pp. 36-7. 2°Pierre Guiraud, Le franqais populaire (Paris; P.U.F., 1565), pp. 97-100. 8 8

but in general, and unlike Standard French (and more like

Popular French), the first [a] tends to disappear while the second one remains: [ehmss^debafbuje] (l88), 'et je me suis ddbarbouillde1;

[kahmss^eveje] (189), 'quand je me suisdveillde1; [kiavaala‘port]

(195), 'que le vent l'emporte'; [rvsny] (176), 'revenue.'

e) Schwa can be used to formulate emphatic statements:

[# lamena'h] (251), 'le manage,' ~ [imena’h safozepwe’suva*] (255), 'le manage ne se faisait pas souvent'; [hava] (257), 'je vais';

or it is used in final position, especially to express doubt or hesitation: [alo*ra] (106), 'alors'; [notfa] (260), 'notre.'

f) Schwa is present in some words, as in French: tpeno] (127),

'penaud'; [saref] (255), 'serein';

or it may absent in others: [tynulamnra py] (8l), 'tu ne nous l'am&neras plus'; [pabzwe] (196), 'pas besoin.1

C - Gemination

The occurrence of double consonants of the same type is avery common phenomenon, probably more common in Saintongeais than in

Standard French because of more frequent vocalic elisions.

A few examples of the types of gemination that would be found in Standard French are: [ladcga] (65, 7b, 155), 'la-dedans'; [inno’s]

(151), 'une noce'; [ikokkure] (1 7 b), 'le coq courait'; [evejelladmemate]

(189), 'eveill^e le lendemain matin'; [dima^enu] (59), 'dimanche chez nous’; [olafalyssepare] (212), 'il a fallu se separer.'

Other examples would more likely be found in Popular French, such as: £nuttwa*let] (MO, 'notre toilette'; [issatanale] (6^), 'ils se sont en alles'; [lepowj^] (207), 'les pauvres vieux.' 8 9

As in French, gemination occurs also at the morphological

level: [tyvirra] (355), 'tu tourneras'; [hamurro pwe] (358), 'nous

n'en mourrons pas.'

D - Final consonants

A considerable amount of variation is found in Saintongeais

with regard to some consonants in final position. As a result, this

affects the close or open nature of the final syllable in some words.

In an article on this subject, J.P. Collas^0 points out the

remarkable variety as to the occurrence, and non-occurrence, of final

occlusives and final [r] in the dialects of the Poitou area.

Consonants which in the corpus are affected by their final,

or "implosive," position will be divided here into two separate

groups: single consonants and consonant clusters. Such implosive

consonants are seldom found in Standard French: final consonants

are articulated by means of a distinct "explosion" which involves

the opening of the oral cavity to some degree.

a) Single consonants which remained unaltered in French but

which may be altered in Saintongeais are: [l], [t], and [n].

[l] varies considerably from its voiced form (as in [pul]

(85), 'poules'; [egal] (lk), '£gal'; [abil] (l8 ), 'habile') to such

"faint" unvoicing (as in [egal] (16k), 'dgal'). Between these extremes O there exists a number of partially devoiced forms which are next

^®J.P. Collas, "A note on final consonants in the Poitevin area," Studies in French language and Medieval literature presented to Professor Mildred K. Pope (Publications of the University of Manchester, No. 268; Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1939), pp. 71-7 7 . See also Pignon, Evolution.... op. cit., pp. 471-76. 90

to impossible to identify with any degree of certainty either from

auditory perception or acoustic analysis.

[t] also varies considerably. It may be fully articulated

(as in [lehu*t] (368), 'les bettes1), or it may be weakened to the point

of becoming barely audible, (as in [vi:t] (’’7 ), 'vite'; [ho;t] (196),

'haute'), or it may even be not audible at all (as in [vi;] (9), 'vite').

[ft] tends to lose its palatal characteristics: [akopan] (3-')*

'accompagne,' although there is also [*mPrtaft] (lO'O, 'Mortagne.'

The corpus exhibits only one instance in which the final

French consonant is replaced by another one: [*hftzat] (10), 'Jonzac.'

If the corpus were more extensive, other forms of the same type would

undoubtedly been found: over the whole Saintonge area one can hear for

instance: [*hozat] ~ [*h5za], 'Jonzac'; [*kuftat] ~ [%ufta], 'Cognac.'

This is matter for discussion in a later chapter.

In some instances a [t] may be added to the vowel that exists

in French, but this is subject to variation: [pjat] (289) ~ [pja.]

(275), 'plat'; [ftnefet] (l-'8 ), 'en effet'; [buket] (197), 'bouquet.'

Some hesitation is involved in the addition of this final consonant, hesitation which is more overtly expressed in some cases of sandhi, as

in [li] (62), 'lit,' ~ [lelite^ou] (60), 'le lit est chaud.' The case

of [nvcs:r] (286), 'neveu,' is the unique occurrence of a [r] being added to the French final vowel of a non-verb; on the other hand is the con­ verse case of [suvni] (l), 'souvenirs.' And the final consonant found in Standard French is missing in [laswei] ~ [laswa.] (293), 'la soil’.'

A number of verbs ending in -ir in French lack in Saintongeais the final consonant. All these cases are stable; they are not prone to 91 variation; [kuri*] (172, 175), 'courir'; [tqyji] (193) ~ Cgyji-j

(531), 'cueillir'; [ga-ti] (337), 'sentir'; [vni] (35), 'venir';

[gari] ~ [geri] (370), 'gusrir.' Other verbs retain finalconsonant:

[di:r] (19''), 'dire1; [asi*r] (275), 'asseoir'; [ri;r] (50), 'rire.1

b) Final consonant clusters which are subject to variations

can be divided into two groups: the ones containing [r] as a second

element, and the others containing [l].

With respect to the firstgroup, French cluster -[tr] becomes variously modified in Saintongeais. Some rare occurrences involving

chuchotement of [r] (as in [o:tr] 21, 'autres') are probably " O " " influenced by Standard French. The most frequent occurrences are

found under two forms: retention of the first consonant and disappearance of the second (as in [nuzo:t] (6l), 'nous autres'; [ino:t] (77), 'une autre'; [kat] (82, 156), 'quatre'; [vi*t] (269), 'vitre'; [met] (^’'5 ),

'mettre'), or the disappearance of the whole cluster (as in [dj^zo:] (25),

'deux autres'; [katro:] (25), 'quatre autres'). This last example is interesting, for it illustrates the type of variations taking place in the corpus: here the word quatre, which is not in final position, retains its cluster although this seems contrary to a whole set of occurrences such as; [katfwa] (262), 'quatre fois'; [inotfwa] (277),

'une autre fois'; [ot)(u:z] (l1^), 'autre chose1; and [&tl9matla] (23''),

'entre le matelas.' The occurrence of [nutfs] (260), 'notre,' is due to hesitation from the part of the speaker.

French clusters -[kr] and -[vr] remain generally unchanged:

[sy*kr] (137), 'sucre'; [kMi:vr] (317), 'cuivre.' One exception is

[po*v] (171, 201), 'pauvre,' which was not found in final position. 92

In most of the other cases, the second consonant disappears,

especially if the first one is a voiced stop: [kud] (300), 'coudre';

[pf3:d] (178, ^73), ’prendre'; [ne-g] (190), 'noire1; [)&-b] (62),

'chambre.' At the same time the first consonant tends to be devoiced.

Similarly, with regard to consontant clusters whose second element is [l], a great amount of free variation takes place. Either the liquid disappears, or the first consonant becomes palatalized.

As shall be examined later, palatalization of these clusters is not subordinate to their position, final or non-final.

For French cluster -[pi] Saintongeais will have either only the first consonant (as in [egzS-p] (78), 'exemple') or its palatization (as in [inkupj] (57)> 'une couple'). Palatalization does not necessarily occur in a non-final position: [inkupdsga*]

(36), 'une couple de gars.'

As for French cluster -[bl], the same types of variations are found to be present: either the liquid consonant disappears, often leaving a partially devoiced [b] (as in: [tab] (85, 87), 'table';

[dja:b] (2>'9), 'diable1; or even [kovnab] (35), 'convenable'), or [b] is palatalized, as shown by this example; [do-sabjdssy] (180), 'du sable dessus' (there is no example for such cluster in a final position).

On single occurrence of complete eradication of the cluster was noted, in [be•nema] (31), 'bien aimable.'

French clusters -[kl] and -[gl] tend to palatalize, as in:

[o:qj] (287), 'oncle’; [epe:j] (319), 'epingle.'

E - Sandhi

Some types of sandhi found in the corpus differ in several 95 respects from those v/hich occur in Standard French. A few of these

types can also be found in Popular French. However, if liaisons in

Standard and Popular French are mostly derived from spelling (and at

times tend to exaggerate this relationship, as in [ISateryri&dso],

'chanter une chanson'; [tadisks], 'tandis que'), it seems that

Saintongeais liaisons generally rely on the almost exclusive use of

[n] and [t], with little regard for spelling. In this respect a

certain degree of instability, i.e. free variations, is present, probably as the result of Standard French influence.

Although sandhi is part of morphophonemic alternations (some

specific types will be listed in the chapter on Morphology), it will be discussed here in general terms and only as it differs from Standard

French. Three types of comparison will be formulated on this basis,

a) Sandhi present in Saintongeais; absent in French.

Saintongeais uses [n] in the following cases: (l) [pwe],

'point,' + [n] + V and (2) V + [n] + [5], 'en.' Actually this should not be considered as a form of sandhi, but rather as a type of morphophonemic change involving these two morphemes (it will be listed as such in the chapter on Morphology). Examples are: [pw§n§vite] (152),

'point invitees'; [pw?.naseho:t] (263), 'point assez haute'; [pwgnako-r]

(211), 'point encore'; and [avetetenStqjy*ji] (195), 'avait ete en cueillir'; [anSkope] (265), 'elle en coupait'; [anSnahute] (265), 'elle en ajoutait'; [kinanavdpoy] (21''), 'qui n'en ont pas eu.' However, it should be pointed out that in one instance the rule is not observed:

OhSapjo] (50), 'nous en appelions.'

On the other hand, [t] is even more frequent a form of sandhi;^- it is found in intervocalic position under certain conditions

of a morphological nature. T h e y number three:

after verbs avoir or aller in the third person singular (as

in: [j3nat§] (70), 'il y en a un'; [kStilateteparti-] (99), 'quand il

a etd parti1; [kStolatetelos^] (157), 'quand qa a ^te l'heure'; [ *rem3«

vatale] (211), 'Raymond v aller');

after an infinitive in -[i] (see preceding heading); for

instance; [akufitapfelho] (175), 'a courir aprfes le coq';

after some nouns or adjectives ending with a vowel (which

causes a certain hesitation '.-.'hen these words occur in final position,

as shown in preceding heading_; another example is: [tulezSdfetuheete]

(20''), 'tous les endroits oh. j'ai ete; yet, this word is found in final position as [k3sunadfe] (''6 ), 'dans son endroit.'

b) Sandhi absent in Saintongeais; generally present, or optional, in French.

It is found after such particles as dans, pas, mais: [dSin^eiz]

(265), 'dans une chaise'; [pccSpe^e] (128), 'pas emp^che'; [pay] (21''),

'pas eu'; [meilete] (121), 'mais il etait'; [me3fS] (129), 'mais enfin.'

It is found also with certain verb forms, as: [avey] (5),

'avait eu'; [havgete] (207), 'nous avons ete.'

c) Sandhi different in both Saintongeais and French.

French plural morph [z] is not expressed after participles and nouns; in Saintongeais, it is replaced by [t]. Examples: [nuvla

3lAlbert Dauzat, "Le francais regional de St. Georges de Didonne, Etudes de linguistique frangajse (Paris: d'Artrey, 19’’5), PP- l''8-,,7- 95 .

partitSnoto] (206), 'nous voila partis en auto'; [isetjatavny

taveknu] (36), 'ils ^taient revenus avec nous'; [tuleza&ifetuheete]

(20' ), 'tous les endroits oti j'ai etd.'

As shall be mentioned in Chapter VI, [l] is used for sandhi

between /o/ impersonal pronoun and a vowel, as in: [olatete] (157),

'il a etd'; [olafaly] (212), 'il a fallu'; [olifa] (279), 'qa ira.'

In [ukolave kde*bwao (l'Jl), 'oil il n'y avait que des bois,' sole

occurrence of this type, is very likely due to a lapsus linguae.

As a final note, it would seem that in Saintongeais more

than in French sandhi plays a more "forceful" function in maintaining

a CVCV type of syllabic structure. This is shown in numerous instances

where sandhi occurs after an open juncture, such as:[kitatsea3ta*s?diz^5a]

(255-56), 'qui t'attend a Saint-Dizant'; [afaze tinfob] (259-60),

'elle faisait une robe'; [ananahute t?mtila] (265), 'elle en ajoutait

un peu la.' There is also an example with a single-bar juncture;

[havodi | todja;b] (2U9), 'nous avons dit: "Au diable..."'

F - Palatalizations

One of the most striking differences between Saintongeais and

French is palatalization. A relatively larger number of Saintongeais

forms contain either palatal consonants [q] or [j] or some palatalized

consonants. A good illustration of this phenomenon is found in:

[ometunre kofre bja* dme* kunq^ | he§tady laqjo-^ d8 *sediza>a be-kje:r amate‘] (338-^0 ), 'qa m'etonnerait qu'il fasse beau domain comme qa,

j'ai entendu la cloche de Saint-Dizant dien claire ce matin.' With regard to this general tendency for palatalization, verb paradigms sho*w that the third person plural inflexion of imperfect contains a [j] in initial position: [alavja] (197), 'elles avaient'; [fszja]

(221), 'faisaient.’

As a basis for comparison, a listing of palatalized forms

found in the corpus and non-palatalized French forms is shown on

Chart III. This listing will also illustrate the degree of variation

that can exist in Saintongeais. Subjected to various influences,

palatalization can, indeed, be described as being a rather "fluid"

or unstable phenomenon only only with regard to Saintongeais alone

but also to other French dialects.52

It must be pointed out that in spite of the considerable

care devoted to transcribe as accurately as possible the various

manifestations of palatalization in the corpus, it is yet possible

that in some particular instances the transcriptions adopted here

may be questionable. Indeed, it is very difficult, probably even

for a seasoned phonetician, to make a clear-cut distinction, using

only his hearing and a spectrograph, between such sounds as [§],

Ctql, [qj], Ctqj], [kj], [kqj], [pj] and their voiced or partially

voiced counterparts. In fact, palatalization of stops in French

dialects can be extremely c o m p l e x . 53 Actually this complexity

may be only apparent, since it can be viewed as the result

of a fusion between dental and velar consonants which takes

52^s summarized in: Walther von Wartburg, Problfemes et methodes de la linguistique (2e. Edition augmentee et refondue; Paris: P.U.F., 1963), pp. 20-22.

33see Chapter II in: Karin Ringenson, Etude sur la palatali­ sation de K devant une voyelle anterieure en Frangais (Paris; Champion, 1922). 97

French [k] + V [

French [kl] [93 ] M [kl] oncle [o:gj] (287) clarinette [gjarinet] (313) [kjarinet] (313) cloche [goo*£l (339) [kjo*j£] (31*0 clou [go'u*] (31*0 [kju*] (31*0 eclair [egjetr] (317) [ekje:r] (317) clair • [kje:r] (339) eclat [ekja] (50) Clementine [•%Oematin] (26) enclume [akjym] (335) bicyclette [bisikjet] (367) [bisiklet] (107, 367)

French [bl] [b;j] Cbl] blanc [bjsea] (331) sable [sabj] (l8o) bleu [bjy*] (306) [ b l y ] (306)

C H A R T III.

PALATALIZED FORMS AND VARIATIONS 98

French [pi] [pj] [p] plancher [pja*£e] (3^9) pleine [pjen] (23*0 plat [pjat] (275) place [pja* s] (276) pluraer [pjyme] (li8 ) app(e)lions [apjo] (30) plaindre [pjefdr] (288) plaisir [pje*zi*t] (289) couple [kupj] (57) [kup] (56) plutot, plus [pjytu] (b9) [py] (81, 203) exeraple . [egza-p] (78)

French [gl] [gj] til eglise [egjirz] (519) glace [ja] (281) epingle [epe:j] (519) aveugle [av^:j] (302)

French [g] + V [gj] til [g] guere [gjeir] (221) [geir] (3 ) guepe [je:p] (320) gui [gi*] (320) gueri [geri] (370) gue [ge] (1^6 ) fatigue [fatige] (6 )

French [gq] Cgj] til aiguille I [agjy-j] (119) [ajy*j] (337)

CHART IV

PALATALIZED FORMS ADD VARIATIONS French [ f1] C fj] fleur j [fjossr] (193)

French [lj] [ j ] collier [koje] (315) soulier [suje] (102) lierre [jeer] (281)-) saliere [sajerr] (292) lieuse [j^:z] (167)

French [p] + [o] [ p j ] . peau [pja] (112)

French [b] + [o] Cbj] beau ; [bja] (339)

French [ s] [Q] ici [iQi] (20) 9a, ce, cet [ 9$ (11, 351) [tqjjiJ] (23) cette [ ?et] (198, 351) ces [gele] (48, 97)

CHART V

PALATALIZED FORISS ADD VARIATIONS 100

place with a \;ide range of free variation one way or another.^ This

has been reported by a number of phoneticians with regard to "vulgar

pronunciation.

In a few cases, however, acoustic analysis provided a most

useful means of checking auditory impressions. For instance, in

[epe:j] (319), 'epingle,1 the sonagram shows for the last consonant

a definite voice-bar (below 500 ~) and a friction zone located

between 2,000 and 3,200 thus features not very different from those

expected of a [j]. On the other hand, a sonagram of [o:qj] (287),

’oncle,' exhibits a similar but shorter [j] with a "grey" voice-bar

which is preceded by a consonant characterized by a series of friction

zones from 2,000 to 8,000 ~, apparently [9].

Such clearly defined comparisons are unfortunately seldom

available: in the case of this informant, free variations as to the

type and degree of palatalization are too great and are even involved

in the repetition of some words. This phenomenon is not peculiar to

the informant’sidiolect. It was casually noticed not only with regard

to her husband and son, but among other speakers in the same community.

It was also noted by Pignon during his investigation in the Poitou area.-"

These variations can be ascribed to two reasons: (l) the -wide

^■'Straka, op. cit., pp. 153-6.

35h. Sten, Manuel de phonetique frangaise (Copenhagen: Munksgaard, 1963), pp. }-'5 and p. 52.

-^Pignon, L 1 evolution..., op. cit., p. 38-1'. 101 range of differing types of palatalization over the whole area; (d) the differing effects caused the impact of Standard French upon the various individuals of each generation, in each community. This apparently affected idiolects in varying degrees. A good example is qui, which is expressed by all speakers the writer knows as [ki], but which occasionally "relapses" into [

Indeed, on one occasion, she did correct herself: [qila kilapwST] (98),

'qu'il n'a, qu'il n'a point.'

Except for forms involving a [5], all, other forms are generally found in Popular French.

G - Assimilation and Dissimilation

The various types of assimilation found in the corpus offer no specially marked differences from those which exist in Standard

French. Regressive assimilation is by far more common: it generally involves the partial or total voicing of [p], [t], [k], [f], [s] when followed by their voice! counterparts, and conversely.

In such cases, auditory impressions as well as the examination of a few sonagrams generally reveal partial assimilation, as in

French, i.e. varying degrees of voicing or devoicing which are seldom 37 38 accompanied by a change in lenis or fortis. } Phonetic trans­ cription of the corpus does not specifically indicate these cases, only total assimilation is transcribed.

a) Examples of partial voicing: [asbagno*de] (8U), 'a se

27Straka, op. cit., p. 10 38 Sten, op. cit.. p. 109 baguenauder'; [bosdsritr] (99), 'bosse de rire'; [kde] (l>-’■),

'que des*; [futbal] (202), 'football.1

b) Examples of partial devoicing: [atf?*dpjetine] (251), 'en

train de pi^tiner'; [emtidtu] (26l), 'un peu de tout'; [ffotedsy.]

(272), 'frotte dessus'; [kodkud] (96), 'coup de coude.'

c) Examples of total assimilation (unvoicing plus fortis):

[totfyzi] (7 '-i, lb-7 ), 'coups de fusil'; [kotsiza] (266), 'coup de

ciseaux'; [kotpje] (321), 'coup de pied.'

d) Assimilation affects voiceless velar stops when followed

by [1?]. A study of three sonagrams (7 , 17, 191) points to a probable

total assimilation of the stop and thus seems to confirm auditory

impressions. Yet, auditory perception does not clearly distinguish between a [g] or a possible [13] in a nasal environment. Examples:

[qjfehurr] (7 , 17), 'quelques jours'; [pSda^etjo] (151), 'pendant que nous etions1; [pSSSgjetila] (191), 'pendant que j'etais la' (yet, these last two examples may be: [padStjhetjo] and [pSd3rfietila]).

e) With regard to [q] + [j] there may be few cases of regres­ sive assimilation. Auditory perception descerns partial voicing of the first consonant, a fact which seems to be confirmed by acoustical analysis:' sonagrams (25, 193, 291) show a [q] which has lost much of its friction characteristics at higher frequencies and which thus closely resembles the following consonant. Examples;, [tqj^] (23),

’qa’; [tqjy-ji-] (193), 'cueillir'; [qj£:z] (291), 'quinze.'

f) There also exists a few cases of nasal assimilation. The unique case of [&*ne] (19), 'annee,' should probably be considered as non-dissimilation viewed in a diachronic perspective. The frequent 103

occurrence of [meTm] (29), 'm&ne,1 should be considered in the same

way. However, the case of [rSnnuzo:t] (35), 'rien que nous autres,1

is interesting since it results from double assimilation.

g) Finally, the loss of final consonants (mentioned in a

previous heading) might be considered as being the result of

assimilation. Example: [hyst] (125) ~ [hy-g] (152), 'juste.1

In Saintongeais, as in French, progressive assimilation takes

place whenever [r] is followed by [p], [b], [k], [f], [s], in which

case it is generally totally devoiced. Examples are: [ffe] (26), O 'froid'; [aptfe] (175), 'apr&s'; [kjfe:m] (199), 1 crfeme, 1

As a final remark, it should be mentioned that with regard

to [)fj no assimilation was observed, a fact which might be inter­

preted as being caused by its marked fortis feature. It seems to

remain voiceless at all times. Two sonagrams reveal that it is not

affected by the presence of a following voiced consonant: [)£vo] (!,3,

!i6), 'cheval.'

Two instances of dissimilation were noticed: [vej] (22, 59),

'vieille,' and [af3:s] (l), 'enfance.1 Although in the second instance

evidence of a lack of nasalization of the first vowel derives from

audition and acoustical analysis (this vowel lacks the characteristic

F(n )), it may be a case of lapsus linguae. It may -well be that the

speaker was confused between the Saintongeais form 'efance,1 attested

in dictionaires, and the French form.

H - Metathesis

Disregarding any diachronic considerations and comparing only the data contained in the corpus with Standard French, a number 10>'

of metathetic inversions were noted. They all involve a vibrant

consonant (in some cases transcriptions of [oe] vs. [g] cannot be

considered as reliable: [p£fn] (292), 'prune1; [vadcefdi] (359),

'vendredi1; [otfem=e3] ~ [otsfnga] (360), 'autrement'; [jpeftu] (35'')>

1 partout1; [ffsma*h] (190), ~ [ftefma*h] ~ [ffcema*h] (365), ’fromage';

[havodafjo] (376), 'nous voudrions.; [tltehu] (156, 2^2 ) ~ [tcsrhu] (’’8 ,

8>'), 'toujours.' It is possible that this type of inversion occurs

in [$er)(e], 'chercher,' but the occurrence of [)£n$)(e] could not be

established with any degree of certainty.

Ill - Prosodic Patterns

Ask French speakers who have heard at least a portion of the

corpus to express what type of features struck them as being most

markedly different from his own speech, chances will be that their

answers are equally divided between "sounds" and "intonation." Such

subjective judgments indicate that to a French ear, Saintongeais phonetic segments sound about as "peculiar" or "puzzling" as features

of a prosodic nature.

Prosodic patterns are defined as the various combinations of length (or duration), intensity (or volume), pitch (or tone) which occur between junctures. Auditory impressions reveal that prosodic patterns contained in the corpus differ appreciably in several respects from the ones usually found in Standard French. In the writer's opinion, such impressions should not be ascribed solely to the informant's idiolect; this can be generalized and applied to all

Saintongeais speakers with whom he has been acquainted.

However, in order to substantiate and illustrate the most 1 0 5

striking features of Saintongeais prosody, a number of sonagrams of

strings taken from the corpus was analyzed. The result of some of

these figure on separate pages at the end of this chapter. The

analysis of each string is represented on five different lines for

the following purposes: line (l/) for phonetic segments and junctures;

line (2/) for length of each segment, measured in centiseconds; line

(3/) for syllabic length, also in centiseconds; line (b/) for

intensity value(s) of syllabic nuclei taken at vocalic peak or peaks,

if more than one, measured in decibels; line (5/) for frequency

value(s), measured in cycles per second, of the vowel’s first harmonics

and its variations, if any.

In order to facilitate the comparison between French and

Saintongeais prosody, a rapid survey of French patterns must be

formulated first.

Although phoneticians have devoted much attention to the

relative values of the three parameters— length, intensity, and

pitch— , a certain degree of confusion and little agreement have been expressed on this matter. While most agree that stress, which

is often ill-defined, falls on the last syllable of a syntagm, recent

experiments conducted under Straka (still unpublished) seem to

disprove at least in part this assumption.

The term "stress" can be confusing: it may be used inter­ changeably with "intensity," probably because the chief characteristics of stress in English is ascribed to intensity. Here, however, this term is applied only to designate any type of prosodic prominence resulting from any one of the three parameters or of their various combination. 106

In an early article, Delattre ^ states with regard to final

stress in non-emphatic speech that: (l) intensity does not vary

appreciably on final syllables from that on non-final syllables;

(2 ) pitch varies greatly with rising or falling intonation, but it is

not essential, only accessory, to the perception of stress; (3 ) length

is the most prominent factor in perception of stress in French

(measurements prove it: stressed [e] and [e] are— taking into account variations in length due to consonantic environment— approximately

twice as long when unstressed).

However, in a later article*'^ he ascribes more importance to pitch with regard to the total perception of intonation patterns.

On the other hand, Rigault'1^- interpreting the results of a remarkable experiment notes that if stress is produced exclusively by pitch it is perceived as resulting from intensity. He concludes that the matter of stress is so complex that a systematic and thorough study is essential to ascribe the respective values to each parameter.

In short, the basic prosodic pattern of a non-emphatic

Standard French utterance is generally described in these subjective terms: (l) a "smooth" succession of syllabic segments, all rsnarkaMy constant

39pierre Delattre, "L'accent final en franqais* accent &'intensity, accent de hauteur, accent de duree," French Review, XII, 2 (December, 1938), pp. 3-7*

l!0pierre Delattre, "Les dix intonations de base du franqais," French Review, XL, 1 (October, 1966), pp. 1-lk.

,’-*-Andre Rigault, "Role de la frequence, de 1'intensity et de la duree vocaliques dans la perception de l1accent franqais," Proceedings of the Fourth International Congress of Phonetic Sciences, in Helsinki, 1961 (The Hague: Mouton, 1962), pp. 733-''8- 107 and even with regard to length, intensity and a progressively rising

pitch; (2 ) degrees of vocalic modification (longer length, higher

intensity, rising or falling pitch) in the syllable immediately

preceding a Juncture. Indeed, such characteristics have been

advantageously put to didactic use.^*^

However, in the corpus the following auditory differences

are noticeable:

a) The flow of syllabic segments is not as "smooth" and it

lacks also the regularity found in French: variations in length, stress

and pitch are markedly more pronounced (either each separately or all

at once), thus giving the impression that each utterance is "more

expressive" or more emphatic than in French.

b) Displacement of stress: unlike in French it does not always

occur on the last syllable of the group. Some citation forms, even,

bear a paroxytonic stress, as for instance [ISkjym] (335), 'l'enclume1;

[hy* gkiqi] (336), 1 Jusqu1ici.'

c) Long vowels generally display a higher frequency level and

are also often longer than in French.

d) In strings of the declarative type, there is before Juncture

a higher incidence of rising pitch and a correspondingly lower incidence

of falling pitch.

^Pierre Delattre, Advanced training in French Pronunciation (Boulder: University of Colorado, 19^9).

^•^Pierre et Monique Leon, Introduction a la phondtique corrective (Paris: Hachette/Larousse, 1964). 108

e) Vowels preceding a juncture may be so markedly modified

by intensity and, pitch that their quality may be so altered as to

often sound like diphthongs or diphthongized vowels.

Undoubtedly, a separate and thorough study of prosodic

features in Saintongeais would be highly desirable, given the necessary

equipment for this undertaking. Because of the limited means utilized

here, it is almost impossible to dissociate systematically each of the

criteria which contribute to the make-up of prosodic patterns. Never­

theless, an honest attempt to examine the various features of juncture,

length, intensity and pitch will be presented in the subsequent headings.

Whenever possible, references will be made with regard to the specific

sample data drawn from acoustical analysis and listed separately.

A - Junctures

The usual three main types of junctures were adopted for the

transcription of the corpus; close, open, and terminal junctures.

Criteria upon which they are established are arbitrary, and, as a result, they become at times a source of difficulty with regard to

subjective, i.e. auditory, interpretation.

a) A close juncture consists of the transition from one segment to another in which no detectable pause is involved. Segments are grouped into syllables. Syllabification takes the form of V, CV,

CVC (the open type of syllable is preferred) and is in every respect similar to that found in Standard French.

b) Open junctures, [ ], or "plus" junctures so-called because they are sometimes transcribed [+], consist of a very slight retardation between syllables and may be accompanied with little (usually rising) 109

change in pitch. Such junctures were often difficult to recognize,

for the transcriber had to rely only on his own auditory experience.

c) Terminal junctures, which are easier to identify, consist

of pauses of varying length, but longer than in the preceding case.

The following three types were utilized:

Single-bar [|], or sustained juncture, involves either no

change in pitch or a slight lowering. This negligible change in pitch level is followed by a "relatively" short pause (relative with the following type). It applies to rhythmic groups.

Double-bar, [||], or rising junctures, involve a definite rise in pitch (as in a series of enumerations), and is followed by a relatively longer pause. They apply as well to rhythmic groups and breath groups.

Double-cross, [#], or falling juncture, generally involves a characteristic drop in pitch on the last syllable, usually is followed by a long pause, and indicates the end of an utterance. It applies to breath groups.

It must be added that such a scheme, however convenient, did not always fit the data contained in the corpus. A glance at the spectrographic samples will illustrate that the matter of determining junctures on this arbitrary basis often lacks accuracy and may entail some discrepancies.

B - Length (or Duration) kU According to another study by Delattre, a study limited to

^Pierre Delattre, "Accent de mot et accent de groupe," French Review. XIII, 2 (December 1939), pp. 1-6. 1 1 0

the relative duration of vowels preceding only single consonants,

duration is the most salient characteristic of French stress. He

observes that: (l) the final vowel in a rhythmic group is systematically

the longest; (2) the final vowel of "major" non-final words, in a

syntactic sense, is consistently of lesser duration, for such words

are only partially stressed (d£saccentu£s); (5) all other vowels

are shorter; (4) in conclusion, the relative values for these three

types of duration are respectively of the order 9, 6, and 4.

Long syllables usually involve long vowels or diphthongized

vowels. Consequently, duration, as it is here understood, relates

exclusively to vowels and not to consonants. In French, vocalic length

can vary appreciably, even in the case of one single idiolect.1*'*

However, it has been clearly established that it is directly dependent upon stress (as previously mentioned), upon the type of vowel (open, back and nasal vowels tend to be longer than close, anterior and oral vowels),1*^ and upon the consonantic environment which follows.1*^ It should be mentioned, however, that from a practical and auditory point of view, differences in length for each unstressed syllable is in practice negligible: the most characteristic feature of French ie-

^Georges Straka, "Systfemes des voyelles du franqais moderne," Bulletin de la Faculty des Lettres de Strasbourg (Strasbourg, 1950), p. 50.

^Straka, Album phonltique (op. cit.). pp. 114-5.

^Pierre Delattre, "Durde vocalique et consonnes subs^quentes," Le Maltre Fhon^tique, 6j (july-September, 1939)* Ill

is generally considered to be its rhythm, i.e. the succession of each U8. 1*9 syllable within a group.

As a result, the following rules for transcribing length in

French have been widely adopted: full-length, [:], (or double the

"normal" length of the vowel) for any stressed vowel, and half-length,

[•], for any "half-stressed" vowel, whenever any of these is followed

by [r], [z], [v], [2], [vr] or if these vowels are [o], [a], [^], or

a nasal followed by a consonant.

This subjective, and oversimplified, notion that Standard

French conveys the impression, with respect to duration, that segments

are neatly organized into groups of syllables of nearly equal length except for the syllable immediately preceding a terminal juncture, hardly fits Saintongeais. The corpus conveys noticeably different impressions.

There is much less "regularity" as to the duration of the successive syllables and of the vocalic nuclei: they range from short to half-long to long and possibly to very long in an apparently random order; length is not always dependent upon intensity and juncture.

Spectrographic sample (7) offers the following examples:

a) [hu:r] has a syllabic length of 25 cs. ([u:] with 12 cs.], but it is the least stressed syllable of the group with 16 db.;

b) [nu:] offers a similar case, with different figures;

^®Pierre Delattre, Principes de phongtique francaise a. I 1usage des ^tudiants anglo-am&ricains (2d ed.; Middlebury. Vt.: Ecole franqaise d'6t6 de Middlebury, 1951), P- ^5. 1*9 Pierre et Monique L6on, op. cit.. p. 70-2. 112

c) on the other hand, [le:£] and [ha] present a direct

correlation between length, stress and juncture.

In conclusion, the following remarks concerning length in

the corpus can be formulated:

a) vocalic length is not necessarily dependent upon

intensity;

b) open, back, or nasal vowels are longer than the other vowels having opposite characteristics;

c) Standard French rules of lengthening as to vocalic

quality in function consonantic environment apply (however, [h]

and [q] should be added to the list of affecting consonants);

d) any vowel placed in final position, i.e. before a juncture, tends to be long or may be diphthongized (its relative length varies according to remarks (b) and (c));

e) vocalic length in final syllables is not appreciably affected by the close or open nature of the syllable (maxima values for closed syllable are 28 and 38 cs., for open syllables 26 and

32cs.);

f) finally, length is subject to some degree of variation, as in [hemi.sngS] (k8) ~ [hemismS] (^9 ), 'ggmissements,1 in which emphasis plays little or not at all.

C - Intensity

The intensity, or accent expiratoire. which is applied to each syllable, and especially to each syllabic nucleus, can vary greatly. It can be measured in decibels on sonagrams by means of a special scale. Yet, unless the researcher knows the idiosyncrasies 113 of his spectrograph very well absolute values of such measurements are to be considered with some degree of caution. Nevertheless, the scale provides a significant type of data, the relative values which exist between the intensity of the various syllables in a given string.

As previously mentioned,3® the importance of intensity in

French has not been clearly established as yet. Like Rigault,

Malmberg states that French has a "fixed stress" placed on the last syllable of a group, and he considers that this is a prime charac­ teristic of that language.^ On the other hand, Delattre declares that intensity does not vary appreciably with regard to its position in the group. Nevertheless, auditory impressions produced by

Standard French confirm the fact that loudness,— i.e. perceived intensity— does fall, indeed, on the last syllable of each syntagm, that is in non-emphatic speech.

Impressions produced by the corpus are different: intensity varies more as to its values, and it seems to occur on any syllable, not necessarily the last one in the group. Such impressions can be verified by examining, for instance, intensity values given from the spectrographic sample taken from lines (8/9): in the first group of this sentence, maximum intensity falls on the second and penult

3®For references, see footnotes (37) and (39)•

53-Malmberg, Phonetics, op. cit., p. 8l. Ilk.

syllables; in the second group it falls on the second syllable; and

the third group is particularly remarkable for its divergence from

Standard French pattern.

Yet, such divergences should not be generalized, for instance,

maximum intensity falls on the final syllable of the first group in

sample taken from line (lU).

In conclusion, it can be stated that Saintongeais intensity

differs from that of French in the following respects:

a) variations in intensity values are very likely greater;

b) intensity does not necessarily fall on the last syllable of the group;

c) it appears to fall at random on any syllable (yet, a systematic study of this matter would undoubtedly reveal its "rules" of occurrence);

d) within any given group there may be more than one peak of maximal intensity, which gives the impression upon audition of jagged, up and down variations of intensity;

e) in about half the occurrences, one of these peaks of intensity falls on the penult syllable;

f) some long vowels may offer great variations in intensity, for instance, the [§] in Cq?(k5] (19), whose duration is 20 cs., has a fall from 30 db. to 23; occasionally such variations may occur on shorter vowels, as [i] in [apfSti] (lU), 13 cs. long, exhibits two intensity peaks at 22 and 30 db. respectively.

D - Pitch

Pitch, or the frequency value of the first harmonics, can 115

be measured with a fair degree of accuracy on sonagrams. By itself,

pitch offers little interest; per se it has no linguistic value. On

the other hand, intonation, or the relative values of pitch changes

within a group, provides patterns of a melodic nature which represent

linguistic significance.

Intonation patterns in Standard French are so numerous that

they seem to vary almost ad infinitum, especially with regard to

emphatic, emotional, or any "non-normal" utterances. Yet, in spite

of such complexities, some definite patterns are generally considered «52 to be basic in the following grossly simplified cases r

a) In utterances of the declarative type, intonation starts

at a medium pitch level, rises slightly on the last syllable(s)

preceding an open juncture, and falls rather sharply on the last

syllable(s) preceding a double-cross juncture.

b) In utterances of the imperative type, intonation starts

with a relatively higher pitch and intonation falls evenly to a low

pitch on the last syllable.

c) Intonation patterns for interrogative utterances are many

and varied. Whether they are of the falling or rising type, they are

marked by at least one high-pitched syllable.

With regard to declarative utterances, especially, great

variations in intonation patterns characterize the corpus. Contrary

to the expected patterns found in French, sharply rising or falling

^ E e l h n e N. Coustenoble and Lilias E. Armstrong, Studies in French Intonation (Cambridge: Heffer, 193,J)- 116

variations in pitch often occur in one single group, thus producing

an impression of ups and downs. Moreover, intonation does not always

fall at the end of an utterance, i.e. before a double-bar juncture,

and, as a result, the intonation pattern of such a group of utterances

resembles that of a series of enumerations (an example of this type

figures on spectrographic sample (209) •

It must be added, however, that in many cases of this type

the final vowel is subjected to a sudden and sharp drop in pitch

during its terminal phase, as illustrated in (19) and (143).

Intonation patterns in imperative utterances, generally

follow the ones occurring in French, but in some cases the final vowel may be subjected to this characteristic rise and fall in pitch, as shown in sample (7) •

As for interrogative utterances, intonation patterns are quite similar to French (sample (169)).

Results from spectrographic analysis are summarized as follows:

a) The "jagged" pattern of intonation perceived during audition is shown as being evident, as in (14).

b) There is a considerable range in pitch values, which probably tends to emphasize the "up and down" impressions experienced during audition. Sample (14) displays a range of 180 ~ minimum and

470 ~ maximum, and in sample (43) extreme pitch values are 220 ~ and 370 ~

c) Single vowels, regardless of their position in the word or group, can vary sharply in pitch values, especially when they are 117

long. For instance, [a] in [)(aret] (N3) goes from ’'30 to 2J0 [a]

in [egal] (l'O from 320 to 390 and [i] in [apfdti] (I1,) from ’’70

to 300 ~.

d) Before a double-cross juncture, penult syllable may have

a lower pitch than the last syllable, as in (19); before other

junctures the converse may occur, as in [tako] (8/9 ).

In conclusion, except in some cases of utterances of the

declarative type, intonation patterns in Saintongeais do not differ

radically from the ones which exist in Standard French. However, it must be pointed out that, in the writer's opinion, the extreme range

in pitch values may well be a socio-cultural trait based on sex. By

contrast with men, women of Saintonge and Poitou area do exhibit this characteristic which causes upon the hearer an impression of high- pitched sounds. A comparative study of this type would be advisable.

E - Emphatic Speech

In French emphasis is expressed either phonetically, by means of a change in "normal" prosodic patterns, or syntactically, which involver changes of syntagmatic nature. Most often, emphasis is expressed both ways at once.

Two main types of phonetic emphasis can be identified in

French: accent d’insistance and contrastive emphasis. No evidence of the first type was found in the corpus; yet, contrastive emphasis is of common occurrence.

Contrastive emphasis in French 53 involves an abrupt change

55ibjd., Chapter XXIII and following. 118 .

in intonation, usually a sudden drop in pitch on the last syllable

of the word to be emphasized regardless of its position in the

group. No doubt such changes are accompanied by modifications in

intensity and also in length.

The difficulty of establishing the definite nature of

emphatic speech in the corpus is enormous, for one has to rely too

much on auditory impressions and on too few measurements. Yet, on

the basis of the work done up to this point, it is suggested that

variations in pitch, intensity, and duration parameters are such

that they could well be interpreted as expressing various degrees

of contrastive emphasis.

As such, emphasis would be characterized by two different aspects: its location within the word to be emphasized, and the manner by which it is expressed.

a) Location in the word:

If the word contains a long vowel, emphasis is located on this vowel, regardless of its position in the word. Examples: [a] in [^aret] (^3), [S] in Cl3ne] (19) •

If the word contains no long vowel, emphasis is placed on the last vowel, which as a result tends to be lengthened. Examples: [a] in [ka] (169); [e] in [se] (26l); [ce] in [pe] (19) •

b) Method of expression:

Emphasis is expressed by a sudden change in pitch, falling or rising, placed on the selected vowel. .Any variation in intensity seems to be incidental: emphasis is re-inforced if this change in pitch level is accompanied by an increase in intensity. Examples: [/] in 119

[d/] (62); [/] in [s/] (lli); [u] .in [nu] (7); [3] in [lSne] (19);

[ce] in [pee] (19).

Again, it must be pointed out that this is a mere attempt

at identifying the nature .of emphasis in the corpus. This hypothesis

proposed here fails to explain why in [hvuzedfe] (lit) emphasis is

placed on the second vowel and why in [apfSti] (lh) it is on the last

vowel.

Phonetic emphasis is used jointly with syntactic emphasis.

It involves all three parameters, as in [seks] (52) or [se*ka] (159).

Negative emphasis may be also phonetically re-inforced in a similar

way when placed on morphemes /pa/, /pwS/, or others.

Compared with French, Saintongeais prosodic patterns are

subject to such recurrent and prominent variations that from a sub­

jective point of view they aim at conveying more emphasis, more

"expressivity," a fact which has already been noticed by a native writer.^ These same subtleties in the meaning of the message which

these prosodic variations convey in Saintongeais are replaced in

French by variations of a syntactical or lexical order.

5,'Raymond Doussinet, Le parler savoureux..., op. cit., pp. 79-80. l/ [ i n d s 9 e 1 e d f 0 1 e : k

2/ 7 9 ^ 6 10 8 3 10 6 6 8 7 10 10 9

3/ & H O 18 | 13 20 36

V 26 / 28 S 29 \ 20 / 55 7 57V 50 27 / * 32

5/ 260 /* 280 \ 270 \ 230 Z 280 . Z 32o\(310 270 Z 290

1/ m e k r i v i II v e d a p a, s e 5 ^ S h u r

2/ 6 5 10 10 5 10 2 9 5 11 6 13 6 8 8 8 5 6 12 7 j 3/ 11 2h 15 11 16 19 lfc 21 25 V 30 \ 25 Z 35 35 \ 27 Z 30 \ 27 — » 27 \ 16 5/ 290 Z 300 Z 310 590 h20 f 600 51o\290 \ 270 \ 260 Z 290

1/ a V e k n u # ]

2/ 8 6 10 7 23

5/ J3______20 50

V 50/ 35 35 25 5/ 270 \ 260 Z 300 200

ER0S0DIC PATTERN (7) 03T 1/ [ O j a v e t e m t i t a k 0

2/ 9 11 7 9 9 15 7 9 7 9 8 13 13

3/ 18 31 16 17 | 26 1 9 15 1 \ V 27 f 35 \ 32 32 ^ 25 / * 35 \ 25

5/ 270/* 310 — » 310 /* 320 __=► 320 /* 3 3 o \ 280 220

X/ k i P a s e t 1 5 1 d a l h 0 7T J

2/ 6 7 8 18 6 8 9 10 13 6 5 19 7 9 36

3/ | 13 j 26 j it 19 19 1 31 ^5 V 25 / * 28 \ 20 f 22 \ 18 28 \ 15 20

5/ 520 \ 31o\270 200/* 290,/* 310 230 270 /> 300 230

PROSODIC PATTERN (8/9) 121 1/ [ p a s k a h s 5 a t f € ' & f e r & e g r e I f # ]

2/ 8 18 5 6 11 5 7 7 17 5 k 17 5 6 15 k k 15 5 7 9 6 11 i—! 22 lk 17 31 25 19 38

V 32 \ 30 32 \ z b / * 30 _» 30 26 32 \ 22 13

5/ 335 290 29o\l70 315 320 \ 290 Nl 205 200

PROSODIC PATTERN (13) 122 l / [ o b e k 3 h j e d i o m e t e g a l

2 / 1 9 5 11 3 16 9 2 k 10 -5 11 7 5 10 9 7 15 fc

3/ 19 16 2U 15 15 11 12 19 26 v 2 5 - * 25 28 \ 20 \ 12 12/ 20 \ 12 58 20 5/2^0 280/290 190 S' 210 \ 200 190 \ 180/^ 200/* 520 590

1/ h 8 s ^ p w e i n a p f a ti h v u z e d f e # ]

2/ h 9 7 15 10 6 8 k 5 3 8 5 16 10 15 9 5 8 b 16 5 5 10

3/ | 13 20 ______2>* ______29 23 22 20 20

V 28 / 50 \ 25 / 30 1 .25 —* 25 22 30 23 / 30 \ 26

5/ 290 /^o 290 Ni 270 N4250 — >250 310 y ^ k j o 300 380 — * 380 270\ 250

PROSODIC PATTERN (it) 123 l/ [ 1 a n e p r o v e n re turndaS#

2/ h 12 5 8 T 6 6 15 8 T 6881^ - 867121^

5/ 16 15 19 50 1 1 1 - 56 55

V l o 2? \ 23 / 55 ^ 25 30 Z 1 32 31 22

5/ 5^0 5 l o \ 580 380 / * bdo 5^0 590 \j 230 200

1/ e amoe n n u 9 ^ke s s t y p o s # ]

2/ 10 8 10 9 10 9 11 12 12 11 20 9 5 5 5 15 15

5/ I 10 8 29 20 2h ^0 15 50

V 22 25/* 27 \ 2h \ 23 S' 30 23 25 /* 30

5/ 190 320 \ 290 — 290 \ 280 280 \l 260 310 250

PROSODIC PATTERK (19) l/[ v u j! ® r $ e a v e k l a ^ v o

2/ 6 8 9 9 6 12 17 10 b 9 8 5 8 10 8 11

3/ lb 2b 29 10 21 23 19

4/ 25 ^ 25 N. 2b 25 22 \$ 20 —^ 20

5/ 370 500 ^ ^50 500 570 350 400 \i 380 S * k8o

l/ela^aret#]

2/ 6 5 8 11 12 7 10 7

3/ 13 23 2b bj 27 27 \ 26 \ 20

5/ 38o / ?Vo o / % 3 0 270 \ 220

EROSODIC PATTERN (U3) 1/ [ o j a V e d ^ 1 i # ] (62)

2/ 6 10 11 5 8 8 22 8 12

3/ 21 13 30 20

V 22/ ^ 28 \ 26 29 20 / 2U

5/ 215/ ^ 2 8 0 320 3^0 270230 290

l/ketebo#oletelegrl v # ] (1^3)

2/ 6 6 ^ 10 5 17 7 5 97 8 3 1^ ^ 9 21 6

I' 12 1 1^ [ 22 | [ 7 [ lfr [ ■ 13 17 | ^0 V 18 \ 22 2^ 18 21/^ 23 28 30 \ 25

5/ 225 2^0 270 260/* 280 310 310 /* 330 270

EROSODIC PATTERNS (62, 1^3) l/[m e k e t o kav^feir#] (169)

2/^75768 6 9 3 13 8 10 13 8

11 12 1^ 15 16 . 39 5 / L . V 26 s 29 f 33 29 \i 20 15 S' 28 19 23

5/ 265 ^50 710 klO 22o\ . 1 9 0 S* 300 •

l/[alu n c B ^ r dsmeveta#] (209)

2/ 8 6 16 9 20 18 7 6 6 6 11 If- 19 7 12

3/ 8 22 5^ 12 17 23 19

V 3o\ 25 25 30 \ 27 / 28 29

5/ 300-^300 \ 290 360 275 /* 280 /* 290 390 l / [ h 8 s e p w 6 s k i f e t ] (261)

2/ 5 7 8 8 7 k 12 8 5 7 7 9 5

3/ _ 12 16 ______31 12 21

V 30 33 \ 30 26 \ 20 32

5/ 290/*320 250/" 260 230 — » 230 /* 280

$

PROSODIC PATTERNS (l69, 209, 26l) CHAPTER FIVE

PHONEMICS

The present chapter will attempt to cover the matter of

phonemic oppositions, or distinctive contrasts, between the various

phonetic segments constituting the corpus. Much of the method used

in determining the phonemes of Saintongeais is derived from the

approach used by Martinet.^-

Since the corpus which is analyzed in this work has the

serious drawback of being rather short, the number of phonemic

oppositions which it provides is limited. In order to remedy this deficiency, many of the examples utilized in the listing of oppositions had to be drawn from outside the corpus, either from Georges Musset’s glossary^ or from a list of words known by the writer or taken from other sources. Such a method offered the obvious shortcoming of providing a source of possible errors, since these extraneous examples were taken from a type, or types, of Saintongeais different from the one spoken in the immediate area of Lorignac or from the informant's idiolect. In view of reducing these chances of possible errors, the number of examples chosen for each type of phonemic oppositions is deliberately as large as possible.

■^Andr^ Martinet, La description phonologique avec application au parler franco-provengal d'Hauteville (Savoie) (Genfeve: Droz. Paris; Minard, 1956). p Musset, op. cit.

138 129

Sources for all subsequent examples will be indicated in the

following manner:

1. transcriptions accompanied by a number in parentheses

are taken from the corpus, the number referring to a corresponding

line;

2. transcriptions followed by "(M)n are made from examples

drawn from Georges Musset's glossary;

3. transcriptions bearing no references derive from other

sources.

It must be pointed out that the phonemic system presented

here was established only on the basis of those specific examples

chosen for oppositions. Accordingly, it is assumed that this system

of unites signifiantes of the "second articulation"^ in Saintongeais

is not necessarily unique:1*' a different system, just as valid and just

as pertinent, might well be conceived and elaborated on the basis of a

different choice and interpretation and of different examples.

I - Consonants

As illustrated on Chart VI, the system of oppositions with respect to consonants offers many similarities with the one existing in Standard French. It consists of basic oppositions of the type: occlusive vs. fricative, voicing vs. unvoicing, oral vs. nasal, and one point of articulation vs. another.

-^Andr6 Martinet, Elements de linguistique g^n^rale (Paris: A. Colin, I960). If. Yuen-Ren Chao, "The non-uniqueness of phonemic solutions of phonetic systems," Bulletin of the Institute of History and Philology Academia Sinica. IV, ^ (193*0, pp. 363-9T. Points of Articulation

Labial Dental Alveolar Palatal Velar Pharyngeal

Unvoiced P t k Occlusives Voiced b d g Oral Unvoiced f s * h Fricatives Voiced V z 1 3 r

Nasal m n n

CHART VI

PHONEMIC INVENTORY OF CONSONANTS 131

The distinctive identity of each of the following phonemes

emerges from the type of oppositions as revealed by these examples:

A - Phoneme /p/

I- P • b [pje] (97), 'pied' : [bje] (M), 'bid*

[p 3&:£! (M), 'planche* : [bjS:)T| (M), 'blanche*

[pul] (8 5 ), 'poule* : [bill], 'boule'

2 . p ; t

[peir] (A), 'pfere' : [te:r] (M), 'terre'

[ipet] (m ), *il pette* : [itet] (M), 'il tdte*

[PtfeL 'puer' : [tqe] (M), 'dteindre'

3. p : f

[pre] (k), 'prfes' : [fre»] (353 ), 'frais*

[pu:r] (37), 'peur' • [fu:r] (M), 'four'

[pip] (M), 'pipe' : [pif] (M), 'grand nez'

A. p ; m

[port] (93), 'porte' : [mort] (198), 'morte'

[pwS] (it), 'point' : [mwS], 'moins'

[pul] (8 5 ), 'poule' : [mul], 'moule'

[pepe] (m ), 'grand-pdre' : [merae] (M), 'grand-mdre'

This phoneme is actualized under the form of a voiceless bilabial stop. It has no allophonic variants. In all respects it is similar to /p/ in Standard French.

B - Phoneme /b/

See oppositions for /p/ (# 1). [b^] (3!,8), 'boeufs' : [d$£] (1<), 'deux'

[bret] (m ), 'vache bretonne' : [dfet] (355), 'droite'

[bo] (m), 'sabot en bois1 : [do] (M), 'dos,' 'dossier'

[bal] (m ), 'genre de panier' : [dal] (m ), 'conduite d'eau'

3. b : v

[bja*] (72, 339), 'beau' : [vja], 'veau'

[ba], 'banc' : [vS], 'vent'

[bize] (m ), 'embrasser' : [vize], 'viser1

i-1. b : m

[boor] (12), 'bord' 'c6te' : [mo:r], 'mort'

[bunami], 'petite amie' : [irajnami], 'mon ami(e)'

[obuj], 'qa bout' : [omuj], 'il pleut'

[bard] (m ), 'terrain argileux' : [mard], 'merde*

This phoneme is, as in Standard French, commonly expressed as a fully voiced bilabial stop, [b], and under certain conditions as a partially voiced variant, [b]. In the latter case a partial assimilation of the regressive type takes place, as in French, or partial devoicing occurs in final position (before a terminal juncture), as in [kovnab] (53), 'convenable.1

C - Phoneme /m/

1. m : p

See oppositions for /p/ (S !».).

2. m ; b

See oppositions for /b/ (# !i). 153 3. m : n

[mo] (h), 'mon' : [noo] (203), 'nora'

[me*g], 'maigre' : [ne*g] (190), 'noir*

[mik] (m ), 'galette de mals' : [nik] (M), 'nique'

[rai-h] (M), 'mie (de pain)' : [ni*h] (M), 'niche,* 'cachette'

This phoneme corresponds to /m/ in Standard French and is

expressed as a bilabial stop. It may become partially unvoiced in final position, as in [kSmeim] (10), 'quand meme1; however, occurrences of O this type are subject to free variation.

D - ffaoneme /f/ laJL-gJB See oppositions for /p/ (# 3).

2. f ; s

[falo] (M), 'lanterne' : [salo] (M), 'tablier d 1enfant'

[feHS] (M), 'paresseux' : [senS], 'saignant'

[fS], 'fin' : [sS], 'sain'

[fol] (M), 'cdpage de vigne' : [sol], 'sole'

5. f : v

[fes] (112), 'fesse' : [ve*3] (309), 'chienne'

[fe:r], 'fer' : [ve.r] (810, 'verre'

[fS] (M), 'fouin' : [vS], 'vin'

[fS:t], 'fente' : [vS:t], 'vente'

This phoneme is in all respects similar to /f/ which is found in French: it is realized as a voiceless bilabial fricative. 13^

E - Rioneme /v/

1. v : b

See oppositions for /b/ (# 3).

2. v : f

See oppositions for /f/ (# 3)•

3. v : z

[po:v] (k7), 'pauvre' : [po:z], 'pause'

[re:v], 'rSve' : [re:z] (M), 'ligne';'raie'; 'sentier'

[se:v] (M), 's&ve' : [sejz], 'seize'

As in Standard French this phoneme is expressed as a voiced labiodental fricative. Occasionally it tends to become partially devoiced in final position.

F - Phoneme /t/

1. t ; p

See oppositions for /p/ (/ 2).

2. t ; d

[tune] (5k), 'tonner' : [dune] (237), 'donner'

[tS] (85), 'temps' : [da] (M), 'dent'

[tet], 'tSte’: [det] (M), 'dette'

[tuj] (M), 'touil (poisson)' : [duj] (M), 'cuve'; 'tuyau'

3. t : n

[to](7k), 'ton' : [noo] (155), 'non'

[to:r] (m), 'g&iisse' : [no:r] (286), 'belle -fille'

[tape] (M), 'grand quantity' : [nape] (M), 'contenu d'une

nappe' 135

k. t : k

[latu], ’la toux* : [laku*] (171), 'la queue’

[set], 'sept' : [sek] (m ), 'sec'; 'cep de vigne'

[tu^e] (m ), 'conduire du b^tail'; 'toucher' : [kujfe] (6l)

'coucher'

[tapo] (M), 'bouchon' : [kapo] (m ), 'lSche,' 'peureux'

This phoneme corresponds to ft/ in Standard French. Its

articulatory expression is voiceless apical dento-alveolar, which

is often produced with more energy (more fortis) than it is

usually in French.

G - Phoneme /d/

1. d : t

See oppositions for ft/ (# 2).

2. d : b

See oppositions for /b/ (# 2).

5. d : n

[do] (25), 'done' : [no.] (ill), 'non'

[da:r] (M), 'derri&re' : [na:r] (m ), 'nerf'

[duj] (M), 'cuve,' 'tuyau' : [nujl, 'nouille'

This phoneme is phonetically expressed as the voiced counterpart

of /t/; it is similar to /d/ in French. It may become partially

devoiced in final position.

H - Phoneme /n/

1. n : m

See oppositions for /m/ (# 3). 136

2. n : t

See oppositions for /t/ (4 3).

3. n : d

See oppositions for /d/ (4 3).

k. n : n

[bosrne] (m ), 'se salir (en parlant d'un enfant)1 : [bcerhe]

(m), 'enfoncer,' 'd£foncer,1 1contusionner'

[kan] (m ), 'cruche'; 'seau en bois1 : [kaK] (M), 'paresse;

1chienne'

[kano], 'canot' : [kano] (m ), 'petit chien'; ’terme de jeu

d 1enfants'

[pen], 'peine' • [pen], 'peigne'

This phoneme is actualized as a voiced dento-alveolar nasal

stop; it is similar to French /n/.

I - Phoneme /s/

1. s » f

See oppositions for /f/ (# 2).

2. s : z

[bis] (M), 'goutte aunez'; ' rouge-gorge': [bi:z](M), 'baiser'

[rys], 'russe' : [ry:z], 'ruse'

[vise], 'visser' : [vize] (m ), 'regarder avecpersistance';

'viser'

[dus], 'douce' : [du:z], 'douze'

3.s:K

[lasEn] (M), 'la sienne' : [la)fe’n] (309), 'la chienne'

[mus] (M), 'espfece de champignon' : [mu:^] (3,|6), 'mouche' 137 [lose], 'lasser' : [la:^e] (36*0 , 'lScher'

[su] (272), 'sou* : [ # 1] (368), 'chou'

b. s : h

[da*se] (1*0), 'danser' : [d3he] (195), 'danger'

[Sa-ti] (3JI), 'sentir' : [ha-ti] (335), 'gentil*

[forse], 'forcer' : [forhe] (328), 'forger'

[sen], 'saine' : [hen] (5 ), 'jeune'

[so] (M), 'saillie'; 'os de seiche' : [ho] (9), 'haut'; (330),

'coq'; (351), 'gel<$e*

[su:r] (M), 't§tard'; 'sonrd' : [hu:r] (200), 'jour'

This phoneme is phonetically expressed as a voiceless dental fricative occurring as two variants: (l) predorsal [s], similar to the type usually found in Standard French; (2) apico-alveolar [g], rarer and often in free variation with the preceding type, but whose occurrence might be determined by a consonantic environment or a final position.

J - Phoneme /z/

1. 2 : s

See oppositions for /s/ (# 2).

2. z : v

See oppositions for /v/ (# 3).

3. z : h

[deza], 'des ans' : [dehaa] (3), 'des gens'

[lezarb], 'les arbres' : [leha:fb] (28l), 'les gerbes'

[zon], 'zone' : [hon] (M), 'jaune' 138

k. z : r

[pu:z] (290), ’police' : [pu:r] (36), 'peur' ,

[bu:z] (223), 'bouse de vache' : [bu:r] (m ), 'balayures';

'filaments des bourgeons de vigne'; 'vin faible'

This phoneme is expressed as a voiced dento-alveolar fricative,

much like /z/ in Standard French.

K - Rioneme /r/

1. r : z

See oppositions for /z/ (# h).

2 . r : 1

[pu:r] (36), 'peur' : [pul] (85), 'poule'

[boor] (12), 'bord,' 'cSteS* : [bol], 'bol*

[bu:r] (M), 'balayures'; 'filaments des bourgeons de vigne';

'vin faible' : [bul] (m ), 'boule,' 'sorte de jeu'

[ram] (M), 'plante des marais' : [lam] (M), 'lame'; 'instrument

de tisserand'

This phoneme is expressed under a variety of phonetic forms:

alveolar flap [f]; various trills, [F], ranging from the uvular to

the alveolar types; and some kinds of dorsal [r]. Except for their

allophonic counterparts [f], [F], and [r], which result from progressive 0 0 o assimilation, these variants cannot be considered as allophones of

/r/: free variation plays too erratic a role to give each of them

such a status.

However, on the basis of a survey of 57 observed cases, the following generalizations or trends can be attempted with regard to their more likely occurrences: a) [f] generally following a labial or dental stop (12 such

occurrences* L following a palato-velar stop).

b) [r] often following a palato-velar stop (3 such occurrences

3 intervocalic, of which one geminate).

c) [r] in all other cases (including some of the above-

mentioned ones), i.e. preceding a consonant, or in final, intervocalic

or'initial position (13 occurrences preceding a consonant, 6 in final,

13 in intervocalic and 3 in initial position).

L - Phoneme /l/

1. 1 : r

See oppositions for /r/ (# 2).

2. 1 : ,i

[fil], 'fil' : [fij] (152), 'fine*

[la], 'lk' : [ja] (291), 'glace*

[sule], 'saoule' : [suje] (102), 'soulier*

[kale] (M), 'couch^'; 'chauve'; 'riche1: [kaje], 'caill^'

[kagul], ’cagoule* : [kaguj] (m ), 'escargot*

Like Standard French /l/, this phoneme is expressed as an

apico-alveolar lateral; it is voiced, but in final position it tends

to become unvoiced.

M. - Phoneme /)(/

1. # : s

See oppositions for /s/ (4 3).

2. % : h

[bu-)(e] (328), 'boucher' : [bu-he] (328), 'bouger'

[)fea] (308), 'champs' : [ha-] (239), 'gens' IkO

[la)(S«b] (62), 'la chambre' : [lahS:b] (196), 'la janibe’

[)tfeir] (371), 'toraber' : [jeer] (28U), 'lierre'

[mu:£j (3^6), 'mouche' : [muj] (5*0, 'pleut'

This phoneme is always realized as a voiceless velar fricative

(its articulation was described in the Chapter on Phonetics). In no

case is its phonetic realization similar to that of Standard French /§/•

N - Phoneme /h/

1. h t 8

See oppositions for /s/ (# k).

2. h : z

See oppositions for /z/ (# 3).

3. h : t

See oppositions for /$/ (#2).

h : .1

[fi*h] (138), 'figues' : [fij] (152), 'filles'

[ho] (170), 'coq' : [jo] (267), 'd£ a coudre'

This phoneme is actualized as a pharyngeal fricative; its

articulation was described in Chapter IV. It is generally unvoiced, [h],

sometimes voiced, [ft], and occasionally half-voiced/half-unvoiced or vice versa. Free variation plays such a part in their occurrence that these types cannot be considered as allophones but simply as variants of

/h/. Fully voiced variants are generally found in intervocalic position.

Out of 32 occurrences, spectrographic analysis reveals that ten were voiced, i.e. characterized by a well-marked voice-bar. Of these, eight were intervocalic— one geminate, one initial (30), and one preceded 1U1

by a voiced— by assimilation— consonant and followed by a vowel (7 ).

Four partly voiced variants (6 , 175, 190, ^11) were observed among

the 32 occurrences.

As such, these two types of variants, totally or partially

voiced, can be considered as resulting from a varying degree of

assimilation— especially in intervocalic position— , and possibly

from analogical effect caused by the influence of Standard French [2].

0 - Phoneme /k/

1 . k : t

See oppositions for ft/ (# *0.

2 . k ; g

[sok] (95), 'gros soulier' : [sog] (M), 'femme paresseuse

et lente'

[ku], 'cou' : [gu], 'goflt'

[kule] (M), 'bande de terre dtroite* : [gule] (M), 'grosse

bouchde'

[ka:h] (3C7), 'cage* : [ga*h] (M), gSche'

This phoneme is phonetically actualized by two allophonic variants, [5] and [k]:

a) [q] is a voiceless palatal fricative whose articulation was described in the preceding chapter. It is found in front of the

following anterior and central vowels: [i], [y], [e], [§], [^], as

illustrated in these examples:

[

'laisser'; [inkoqij] (3l6 ), 'une coquille'; Ib2

[leqy.] (316), ’le evil’; [leqyfi] (33*0, ’l'^curie’; [ine*gy]

(330), 'un dcu';

[get] (198), 'cette'; [qele] (97), 'ces';

[q^kS] (19), 'quelqu'un'; [lag^*zin] (33^), 'la cuisine';

[lag^js] (337), 'la cuisse';

[l©qos:r] (330), 'le coeur’; [iqosjet] (333), ’ils cueillent.'

b) [k], a voiceless palatal— or velar— stop is identical with

the one found in Standard French. It occurs in front of the other

vowels and in front of consonants.

It should be noted, however, that the classification of these two segments as allophones of /k/ is questionsfclfi; the term allophonlc variants seems to be more appropriate for the following reasons;

a) phonetically [q] is an "unstable" segment which at times may be slightly affricated or partially voiced, as in [tqjy*ji*]

(193) ~ [qyji] (33l),'cueillir*; [qjg;z] (291), 'quinze’; [ t q ^ ] (23) .

[*/] (1 1 ), 'qa';

b) form [ki] (3 ), *qui,' is most common while its variant [qi] seldom occurs (93, 95, 96, 98, 201, 225), but [k©] (83), 'que,' has no such corresponding variant;

c) other forms always maintain [k] in front of an anterior or central vowel, for instance: [kqirvr] (317), 'cuivre1; [kqi;r] (315),

'cuir'; [kestjo] (31*), 'question';

c) as mentioned in the preceding chapter under the heading on palatalization, [t] + [J] and [k] + [j] tend to be confused with [q].

P - Phoneme /g/

1 . g : k 143

See oppositions for /k/ (# 2).

2i_S_J_d (

[gn], 'godt': [du], 'doux'

[gaj] (M), 'geai'r [daj] (M), 'faux1

[gogo] (M), 'a foison'; 'imbecile1: [dodo] (M), 'lit d'enfant'

[guj] (M), 'flaque d'eau': [duj] (M), 'cuve,' 'tuyau'

This phoneme is realized by two variants, which can hardly be

considered as allophones since one of these occurs erratically and in

free variation with the other:

a) [j], the voiced counterpart of palatal fricative [9], which

itself occurs in free variation with palatalized velar stop [gj].

Sonagrams indicate the rather unstable character of this fricative, as

in: [agdy-dj ( U 9 ) ~ [ajy.j] (337), 'aiguille'; [gjeir] (221) ~ [gejr]

(215), 'gufere';

b) [g], the voiced counterpart of palatal— or velar— stop [k],

which is similar to Standard French [g] and by far the more common

variant. It can precede any type of vowels, including anterior vowels,

as in: [gi] (320), 'gui'; [Sge] (l46), 'un gu

Q - Rtoneme /a/

1 . g : n

See oppositions for /n/ (# 4).

This phoneme is actualized as a voiced palatal nasal and is

identical with Standard French [H].

R - Fhoneme /.1/

1 . .1 ; 1

See oppositions for /l/ (# 2). Ihh

2 - 3 : * See oppositions for /)£/ (# 3).

3. ,i : h

See oppositions for /h/ (# li)«

.1 : i

[pej] (m ), 'paye' : [pei] (jlM), 'pays'

Identification of phoneme /j/ is based on this unique oppo­ sition: in other positions— prevocalic or postvocalic— it is an allo- phone of /i/. It is phonetically expressed as a voiced palatal fricative.

II - Vowels

The types of vocalic oppositions found in the corpus corres­ pond to Standard French types. As shown on Chart VII, there are four types of oppositions: aperture (three relative oppositions), rounded vs. unrounded labialization, and anterior vs. posterior points of articulation, as well as oral vs. nasal.

The distinctive identity of Saintongeais vocalic phonemes will be determined by the types of oppositions in the following examples:

A - Phoneme /i/

1 . i : e

[li] (6 2 ), 'lit' : [le], 'lait*

[pipi], 'pipi' : [pepe], 'grand-p&re'

[pi^e] (M), 'pot qui sert a verser a boire' : [pe)£e] (m ),

'pecher'; 'attraper'

[pi£] (m ), 'pot a eau' : [pe£), 'p§che'

[lapi:r] (m ), 'le foie'; 'l'oie femelle' : [lapeir] (m ),

'la paire' 1^5

Point of Articulation

Anterior Posterior

Lab iali zation: Unrounded Rounded

Closed i y u

Mid e 4 0 Oral Aperture

Open a a

e a o Nasal

CHART VII

PHONEMIC INVENTORY OF VOWELS 1^6

2 . i : y

[pi] (208), 'puis'; [py] (280), 'plus'

[qi] (95), 'qui* : [ q y ] (316), *cul'

[pipi], 'pipi* : [pypy] (M), 'huppe*

3- i : 1 . See opposition for /j/ (# U-).

This phoneme is phonetically realized by the two variants of the close unrounded type, [j] and [i]:

a) [1], the more open variant, resembles English [j]; although it occurs in free variation with [i], it may be found in the following situations:

1 ) in front of nasal consonants and in final position, as in:

[le^jn] (329), 'l'dchine'; [la

(2 0 ), 'plus d'une';

2) in an open syllable, in final position, as in: [fyzi]

(73), 'fusil';

3 ) in front of an anterior consonant, in final position, as in: [gfi :v] (l**3 ), 'grives';

*0 in non-final position, and corresponds to Standard

French [qi], as in [piska] (l8 ), 'puisque'; [px] (117),*puis’;

b) [i], the more close variant, is similar to Standard French

[i] and is by far the more common one. Actually, there exists a great degree of variation between the more open and more close variants, especially when they occur in an unstressed position.

These two variants are in free variation, as shown by these Ui7

examples- [*kjematin] (26), 'Clementine'; [fukin] (30), 'rouquine';

[fyzi] (7,l)> 'fusil'; [epi] (122), 'etpuis.'

B - Phoneme /e/

1. e ; i

See oppositions for /i/ (# l).

2. e t 4

[de] (3), 'des' : [dj£] (62), 'deux'

[le] (79), 'les'; (21i3), 'elle' : (6li), 'leurs*

[me] (20), 'plus' : [m$0 (20), 'mieux'

[sel] (1^9), 'sel' : [soel] (2k), 'seul'

3. e : a

[)£e] (m ), 'cellier' : [)£a], 'chat'

[fesr], 'fer' j [fa;r], 'farci'

[re:h] (m ), 'sentier' ; 'sillon' : [ra:h] (m ), 'rage'

[lapel] (m ), 'la poele' • [lapal] (m ), 'la pelle'

This phonetic actualization of this phoneme is expressed by-

two variants: mid anterior unrounded close [e] and open [e]. Unlike

in Standard French, where no [e] can be found in a close stressed

syllable, [e] and [e] are free variants, as illustrated by these

instances: [vuzave] (386) ~ [vuzave] (30*0, 'vous avez'; [vuzet] (396),

'vous §tes'; [inje:p] (320), 'tine guSpe'; [se:r] (15), 'soir.'

In stressed position, however, [e] is more likely to be found

in an open syllable and [e] in a close syllable. In unstressed position, the realization of this phoneme is often "neutralized:" it

can be [e] ~ [e] or any intermediary sound.

It should be mentioned that the occurrence of [e] does not lit■

en effet, du lait, and imperfect morphemes: these can be in

Saintongeais— as in Popular French— : [se] (159), [Snefe] (19),

[do-le:] (28*0 , or [ave] (20), avait.

When lengthened /e/ may diphthongize into [ei] and variant

[e] into [ee], as in [ctfolerfi] (235) ~ [dfoleig] (7 ), 'jeunes filles';

[gre:f] (22ii) [greif] (3 ), 'greffes1; [lafeet] (llM, 'lafoire';

[dojeer] (28k), 'du lierre.' In such a case the off-glide goes

towards closure.

C - Phoneme /a/

1 . a : e

See oppositions for /e/ (# 3).

2 . a : j

[papje] (M), 'papier' : [p^pje] (m), 'garnir', 'peuplier1

[aj] (1^9 ), 'ail' : [cej] (2 6 ), 'oeil,' 'yeux'

[daj]n(M), 'faux' : [dcsj], 'deuil'

a ; a

[pja] (2 75), 'plat' : [pja] (112), 'peau'

[ra] (m ), 'rat' : [ra] (M), 'ras,' 'aupres'

[ma)(] (M), 'asp^rite' : [mo$] (m ), 'appetit' (plante).

[lase], 'lacer' : [lase], 'lasser'

This phoneme is actualized much like the anterior open [a] in

Standard French. However, it seems to vary slightly at times to a more open variant approximating English [a?].

Although the numer of oppositions for /a/ vs. /a/ is limited, the classification of these two segments as separate phonemes is the occurrence of /a/ in Saintongeais is more frequent and more stable

than in Standard French.

D - Phoneme /y/

1. y : i

See oppositions for /i/ (# 2).

•Ls l l J.

[by] (M), 'cruche'; 'dent de rSteau' : [d^] (m ), 'boeuf,'

'boeufs'

[by:z] (M), 'eduse' : [b^:z] (m ), ’ventre’

[fy] (m), ’coquille1; 'tonneau* : [fte] (6k), 'feu1

3. y : u

[sy] (126), 'sur' : [su] (57), 1 sous'

[byhe] (M), 'lessive' : [buhe] (M), 'depart'; (328 ),

'Ster,' 'enlever'; 'bouger'

[sype] (m ), 'sucer' : [supe] (l5Jt), 'souper'

[by:z] (m), 'ecluse' : [bu:z] (223), 'bouse de vache'

This phoneme is phonetically expressed bymmeans of the two allophones which are found in Standard French, [q] and [y]:

a ) [q] is the anterior rounded very close semivowel which occurs whenever placed in a prevocalic. position, as in; [tqe] (l8 6 ),

'tue'; [qi] (223), 'huit'; [pqis] (6 6 ), 'puisse.'

b) [y], the close anterior rounded vowel, is found in all other cases.

E - Phoneme /^/

1. 4 : e

See oppositions for /e/ (# 2). 150

2 - t ‘ y See oppositions for /y/ (# 2).

5. & ; a

See oppositions for /a/ 2).

k. I t o

[ b $ (230), 'boeuf,' 'boeufs’ : [bo] (M), 'sabot de bois'

[ofte], 'au feu' : [ofo] (115), ' il faut'

[m^:h] (m), 'vache dont le pis est ferms' : [mo:h] (M),

'grosse fille1

5- 6 : a [bj£] (230), 'boeuf,' 'boeufs' : [ba] (27J1), 'bas*

[1^] (6 k), 'leurs' : [la] (m), 'las'

[bi^je] (M), 'bois,' 'taillis' • [braje] (m), 'pleurer

en criant1

The phonetic realization of this phoneme is expressed by these three variants: [ $ and [<£], respectively the close and open mid rounded vowels, and schwa— or neutral— [s].

The occurrence of [s] follows the rules which have been— only imperfectly so far— formulated for Standard French. This matter was examined in the preceding chapter.

As for the other two variants, \_ft] is usually found in final position, in an open syllable, or when followed by [z], as in French; however, it may also be found under different conditions, and [ce] may occur as well in open syllables. As a result, there exists a certain degree of free variation with regard to these vowels; [tqre:r] (156) ~

[q^:r] (371), 'cuire'; [typK;] (19), *tu peux'; [gbofbs] (6 h), 'un bon 'feu1; [ins] (312), ’un oeuf'; [dez^] (312), 'des oeufs1; [av^:j]

(302), 'aveugle.'

Auditory perception as well as acoustical analysis disclose

that these open and close vowels not only vary freely but also show

a tendency to be "neutralized," whether in stressed or in unstressed

position, as in [soe-r] (31 ), 'soeur,' for instance.

When lengthened, /^/ tends to become in some cases a diph­

thongized vowel, the off-glide going towards closure. Examination

of sonagrams seems to confirm this impression: for instance, [types:]

(19), 'tu peux,' could have been transcribed [typr^], specifying

that [^] is barely voiced.

F - Phoneme /u/

1. u t y

See oppositions for /y/ (=f 3).

2. u : o

[su:] (272), 'sou' : [so] (M), 'saut'; 'saillie'

[hu*t] (368), ’bettes’ : [hot] (2 82), 'joue'

[bu:rd] (m ), 'etai'; 'gaffe' : [bo:rd] (m ), 'epine dorsale'

'ar§te de poisson'

[bu] (M), 'bout' : [bo] (m ), 'sabot de bois'

[)^u] (l'-O), 'chou' : [Xoo] (6 0 ), 'chaud'

[a&Jte] (86), 'acQte' : [akote] (93), 'accote'

This phoneme is realized by one allophone, [w], and two allophonic variants, [u] and [u], all of the close posterior type:

a) [w] is the very labialized close posterior semivowel which occurs in a prevocalic position according to the same rules operating 152 in Standard French: [two.*let] (’'’'), 'toilette'; [trwa] (156), 'trois1;

[hazwe 3,tSdy] (380), 'je I'ai entendu';

h) [u] has the least degree of closure and is rather similar to the English vowel [u]; it is generally found in lieu of Standard

French [o] or [ce] in such words as: [rpu*ze] (8), 'reposer1; [gfu-s]

(220), 'grosse'; [akute] (86), 'a c6te'; [betu] (55), 'bientSt'; [gul]

(l88), 'figure,' 'bouche';

it is most often found preceding a nasal consonant, either in a stressed or unstressed position: [kum] (152), 'comme'; [pum] (3,J2 ),

'pomme'; [bun] (2 8 ), 'bonne'; [mun] (l), 'mon1 (+ vowel); [bune] (7-')>

'bonnet'; [kum3a] (262), 'comment';

it may also occur in final position, before a pause, as in:

[aveknu:] (7 ), 'avec nous';

c) [u] is similar to French [u], and it is found in all other cases, although it alternates rather freely with [u]: [gu*l] (1 26),

'figure'; [aveknu] (37), 'avec nous'; [dun] (3,'3), 'donne'; [)(u:z]

(2’'2), — [)^u:z] (2 26), 'chose'; [sup] (351) ~ [sup] (2''5) , 'soupe';

[pjytu] (191) ~ [pjytu] C'9), 'plutSt.'

G -■ Phoneme /o/

1 . o : u

See oppositions for /u/ (# 2).

2. o : ^

See oppositions for /$£/ (Jf li).

)■ o : a

[fo:)£] (M), 'fauchaison' : [fa:)(] (M), ’f§che,' 'ficherie'

[rc$] 'roche' : [ra:)(] (m ), 'gale' 153

[br0s] (M), 'broussailles' : [bra*s] (M), 'mesure de foin

de bois, etc.'

This phoneme is phonetically actualized by the two mid posterior vowels, close [o] and open [a], similar to the ones found in Standard French, but which tend to be variants of each other.

Unlike French, in which no [o] can appear in an open stressed syllable, occasionally Saintongeais offers such a feature: [tak->] (10), 'tacot';

[oto] (20 6 ), 'auto'; [po] (132, 138), 'pot.'

Yet, in most cases, the distribution of these two variants corresponds to the one which exists in French, although in Saintongeais the trend is towards neutralization even in stressed position, as evidenced by audition and examination of sonagrams: [)(o:s] (235),

'bas*; [ho:t] (275), 'haute.'

When lengthened, any of these variants may diphthongize, the off-glide going toward closure, as in: [boor] (12), 'c8td'; [poo] (l^O)

'pot'; [mou] (7 1 , 1 85) ~ [mo] (269), 'mal.*

H - Phoneme /a/

1. a : a

See oppositions for /a/ (# 3). 2. a : o

See oppositions for /o/ (# 3).

3. a : f

See oppositions for Iff 5)*

This phoneme is phonetically expressed as posterior open [a], similar to the one found in Standard French.

Although it can hardly be considered a separate phoneme in 15!* French, /a/ must be classified in Saintongeais as a distinct phoneme:

its phonetic actualization is stable, consistent, even though the

number of oppositions with [a], especially, is limited. It occurs

in stressed or unstressed position: [siza] (266), 'ciseaux'; [dja:b]

(2 >i9 ), 'diable'; [^akinin] (''2 1 ), 'chacunune.'

When lengthened, this phoneme may be expressed by a

diphthongized vowel, the off-glide offering a varying degree of closure

(ranging from [0 ] to [u]) difficult to identify: [okctQzjcto] (8 ),

'occasion1; [wa.] (l''-l) ~ [waJU] (l,l0 , 1J,2 ) *oie'; [ga;] (100) ~ [gab]

(6 5 ) ~ [gau] (6 8 ), 'gars.'

I - Phoneme /§/

1. S : i

[lg] (M), 'lin' : [li] (6 2 ), 'lit!

[brg] (m ), 'fil1; 'brin' : [bri] (m ), 'terre argileusel

[pg:s] (M), 'pierre pour arr§ter une futaille1; 'pince':

[pis] (m ), 'pisse'

2 . g ; e

[lg] (M), 'lin' : [le:] (28’’), 'lait'

[mg] (M), 'main' : [me] (m ), 'huche a pain'

[gi-g*] (l!t9 ), 'grain' : [gre], 'grgs'

5. § : a

[brg] (M), 'fil'; [bra], 'bras'

[pje] (358), 'beaucoup': [pja] (275), 'plat'

g : a

[bre] (m ), ’fil’; 'brin' : [br3] (m ), 'son de ble'

[etg:dr] (M), 'eteindre' : [etS:dr] (M), 'gtendre' 155

[pS:s] (m ), 'pierre pour arreter une futaille1; 'pince' :

[pS:s] (M), 'ventre'

5. 8 : 8

[be] (2 7 2 ), 'bien' : [b5] {6 h), 'bon'

[reze], 'raisin' : [rezo], 'raison*

This phoneme is actualized by two free variants of the anterior mid unrounded nasal, close [S] and open [2], the former being the more common: [be] (272), ^ [bg] (1*0, 'bien'; [SfS] (36) ^

[afg] (30), 'enfin,'

When lengthened, this phoneme may be phonetically expressed by a diphthongized vowel whose off-glide tends to go towards closure and may be denasalized. Both closure and denasalization of the off- glide can vary appreciably and to a degree which, probably because of a change in pitch level, is difficult to identify accurately or to check by means of acoustical analysis: [pwgf] (7 5 , 7 8 ), 'point';

[harder] (192), 'jardin'; [SfSi] (1 6 ), 'enfin.'

J - Phoneme /a/

1. a : S

See oppositions for /g/ (# k).

2 . a : a

[atade] (49), 'entendait* : [atade] (12), 'attendait'

[bra] (M), 'son de bl£' : [bra], 'bras'

[)(a:s] (213), 'chance' : [)(as] (M), 'chasse'

3. a : a

[pa:s] (2 90), 'pense' : [pa:s], 'passe'

[18], 'lent' : [la], 'las' 156

[lSse], 'lancer' : [lose], 'lasser'

[g3] (m), 'gant' : [gat] (100), 'gars' ^

’■. a : 5

[da] (9), 'dans' : [dS] (73) ~ [d83] (19), ’done*

[saa] (33), 'sang' : [so] (2><3), 'son'

[sS], 'sans' : [so] (2>i3), 'son'

[ia], 'lent' : [15], 'long'

3. a : i

[da] (9), 'dans' : [d^-] (6 2 ), 'deux'

[ba] (M), 'banc' : [bjJs] (230), 'boeuf,' 'boeufs'

6. a ; y

[sa], 'sans' : [sy] (126), *sur'

[b3:^] (m ), 'banc d'argile sur la c8te' : [by)£], 'b&che'

The phonetic actualization of this phoneme is realized by the anterior rounded nasal [a]. It is markedly anterior, and at times it even seems to approximate [s]: it is therefore unlike the more posterior [a] which is found in Standard French.

When lengthened, /a/ may be expressed by two diphthongized vowels in free variation and characterized by an off-glide going posteriorly and to greater aperture, [®a] ~ [S3], as in the following examples: [hemi'sngga] (’’8 ), 'gemissements'; [tsa] (l8 o), 'temps';

[haa] (3), 'gens'; [agraiaat] (70), 'attrayante.’

It must be pointed out that this transcription may be question­ able: identification of [a§] is based on auditory impressions, and pitch variations are such as to make almost impossible any absolute— only relative— identifications with regard to [£], [S], and [a] within 157 diphthongized vowels of this type (sonagrams provide little information in this respect).

A second characteristic of the off-glide is that it may he partially or totally denasalized, as in: [rehinga] (7 1 ), 'regiment';

[*pqiderSa] (2 5 3 ), 'Puyderand'; [h3a] (^6), 'gens1; [sSa] (35), 'sang.'

In addition, auditory impressions occasionally suggest that this off-glide may well be followed by or replaced in part by a short nasal consonant, [13]. As such, one may be tempted to transcribe

Puyderand (255) ['^pqideigaij] or [*pqider35n]. Any substantial evidence of such occurrences, characteristic of Occitanic dialects, would be of appreciable diachronic significance.

K - Phoneme /g/

1. 8 : 5

See oppositions for /a/ (# *0. 2. 8 t a

[35], 'long' : [la] (M), 'las'

[bo] (6 k) ~ [bo3] (159), ’bon* : [ba-] (27*0, 'bas»

5. 3 : o

[hS] (m), 'anneau de mariage'; 'jonc' : [ho] (171), 'coq'

[po], 'pont' : [po] (152), 'pot'

[toto] (M), 'onde' : [toto] (M), 'pou*

*»•. 5 : u

[so] (2U3 ), 'son' : [su] (5 7 ), 'sous'; (272), 'sou'

[toto] (M), 'oncle' : [tutu] (M), 'chien'

[n3 o] (155), 'non'; (205), 'nom' : [nu] (57), 'nous'

This phoneme is actualized by the three following variants: 158

a) close mid posterior nasal [o], which corresponds to Stan­

dard French rounded posterior nasal; probably as a result of French

influence its occurrence is very limited; it is in free variation with

the other variants: [kopfi] (l2 9 ), 'compris'; [iso] (397), ’ils sont';

[ko*t] (251 ), ’compte’; [isSnalo] (39-), ’ils s'envont';

b) open mid posterior nasal [0 ], which is the most frequent

phonetic realization: [mosj^] (ll), ’monsieur'; [patfS*] (25), 'patron';

[mez£f] (l>.*), 'maison'; [*remff«] (206), 'Raymond.'

c) very open posterior nasal [a], generally similar to the one

existing in French, but at times probably slight3.y more close and

corresponding to [)d]; it varies freely with the others, although

ordinarily it is more frequently found in association with verbal forms

of the third person plural: [patf3] (153), 'patron'; [mezct] (250),

'maison'; [*rem&] (2>'7), 'Raymond'; [akuda-1 (500), 'elles cousent';

[ avja] (6 >>), ' avaient.'

When /o/ is lengthened, the two variants [o] and [a] may become

diphthongized vowels, the off-glide tending towards closure and at times

being partically or totally denasalized (these data, however, depend more

on auditory impressions than on acoustical analysis of sonagrams, which

provide no definite clues in this respect):

a) [3:] may vary with [00] or [00], as in the following

examples: [hnuzSnalffo] (39M> 'nous nous en allons'; [repdo] (150),

'rdponds'; [*remoo] (2 5 2 ), 'Raymond'; [fasoo] (231), 'faqon';

b) [a:] May vary with [ao] or [So], as in: [*remao] (200),

'Raymond'; [ibcevao] (380), 'ils boivent'; [me zcco] (l9}'), 'maison';

[hsrijob] (175), 'nous riions'; [kovnjao] (7 2 ), 'convenaient.' Ill - Prosodic Patterns

It is probably superfluous to add that none of the prosodic ,

features in the corpus is phonemic. Examples listed through this

chapter, though not specifically listed for that purpose, show that

length and rhythm are non-phonemic. And a rapid examination of

examples taken from prosodic patterns in the preceding chapter reveals

also that pitch and intonation are not phonemic.

IV - Conclusions

The main difficulty involved in this phonemic analysis did

not consist in separating and isolating the various phonemic segments:

this operation was essentially based on comparing minimal pairs (the

very limitation of the corpus did not allow the detailed and exacting

method proposed by Harris^). With regard to a number of phonemes,

vocalic phonemes especially, the real problem consisted of selecting

their various phonetic expressions— -or actualizations— and particularly

of classifying them. Although they occur in complementary distribution,

they also— and in most cases— do occur in free variation with one

another as well. As a result, since they were neither true allophones

nor true variants, the term "allophonic variants" was chosen. In fact,

it is hoped that this term illustrates the state of phonetic instability

and fluctuation which characterizes a patois, as opposed to a dialect.

^Zellig S. Harris, Structural Linguisties (4th impression; Chicago: University of Chicago Press, i960). CHAPTER SIX

MORPHOLOGY

Because of the limited extent of this corpus, the contents

of the present chapter can only he partially complete. Yet, in spite

of such shortcomings, it is hoped that they will provide sufficient

data as a first elaboration of Saintongeais morphology; additional,

though scanty, information may be found in Marcelle Martin's M.A.

thesis.^

In accordance with the method of approach adopted up to

this point, this chapter attempts to present only those selected

forms which are deemed to differ from the ones found in Standard

French. As a result, it consists of mere listings of paradigms,

whose classification and ordering stems from the schemes and O 2 terminologies presented by Gougenheim and Dubois.

In this chapter, matters of a morphqphonemic nature are not

treated as a separate topic; whenever necessary, they are integrated within the discussion of each case.

As usual, numbers in parentheses refer to numbered lines in

the transcribed text.

^Martin, op. cit. P Georges Gougenheim, Syst&me grammatical de la langue fran- caise (Nouveau tirage; Paris: Editions d'Artrey, 1962).

3jean Dubois, Grammaire structurale du frangais (Paris: Larousse, 1965)• I - Determiners

A - Definite

1. Singular

Same as in French: /l/ + V; /l/ ^ /l// + C + (Masculine

Substantive); /la/ + C + (Feminine Substantive).

Examples: [larhSS] (303), '1'argent1; [le/jn] (329), 'l'echine';

[lpapje] (173), 'le papier'; [lapu:z] (290), 'le pouce'; [ l % 0t] (282),

'la joue.'

2. Plural

Same as in French: /lez/ + V; /le/ + C.

Examples: [leaE»j] (311), 'les yeux'; [lezo:tr] (21), 'les

autres'; [le*/23] (308)} 'les chants'; [leh&:b] (282), 'les jambes';

[leqjo*/] (313), 'les cloches.'

B - Indefinite

1. Singular

/§/ + C + (Masc. Number Subst.); /in/ in other cases;

/do/ + C + (Masc. Mass Subst.); /dla/ + C + (Fern. Mass

Subst.); /dl/ + V.

Examples: [S*bcef] OW)), 'un boeuf'; [inoin] (89), 'tin homme';

[inorty:h] (288), 'une ortie'; [inkD

(28l), 'de la glace'; [dorezine] (136), 'du raisind'; [dlaso:! (292),

'du sel.*

2. Plural

Same as in French: /de/ + C; /dez/ + V.

Examples: [de»f£y] (136), 'des fruits'; [degreif] (3), 'des greffes'; [dez/] (312), 'des oeufs'; [dezistwa:r] (7 9 ), 'des histoires.' C - Demonstratives

0 1. Singular

/k// + C + (Masc. Subst.); /k/l/ + V + (Masc. Subst.);

/ket/ ^ /kel/ + (Fem. Subst.).

Examples: [q/ga:} (lOO), 'ce gars'; [q/lom] (ll), 'cet homme1;

[qetbaHol] (^5 ), 'cette voiture1; [qetistwatr] (257), 'cette histoire'

[qelrob] (262), 'cette robe.'

As in French, these forms may be followed by /si/ or /la/,

placed after the substantive, as in this example: [qethurnela] (198),

'cette ^ournde-lA..'

2. Plural

/kele/ + C; /kelez/ + V.

Examples: [tqelesu] (272), *ces sous'; [qelegab] (63 ), 'ces gars'

[qeledfoleiiS] (105), 'ces jeunes filles'; [qelez/] (85 ), 'ces oeufs.'

D - Possessive

1. Singular

First Person: /mo/ + C + (Masc. Subst. Singular); /ma/ + C

+ (Fem. Subst. Sing.); /mun/ + V + (Subst. Sing.); /me/ + C + (Subst.

Plural); and probably (though no occurrence of such a case in the corpus) /mez/ + V + (Subst. Plural).

Examples: [mopeir] (4), 'mon p&re'; [mam§*] (126), 'ma main';

[muna:h] (^), 'mon age'; [munafa:s] (l), 'mon enfance'; [meva/] (6l),

'mes vaches.'

Second Person: /t5/ + C + (Masc. Subst. Sing.). Only one such occurrence: [tSbune] (7*0, 'ton bonnet.'

Third Person: /s5/ + C + (Masc. Subst. Sing.); /sa/ + C + (Fem. Subst. Sing.); /sun/ + V + (Subst. Sing.); /se/ + C + (Subst.

Plural).

Examples: [so)fen] (2b3), 'son chien'; [sapoft] (55), 'sa porte*

[sunSdfe] (U6), 'son pays'; [sUnistwelr] (92), ’ son histoire'; [sepje]

{9b), 'ses pieds'; [se*g£i:v] (lt8), 'ses grives.'

It is assumed that all inflections are modeled after those

of the First Person.

2. Plural

First Person: /nut/.

Examples: [nuttwa*let] (bb), 'notre toilette'; [nutsu*pe]

(lVf), 'notre diner.'

Second Person: /vut/.

Example: [vutfob] (110), 'votre robe.'

Third Person: /z// + C + (Subst.); /l/z/ + V + (Subst.);

these data are very incomplete.

Examples: [z/bisiklet] (65 ), 'leurs bicyclettes'; [z/fwe:r]

(ll8), 'leur foire'; [l/zafelr] (6U), 'leurs affaires.'

E - Cardinal Numbers

They present no differences from French corresponding forms

except for six preceding a terminal Juncture: /siz/ ^ /si/. The only

examples are: [tutsi:z] (52), 'toutes six'; [karStsi:] (9*0, 'quarante-

six'; [hetJ3*si:] (165), 'nous Stions six.'

II - Substantives

With regard to number a few substantives vary from Standard

French forms.

//j/, 'oeil,' remains unchanged: [ince*j] (511), 'un oeil'; 16V

[lezoe-j] (311, 26 , 12), 'les yeux.' So, does the word for 'os,' /u/:

[inu*] (311), 'un os'; [de-zu*] (312), 'des os.' And also 'cheval':

[lo^vo] *3-', h6 ), 'le cheval.'

Oppositions of the type oeuf/oeufs may differ (as in: [incs]

(312), 'un oeuf'; [dez^*] (312), ’des oeufs') or maybe similar to

French, (as in: [e-tof] (3>'8), 'un boeuf'; [deb^] (3!'8), 'des boeufs').

However, in this latter case, it seems highly probable, in the light of

musset's dictionary'1 and the writer's experience, that the informant is being influenced by French: the generally accepted singular form is [tyi] .

As for gender variations from French, only a very few

substantives can be mentioned: [ja] (28l), 'glace,' is masculine;

[uvfa-h] (2l8 ), 'travail,' 'ouvrage,' is feminine; and so is [kupj]

(52, 57), 'couple' (also confirmed by Musset).

Ill - Substitutes

A - Personal

1. Sub.ject Singular

First Person: /h/ + V; /h/ ~ /htf/ + C.

Examples: [hetifatige] (6 ), 'j'etais fatiguee'; [hfervsny] (l8 ),

'je suis revenue'; [hszidi (2 1 ), 'je lui dis'; [hsjayodi] (252),

'je lui ai dit.'

Second Person: /ty/ + C; /t/ + V.

Examples: [tyt§*vao] (392), 'tu t'en vas'; [tyse] (l6 ), 'tu sais'; [tesiabil] (l8 ), 'tu es si habile'; [ta ma*r/e] (38N-), 'tu as marche'; [ta*tga] (398), 'tu entends.'

''Musset, Glossaire... , op. cit. 165

Third Person Masculine: /i/ + C; /il/ + Oral V; /in/ +

Nasal V.

Examples: [idi] (73), 'il dit'; Ciletel (90), 'il dtait';

[inSnavetamne] (77), 'il en avait amen£.'

Third Person Feminine: /&/ ^ /e/ + C; /al/ ^ /el/ + Oral V;

/an/ + Nasal. V.

Examples: [aslpe:v] (8U), 'elle se l&ve'; tenufgzetamS-he]

(231), 'elle nous faisait a manger'; [alete] (83), 'elle dtait';

[elata/e] (228), 'elle attachait'; [ anStopet?mti3 (265), 'elle en

coupait un peu.'

It should be pointed out that /e/ and /el/ are rare and

probably result from French influence.

Third Person Neutral: /3/ is very seldom used. Example:

[5: fsze] (239), 'on faisait.'

2. Sub.lect Plural

First Person: /h/ + V; /h/ ~ /lafi/ + C.

Examples: [hav3*di] (100), 'nous avons dit'; [hnus3p#omne] (17),

'nous nous sommes promen^es'; [hgrijao] (175), 'nous riions.'

Second Person: /vu/ + C. This is a unique occurrence:

[vuparle] (76 ), 'vous parlez.'

Third Person Masculine: /i/ + C; /il/ + Oral V.

Examples: [im3hja] (2^0), 'ils mangeaient'; [ilavjaJ (73),

'ils avaient.'

Third Person Feminine: /a/ + C; /al/ + Oral V.

Examples: [anuzava raKJte] (ll8), 'elles nous ont racont^';

[alavodi] (ill), 'elles ont dit.' 166

3. Interrogative

When placed in inversion, subject personal substitutes are

the same as in Standard French except for the first person singular

and plural /hi/: [keltwa-let metro*hi] (109-10), 'quelle toilette mettrons-nous?' On the other hand, third person geminine /e/ may be

due to French influence; [vodfate] (22), 'voudra-t-elle?'

H. Direct Oject

Same as in French and with same morphophonemic rules.

5* Indirect Object

Same morphemes as in Standard French and same morphophonemic rules except for the third person.

Third Person Masculine Singular: /h/ + /ji/ + C; /li/ ~

/zi/ + C; /j/ + V.

Examples; [ehjidi] (126), 'et je lui dis'; [likovnjao] (72),

'lui convenaient'; [posrzidmSde] (90), 'pour lui demander'; [sihjepa]

(125), 'si je (ne) lui ai pas'; [hajavtfdi] (252), 'nous lui avons dit.'

Third Person Feminine Singular; /zi/ + C; /h/ ~ V + /j/ + V; other C + /i/ + V.

Examples: [hazidi] (21), 'je lui dis'; [kshjavodi] (’*0), 'que nous lui avons dit'; [etevnyje*de] (199), 'etait venue dui aider';

[asiefvsny:] (273), 'elle est revenue a elle'; [pcerieseje] (271’),

'pour lui essayer.'

Apparently, French le lui, la lui are not expressed in Sainton­ geais, except by /zi/, as in: [hgzidun inpum] (3’'2 ), ' je lui donne une pomme' becomes [hazidun] (31*3 ), 'je la lui donne'; and [hazidun emursa dpi*] (3^3-’^), 'je lui donne un morceau de pain,' becomes

[hazidun] (3M), 'je le lui donne.' 167 Due to these incomplete data it is not possible to determine

all morphophonemes with any great degree of accuracy.

Third Person Plural: /z//, used for both genders.

Examples: [lavejz/di] (110), 'la vieille leur dit1;

[kaz/mete] (1^9), 'qu'elle leur mettait.1

6. Neutral

Subject: /o/ + C; /ol/ + Oral V; /on/ + Nasal V.

This pronoun corresponds to "impersonal" il, to il in il y a,

and ce when followed by €tre in the third person in French; it also may

express a degree of "neutrality" which can hardly be translated in

French. Examples; [osmetitatune] (5-0, 'il se mit a tonner'; [eovne

suva debga] (90), 'et il venait souvent des gens'; [ofonuzokype] (115)>

'il faut nous occuper'; [ojay] (151), 'il y a eu'; [oletedehaa] (5 ),

'c'^taient des gens'; [olapotSpe^e] (128), 'qa n'a pas emp§chd';

[onSnarivei] (91), 'il en arrive un'; [eto] (126), 'est-ce?'; [ueto]

(2t9), 'oh est-ce?'; [a*bafbszj/ || koletepwg; tfolwg-dla] (103), 'A

Barbezieux, qui (que qa) n'^tait pas trop loin de la'; more examples of this type may be found in (87 ) and (8 8 ).

In some cases /o/ may be elided, as in: [fale] (228), 'il fallait'; [fopadmade] (96 ), 'il ne faut pas demander'; [ ja] (l6 2 ),

'il y a'; [jana] (213), 'il y en a.' It should be noted that the elision of il occurs also in Popular French.

Direct object: /zu/ + C; /l/ ^ /zw/ + V.

This neutral substitute refers to non-persons and as such is opposed to /l/, /l//, /la/, /le/, /lez/ (similar to French which only refers to persons. Examples; [ljfeenzumahe] (2J16), 'le chien mangeait qa,' 168

or 'le mangeait' (i.e.. hot water with salt); [azuvwajepa] (139), 'elle

(ne) le voyait pas'; [tysezufeir] (l6 ), *tu sais y faire'; [lamer*pero I pjymecj/ | zuvide] (lh-8 ), 'la mfere Perreau plumait ca, le' vidait’;

[zuvlatupafti] (182), 'voila tout qa parti!1; [hlava, dehadil (36b)}

•nous l'avons dfSjk dit'; [hale $e*r/e] (b03), 1 je l'ai cherchd';

[tyla )fe*r)(e] (Uo6 ), 'tu l'as cherchd'; [hazwe StSdy] (38o), 'je l'ai entendu1; [tyzwa StSdy] (38l), 'tu l'as entendu.'

This is opposed to: [hletruvo*] (250), 'nous les trouvonsi;

[hlavwaja] (l6 6 ), 'nous la voyons.'

7 . Disjunct

First Person: singular is similar to French; in addition to

/nu/, plural has /nuzotr/, which is also found in Popular French.

Examples: [kumnu] (2b0)f 'comme nous'; [nuzo*t havgdil (115), 'nous, nous avons dit.'

Second Person: only one such occurrence in the corpus, in

[alezi vuzo:t] (108), 'allez-y, vousl'

Third Person Singular: /li/ for masculine, and /le/ for feminine.

Examples: [avekli] (60), 'avec lui'; [li | i: vulepwS] (220-21),

'lui, il (ne) voulait pas'; [le | alavetS)fen] (2b3), 'elle, elle avait un chien'; [kumle] (262), 'comme elle.' However, there is one case of free variation: [oturdsie] (170, 26b) ~ [oturctezEl] (6 ), 'autour d'elle'; the latter form probably resulting from French influence on the informant's idiolect.

Third Person Plural: only masculine morphemes were found in the corpus, /z//. Examples: [avekz/] (15), 'avec eux'; [z/etu] (209), 'eux aussi.' 169

B - Demonstrative

1. Singular

Masculine: /k^/ or /kj^la/. Feminine: /kel/ or /kela/.

Examples: [q^fetffin] (108), 'qa ne fait rien'; [q^la] (338),

'celui-la'; [qela] (2 0 ), 'celle-la.'

The opposition between demonstrative /k/ and neutral /o/

should be noted: [q/feiten] (108), vs. [ofeften], [q^kisre boo] (3^2 ) vs.

[osre boo] are more accurately translated in English than in French

("this does not matter" vs. "it does not matter/' " this which would be

good" vs. "it would be good"). Thus, in [osketetSn^jaa] (3,'2), the non­

demonstrative nature of the substitute has to be underlined.

2. Plural

Two masculine morphemes are present in the corpus, /k^la/ and

/kelela/, as in: [q^lakijorepoete] (105), 'ceux qui n'y seraient pas

alles'; [qelela] (7 J0 ), 'ceux-la.'

C - Possessive

Only one was found to be present in the corpus, first person feminine singular /lam^n/: [lanten] (179), 'la mienne.'

D - Relative

Same as in French, except for subject (which resembles Popular

French form): /k/ + V; /ki/ + C.

Exanqples: [kete] (133), 'qui etait'; [qete] (219), 'qui etait'j

[kitat^a] (2 55 ), 'qui t'attend'; [kifszjco] (2 21), 'qu'ils faisaient.'

One sole case, [kiave] (2l6), 'qui avait,' probably results from a confusion with Standard French.

Also, /u/ + C as in French, but /uk/ + V. Examples: 170

[tulezactfetuheete] (20’1), 'tous les endroits oil je suis all^e';

[ukolave] (l,jJ'-), ' oil il y avait.'

E - Indefinite

Indefinite substitutes which differ from French are:

/k/kS/, 'quelqu'un,' as in [q/k§] (19);

/k/k/uz/, 'quelque chose,1 [

//oke/, ' chacun,' is tentatively derived from the form

[/akimn] (2''l), 'chacunune';

plural of /tu/ (26l) becomes /t/rtu/ for masculine and /t/rtul/

for feminine, as in [tiertu] (5 8 ), 'tous,* and [tcertut] (63), 'toutes.1

F - Substitute "Y"

(Juncture) + /i/ + C; (C ~ V) + /zi/ + C; /j/ + V.

Examples: [halo ide* s2;d] (179), 'nous allons y descendre';

[rcenazimet] (2^5), 'rien a y mettre'; [vulyjale] (1 07), 'voulu y aller';

[hjavjoete] (119), 'nous y etions allees.'

The unique occurrence [ukolave] (l!'k), 'oil il y avait,1 is very likely the result of a lapsus linguae; the appropriate form should have been: [ukojave].

IV - Adverbs

Only those adverbs which in the corpus differ from Standard

French forms and use constitute the subsequent listing. They are grouped and organized according to the traditional system of classification.

A - Quantity

/py/ + (Adjective), 'plus': [py^olid] (280), 'plus solide.1

/med/, 'plus de': [heme* dpum kali] (3''9)> ' j'ai plus de pommes que lui.' 171

/me/.../me/, 'plus... plus...': [erne lpapjevoltifte | emelkokkure]

(l7 3 -7 '-i), 'et plus le papier voltigeait, et plus le coq courait.'

/§mti/, 'un peu'; [Smtipu:r] (3 6 ), 'un peu peur.1

/tupje/, 'beaucoup': [hSffo tupj?] (358), 'nous en ferons beaucoup.' No form phonologically realted to beaucoup was noted in the corpus.

/partial/, 'assez': [epipamal] (l8l), 'et puis assez.'

B - Times

/ast/r/, 'maintenant'::[levla kasterr] (8 6 ), ' les voila que maintenant.'

/an//, 'aujourd'hui': [an/] (3&9).

/dser/, 'ce soir': [dse:r] (l5*1).

/dotfwa/, 'autrefois': [dotfwa] (2 3 ).

/amat§/, 'ce matin': [amate• ] (3-0 ).

/oser/, 'le soir', 'au soir': [oserilaresteasupe] (1 22), 'le soir il est rest£ a diner.'

C - Manner

/m//, 'mieux': [m/] (20),

/etu/~/etut/, 'aussil: [etu] (6 9 ), [etut] (227).

/tut/, 'trfes': [tutne*g] (190), 'toute noire,' 'tres noire.'

The corpus does not contain any form similar to French trfes.

/b/n/, ~ /b§/ + C and /ben/ + V, 'bien,' 'tr&s,' 'fort':

[hlemjo bccnkSme 1 m] (ll'f), 'nous 1'aimions bien quand meme'; [hmShjobcen]

(129), 'nous mangions bien'; [ebcenalo-r] (112), 'eh bien alors’; [ebS;]

(15*0, 'eh bien'; [ilavebS kopfi] (129), 'il avait bien compris';

[alete be*nema] (31), 'elle etait bien aimable.' 172

D - Interrogation

/ketok/, 'qu'est-ce que' [keto kav^feir] (169), 'qu'est-ce

qu'elle veut faire?'; [ketbkhala feir] (271), 'qu'est-ce que nous

allons faire?'

Direct interrogation: /kumS/ + C, as in [kumS fe:r]

(kl), 'comment faire?' Indirect interrogation: /kumSk/, as in

[ilatapfi kUmSklefij] (12U), 'il a appris comment les filles.'

E - Negation

/pa/ and /puS/ which may be followed by /ger/.

/pu?/ + C; /pu8n/ + V.

Examples: Colapa2pe/e] (127), 'qa n'a pas empe'chd';

[olalepwS*vi:3 (9), 'qa n'allait pas vite'; [havipw?• netealelsPl3

(l6o), 'je n'6tais pas all8e a l'8cole'; [tytamyzrapagjeir] (13),

'tu ne t'arauseras gu&re'; [inuzabadonja pwggeir] (53 ), 'ils ne nous abandonnaient gu&re.'

V - Prepositions

/p/r/, 'par' ~ 'pour' [jf^rlafneit] (196), 'par la fenStre';

[poerinfwa] (162), 'pour line fois.'

/ s y / ^ /dsy/, 'sur': [o//sylez/3 (87), 'qa tonibe sur les oeufs'; [dasylateit] (112), 'sur la tSte.'

/dez/ + V + (Subst. Plural), 'd"; Cdezo-t3 (21U), 'd'autres.'

/a/, 'par,' 'de,' is used to indicated possession and also in the formation of adverbs: [aq^t£S3 (59), 'par ce temps'; [levjolet ala*/arlot] (251-52), ’les violettes de Charlotte'; [adefwa3 (68 ),

'quelquefois.' 173

/d^/ is used for other Standard French prepositions, such

as: ’par,' 'sur,1 'pendant.' For instance: [dSboor] (159), 'sur

un cStd.'

VI - Conjunctions

/k2t/, 'quand': [kSthavja] (131), 'quand nous (n') avions';

[kS*tledfole;S] (255), 'quand les filles.'

/pask^/, 'parce que': [pasks] (66 ).

/o/, 'ou.'

The subordinating conjunction [psrpak], 'pour que.. .ne.. .pas,'

contains the negative morpheme [pa], as in: [pcerpakhejopu:r] (37),

'pour que nous n'ayons pas peur.' This conjunction is so widely-

distributed that it could well be considered as part of Popular

French.5

VII - Verbs

The following verb forms were taken from the corpus. For easier reference infinitives are listed in French in alphabetical order. No references with regard to their position in the corpus are given to the verbal forms listed here. However, since in most cases paradigms are incomplete, the person number of each form is indicated.

^Kr. Nyrop, Grammaire historique de la langue frangaise (6 vols.; Copenhagen: Gyldendalske Boghandel.Nordisk Forlag, 1^99-1930), VI, p. 16U. Also, W. von Wartburg et P. Zumthor, Prdcis de syntaxe du frangais contemporain (2d. ed. rev.; Berne: A. Francke, 1958), p. 99. Aller, /ale/

Indicative: Present Imperfect

1. / h m / /haljo/ 2. /tyva/ 6. /alaljo/ 3. /iva/ /halo/

Apneler

Indicative: Imperfect

/hapjo/

Avoir, /avwar/

Indicative: Present Imperfect

1. /he/ 1. /havi/ 2. /ta/~ /ta/ 3. A W , /oja/~ /ja/ 3- /ilave/ 4. /havo/ ^ . /havjo/ 5- /vu.zave/ 6. /ilavo/ 6. /alavjo/

Conditional: Present

3. /ilore/ ^ . /horjo/ 6. /ore/

Boire, /buer/

Indicative: Present

1. /hbue/ 2. /tybue/ 3- /ibue/ U . /hb/vo/ 5- /vub/ve/ 6. /ib/vo/

Choir, //er/

Indicative: Present Future

1. /h/ere/ 2. /ty/era/ 3- / / / / 3. /i/era/ J . i Past Participle: /Xe/ ~ /$f/

Connaitre. /k^n^t/

Past Participle: /k^ny/

Coudre, /kud/

Indicative: Present

1. /hku/ 2. /tyku/ 6. /akudo/

Past Participle: /kudy/

Croire

Indicative: Present

1. /hkre/

Cuire. /k^r/

Past Participle: /k//

Donner

Indicative: Present

1. /hdun/

S'en aller. /anale/

Indicative: Present Imperfect

1. /hmava/ 1. /hmanali/ 2. /tytava/ 3. /isava/ /hnuzSdalo/ 5. /vuvuzanale/ 6. /isanalo/ 6. /sanaljo/

Entendre

Indicative: Present

1. /hata/ 2. /tata/ if-, /hatado/ 6. /ilatado/ Etre

Indicative: Present Imperfect

1. /hse}/ 1. /heti/ 2. /te/ 3. /ile/, /ole/ ~ /se/ 3« /alete/, /olete/ h. /hso/ /hetjo/ 5 . /vuzet/ 6. /iso/ 6. /iletjo/

Conditional: Present Subjunctive: Present

1. /hsri/ 3 . /osre/ 3- /sej/ 6. /sre/

Faire, /fer/

Indicative: Present

6. /if/zo/

Jeter

Indicative: Present

3. /ih/t/

Se mettre a

Indicative: Perfect

3. /osmeti/

Paraitre

Indicative: Imperfect

1. /hparesi/

Partir

Indicative: Present

1. /hs/ buhe/ 2. /te buhe/ 3* /ile buhe/ U. /hso buhe/ 5. /vuzet buhe/ 6. /iso buhe/ 177

Pouvoir

Conditional: Present Past Participle: /pojy/

1. /hpuri/

S'asseoir, /sasir/

Indicative: Present Imoerfect

1. /hmasi/ 2. /tytasi/ 3. /isasi/ 3- /asiste/ /hnuzasjo/ 5- /vuvuzasje/ 6. /isasjo/

Sauter

Indicative: Imperfect

1. /hsoti/

Savoir

Indicative: Imperfect

l./hsavi/

Se lever

Indicative: Present

3. /as l^ v/

Suivre, /s^g/

Indicative: Present Future

3. /s/g/ 2. /tys^gra/

Past Participle: /sgy/

Trouver

Conditional: Present

1. /htruvri/ 178

Venir

Conditional: Present Imperative

1 . /hvbdri/

Vouloir

Indicative: Imperfect Future

6 . /vuljb/ 3 . /vodra/

Conditional: Present l

1 . /hvodri/ 2 . /tyvodri/ 3 . /ivodri/ U. /hvod^rjS/ 5 . /vuvod^rje/ 6 . /ivod^r

To all these forms must be added /stel/, 'dit-elle,' as in:

[ stel] (27I1.)

Though scanty and rather incomplete, these data reveal that

the Saintongeais verbal system does not differ markedly from Standard

and Popular French. Most verb stems are basically alike and reflect

only slight divergences due to a different phonological evolution.

The most salient characteristic of Saintongeais verbs is exhibited

by some types of flexion. The following comments should be made in

this respect:

a) If subject personal substitutes are considered as part of

the flexion system— and thus as prefixes— , first person morphemes /h/

tire identical in the singular and plural. These two forms are

differentiated by suffixes, which vary according to tense.

b) First and third person suffixes are expressed by an identical morpheme, /b/, for all tenses. This remarkable feature was also noted 179

in the patois of a village in the adjoining Poitou area.^ Prefixes,

i.e. subject personal substitutes, characterize these forms.

c) Imperfect indicative and present conditional of all verbs

seem to be inflected by one sole suffix, /i/, in the singular

(although /e/ was occasionally noted for the third person). Morpheme

/i/ seems to be used as well for the simple past tense, in which case

both imperfect and simple past singular forms for most verbs would be

identical and could not be differentiated.

^G. Pougnard, Le parler "franco-provencal11 d'Aiript. (La Rochelle: chez 1'auteur, 1952), p. 55. CHAPTER SEVEN

SYNTAX

Of all the levels of analysis examined in the course of

this study, the syntactic level is the least revealing. Indeed,

differences with regard to phrase or syntagmatic structure between

Saintongeais and Standard French are few and often amount to a matter of minor details. Furthermore, it would be inaccurate and improper to ascribe too great a significance to differences of this nature and to state that as such they characterize Saintongeais: most of these have already been noted^ as forming some of the features of Popular French— and are especially well presented in condensed 2 form by Guiraud,

As a result, this chapter merely consists of listing all the differences of a syntactic nature which were found in the corpus with regard to syntagmatic expressions that a speaker of

Standard French would not use. As previously mentioned, all numbers in parentheses refer to a specific line in the transcribed corpus.

I - Determiners

This section concerns only definite determiners— or articles.

The following expression was noted: [ismetjcttalatab] (239),

'ils se mettaient a (la) table.’

^-Bauche, op. cit.

O Guiraud, op. cit.. especially Chapter II.

180 l8i

The definite article may he used— and is often used— in front

of a proper noun: [er#fem5o] (200), 'et (le) Raymond'; [lev jo let I ala*^arlot] (251-52), 'les violettes de (la) Charlotte.' However,

one instance is similar to Popular French: [lame•ra % jemStin] (56),

'la mfere de Clementine.'

II - Adjectives

Adjectives may be used for adverbs: [lgve lah&:b bS*v.o:t]

(196), 'lever la jambe bien haut.'

III - Substitutes

The use of personal substitutes differs in some respects

from French.

A pleonastic subject personal pronoun is very commonly used, following the subject and an open or terminal juncture:

[lamszoo | aletetintutpgtitmezaba:s] (19*0, 'la maison (elle) dtait vine toute petite maison basse.' This phenomenon may occur as well when the subject is inverted: [iletja. fefehub?*rsy | lefhS* laddgS], (238-59), 'ils etaient toujours bien requs, les gens la-dedans.' This is also a typical trait of Popular French.^

Subject personal pronoun may be omitted when following a disjunct. There is only one such occurrence: [li | avetetealekol]

(217), 'lui, (il) avait etd a l'dcole.' But this is in free variation with: [li | i: vulepwS*gjeir] (220-21), 'lui, il ne voulait pas.'

One case of omission of subject personal pronoun was observed:

[hletruvSf- tuled;{ 11 e etja] (250), 'nous les trouvons tous les deux, et (ils) etaient...'

^Ibid., pp. UO-lfl. 182

As pointed out in the preceding chapter, a direct object

pronoun is omitted when used in conjunction with an indirect object i pronoun. For instance, [hszidun] (3^2-kU) may mean ’je le (la, les)

lui donne' or 1je lui donne1 followed by a complement.

Impersonal, or "neutral" pronoun is often used with the

subject placed in inversion: [ovStinora*h] (53 )# 'un orage vint.1

These two types of features which existed in Old French and persisted until the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries may well be

archaisms.

IV - Adverbs

One specific expression was noted with regard to the use of fois in a comparison: [lo*t efoo:t | katfwa kumle] (262), 'l'autre est quatre fois plus grande qu'elle.'

The use of adverbs of negation is different from French in several respects. It was mentioned in the preceding chapter that in the corpus the first element of negation, ne, is always omitted and that

/pa/ and /puS/ may be followed by /ger/. This use of /ger/ seems to be emphatic: it reinforces negation. For instance, [i: vulepwg.gjeir sokypedobetaj] (221), 'il ne voulait pas du tout s'occuper du bdtail.'

In subordinate clauses indicating a purpose (pour que +

Subjunctive in French) /pa/ alone marks negation and is placed before /k/# as in [pcerpakhejopu:r] (37)# 'pour que nous n'ayons pas peur'; [psrpa korpu*s] (228), 'pour que qa ne repousse pas.'

V - Prepositions

Where Standard French uses /d/, /d// in front of plural 185

adjectives, Saintongeais has /de/, /dez/: [avwa•debeIf j£•r] (193),

'avoir de belles fleurs.'

Possession is expressed by means of preposition /a/, as in:

[lame.ra*kjem&tin] (5 6 ), 'la mhre de Clementine,' an archaic feature

common to Popular French. However, one unique instance with /d// was

found: [la/S*b ds%jem3tin] (62), 'la chambre de Clementine.'

There seems to be a tendency to use prepositions /a/ after

aimer and /da/ after monter when these verbs are followed by an

infinitive: [alemebcen aavwa.r] (192-93), 'elle aimait bien avoir';

[alamote d&in/eiz] (263), 'elle est mont^e sur une chaise.' This type

of syntactic construction is very likely archaic.

VI - Verbs

Evidence indicates that all non-reflexive verbs are conjugated

with auxiliary avoir; [ilareste] (122), 'il est restd'; [alatafive] (ItU),

'elle est arrivde'; [avarturne] (ll8 ), 'nous sommes retourn^s'; [alamote]

(263), 'elle est mont£e'; [hav3 rmP-te] (6 5 ), 'nous sommes remontdes.'

One occurrence, however, follows the French pattern: [lassreetarivee]

(ll8 ), 'le soir est arrivd.'

Tense agreement may differ from French: CosketetSn/jaa 11

olekStojavedegrirvl (2k0-kl), 'ce qui dtait ennuyant, c'est quand il y avait des grives.'

The use of falloir que + subordinate clause is preferred to

devoir + infinitive: [oletinafe*r kofokosejb?•fet] (2 2 7 ), 'c'est une

affaire qu'il faut qu'elle soit bien faite.'

Mood agreement differs from normal use in Standard French with regard to subordinate clause in conditional sentences. In one case, 182+

the conditional mood in a clause replaces _si + imperfect indicative

normal in French: [hpurizirtu*rne 11 hstfuvl-pw? tulez&dfetiiieete]

(20U), 'je pourrais y retourner, je ne trouverais pas tous les endroits oh je suis all^e.1 Yet this type of juxtaposed clauses is not special to Saintongeais; though uncommon, it has been used and is

still used in Standard French.** In another case, the conditional mood is used in a subordinate clause, replacing what would be a subjunctive in French: [ometunre kofre bja* dm?*] (338-39), '5a m'dtonnerait qu'il ferait beau demain.' This type of construction is commonly found in

Popular French.

First person plural, instead of the first person singular, may be used as a form of modesty or politeness from the part of the speaker. This, of course, causes a difficulty when it comes to translating, even with a context. For instance, in [hlav& d^iadi]

(36*0, which is a citation form, the informant very likely means,

'je l'ai d6jh dit.' However, in the context of lines (22+8-53) it is quite possible that the informant is speaking about herself only, but no definite evidence can support such a hypothesis.

Verb /kite/ + infinitive is used instead of laisser + infinitive that a speaker of Standard French would employ: [alafini poerlaqiteSnale] (22-23), 'elle a fini par laisser partir.'

In addition, the verb /et/, 'etre,' is used in the compound past in lieu of French aller in the same tense: [havjoeteinfwa obal]

**See, for instance, R.L. Wagner et J. Pinchon, Grammajre du franqais classique et moderne (Paris: Hachette, 1962), p. 598. 185

(53), 'nous dtions allies une fois au bal.' This feature is very-

common in Popular French.

VII - Emphasis

Emphasis may be expressed either phonetically, by means of

the contrastive type (although its exact nature still remains to be

determined accurately), or it may be expressed syntactically in which

case it always involves changes in prosodic patterns.

In the corpus, syntactic emphasis is used to stress

affirmation and negation, or to reinforce exclamations or mere

statements.

Emphatic affirmation is expressed only by means of /sek/ or

/se/.../k/, as in: [seka £/vu] (1*0 ), 'c'est que, chez vous'J [se»ks |

havipw?*netealekDlmenahe:r3 (159-60), 'c'est que, je n'^tais pas

all^e a l'^cole m^magfere.' This form seems to be borrowed directly

from French, and it is used only for this purpose; the form /olek/ or

/ole/.../k/ that would be expected is nowhere found in the corpus.

As mentioned earlier, emphatic negation is expressed by /ger/

which is added to the adverb of negation: [inuzabadonja pwSgeir] (53)

could well be translated by ' ils ne nous abandonnaient pas du tout.1

/me/, 'mais,' is used as emphatic in such exclamations as:

[amuje § meamuje] (51*), 'A pleuvoir; mais A pleuvoir!' CHAPTER EIGHT

LEXICON

The object of this chapter is to present a listing of the

words found in the corpus which differ appreciably from Standard

French words either as to form or meaning. However, paronymic

creations, usually quite frequent in all patois, are not to be

taken into account here— in fact, they are practically non-existent

in the corpus. For a socio-cultural— as well as rather amusing—

approach to this aspect of Saintongeais, Doussinet's works must be

mentioned.

In addition, whenever deemed necessary, etymologies are

presented solely with the purpose' of retracing the likely origins

— especially with regard to French or Occitanic origins— of these

various forms or their derivations; as a result, this aspect of the

study should be regarded as a mere attempt and not as an exhaustive

examination of etymological problems.

The following abbreviations, placed in parentheses, designate the main sources of reference utilized in this chapter:

(M) Glossaire des patois et des parlers de l'Aunis et de la Saintonge, by G. Musset;

(P) Dictionnaire du B^arnais et du Gascon modernes. by

S. Palay;

^Especially, Le paysan saintongeais..., op. cit.

186 1&7 (REW) Romanisches etymologisches Wb'rterbuch, by W. Meyer-

LtCbke;

(FEW) Franzosisches etymologisches Wb'rterbuch, by W. von

Wartburg;

(G) Etymologisches Wb'rterbuch der franzbsischen Sprache.

by E. Gamillscheg;

(DDM) Nouveau dictionnalre ^tymologique, by A. Dauzat, '

J. Dubois, H. Mitterand;

(BW) Dictionnaire ^tymologique de la langue francaise, by

0. Bloch and W.' von Wartburg;

(L) Petit dictionnaire provent?al-fran<;ais, by E. Levy.

In order to point more clearly the differences between

Saintongeais and French, words are listed as their phonetic— rather

than phonemic— forms. Also, for reasons of convenience, this listing

follows as much as possible alphabetical order, though with the

following variations: (l) nasal vowels follow the listing of their

oral counterparts, (2) [£] is considered as being spelled ch,

(3) [k3 and [q] are listed under the letter k.

Numbers placed in parentheses refer to line numbers in

transcribed texts (Appendix A and B).

[abute] (191), v.: termini

abouter; aboutir. finir; .Ioindre; .joindre un bout a un autre,

deux bouts ensemble; toucher par un bout. (M).

Derivative of bouter. From: abouter (13th cent.) and aboutir

(lkth cent.) which remained in Standard French. ( D m ) .

[adefwa] (68), adv.: quelquefois. (M). 188

[agraiaat] (7 0 ), adj.: attrayante.

Agrftlant: sdduisant, allcchant, attrayant; agrjable. (m ).

V. agrSler; §tre agreable; also, chauffer, rStir, brfiler,

secher par la chaleur. (m ).

Adj. and first meaning of v. probably < gratum; and second

meaning of v. < craticula (See: [grale]).

[a5ypja] (l66, 275), adv.: assis par terre. (m).

[amate-] (3’’0), adv.: ce matin. (M).

[an^] (369), adv.: aujourd'hui. (m ).

V- s'aneuter; faire nuit. (M).

Likely Oil: anuit, anuitier, anoitier in Old French. However,

andt, aneyt, andeyt in H. Big., meaning ce soir, cette nuit. (p).

[apilote] (207), v.: ratatine.

Apiloter; mettre en tas, en pilot; se tasser, s'affaisser. (m ).

synonym: rapiloter. (M).

N. pilot: petite pile, tas. (M).

From plla, colonne. (FEW): "jonzac, St. Seurin, apiloter

'mettre en tas*, St. Seurin v. r. 's'attrouper, s'affaisserI."

[apypre] (>'•), adv.; a peu prfes. (M).

[py] is found only in this adverb, although pou, meaning peu,

is noted as an ancient form no longer used (m ). Today peu

is seldom employed to supplant the usual [paboku]. Notice

that in all other occurrences [py] corresponds to plus.

[ardil] (296), n.f.: argile.

Possibly not Occitanic: not listed in (L) or (P).

Old French argille (12th cent.) (G); argille, ardille. arsille (BW). Greek origin, argxla. According to Wartburg's

hypothesis (REW 6 ''l), forms ardille and arsille are due to

influence from ardre»

[astce:r] (86, 106, V'7, etc.), adv.: maintenant. (M).

[a-^e] (296), n.m. or f .: ver de terre. (M).

Achee, achet: ver de terre. lombric; les pecheurs s'en

servent. (M). Probable Oil origin. Achee (156*')# verbal

substantive from Old French aeschier; amorcer (BW). Achee.

also achet (l6 th cent.): ver de terre, appat; gche; appgt (G).

Common in Western France (FEW). Esca (L); esque or fesque;

appgt (p).

[adfe] (>-6 ) ~ [Sdfe] (203, 201'), n.m.: pays; endroit.

Endret: endroit, lieu, place, localite. (M).

[afody] (5 8 ), v.: mouille jusqu'aux os. (M).

Enfondre: mouiller qqun. ou qqch.; laisser mouiller par la

pluie; penetrer, traverser en parlant de la pluie; mouiller

jusqu'aux os; tremper. (m ). Also, s'enfondre: se mouiller

.jusqu'aux os. (m ) . N. enfonde, enfonte: pluie torrentielle;

enfondement: fait de la pluie qui pen&tre soit une personne

soit toute la terre arable, (m ) . Old French, enfondre; gtre

gele, mouille: enfondu: mouille. From en + fondre.

[3kry*^e] (26''), v.: percher, suspendre.

S'encrucher; se suspendre; encrucher; accrocher, suspendre,

placer un ob.jet sur un endroit eleve. (M).

Old French, encrochier. From Germ, krok (REW U7 8 0 ). See:

[kry)(te]. 190

[Snale] (2 3 ), v.: partir.

Here it is used as a non-reflexive verb.

[Svni] (35), refl. v . : revenir, retourner. (M).

[boe-rdede:] (268), interj.; onomatopoeia.' (M).

[b^:n] (270), n.f.: bosse.

BeQgne: contusion; bosse survenue a la suite d'un coup;

bosse a la t§te. (m ).

Bougna: se cogner et se faire une bosse; bougne; bosse (P).

Beigne ( l H h cent.), beignet (l6th cent.): bosse.

See; [ebcerne].

[boor] (12, 159, 266), n.m.: c6td. (M).

[bunh^a] (J>6, l8>'), interj.: used for expressing pity or compassion. (M).

[)(akote] (82), v.: taquiner.

Chacoter: produire une cuisson, une souffranee, des

elancements. secouer; demanger, chatouiller. produire des

petits coups dans la chair; taquiner (fig. sense), (m ).

Chagoter (Bayonne and Landes): chatouiller (p).

Doubtful etymology. Either Germ., < katelen (W. Frisian) (G)

or Latin, < catulire (Diez 5■',I), £tre en chaleur. possibly

from catus (Ernout et Meillet), pointu, aigu, + -[kote],

suffix used in several verbs (as in [turnikote]).

[)£a:fi] (l!’5), n.m.; chfine. (M).

[)(elr] (371), v.: tomber, choir.

Chfere, cheire. cherre (M). In Old French, chair. cheoir, chaoir, etc.

Definitely a northern form.

Cade, caje, cayje (P). 191

[$o;s] (2 3 5 ), n.f.: bas. (M).

[darjer] (l11'1) ~ [dorje;r] (173), adv. and prep.: derri&re. (m).

[dS

[dehobfe] (l8 8 ), v.: debarbouiller, se debarbouiller. (M).

From jobrer; barbouiller, graisser; and .job roll or .jobroux;

barbouille. crasseux, sale. (M).

Probably related to Standard French .jobard (

.jobet, .jobit, .jobard; niajs, nigaud. (M). ■ Also .jbbi: nigaud,

naif (p).

[devire] (93, 112), v.: detourner, retourner.

Devirer: tourner, mettre de cote, detourner; retourner; mettre

sens dessus dessous. (m ) .

Derivative of virer; tourner, se retourner. (m ).

[dotfwa] (23, 272), adv.; autrefois. (M).

[dorn] (2 5 9 ), n.f.; fond, sifege.

Dorne; giron, partie centrale au devant des .jupes et du

tablier; cette partie du tablier se relfeve par les coins et

forme ajnsi une espfece de sac; dornee; contenance d1 un tablier,

d'une dorne. Also, dorne; evasement pratique dans la margelle

d»un puits. (M).

In Old French, dorne (same meaning). In Provengal, dorn and

dor, "width of the fist or hand."

From *dQrnos (Gallic); "fist" (REW 2807), (G), (FEW).

[dfo-l] (5 2 , 351), n.m.; garqon; [dfoleig] (7 , 105) ~ [dl'ole:^] (235),

n.f.; fille, jeune fille.

DrSle; enfant, et plus specialement garqon, fils. (m ). Prolesse: fille, petite fille. (M).

Drble, -o, -e; drblle, -e, -o; droullant; and other derivatives

gargon, fille. (p), From drol (Ndl.) (FEW).

Attested with this meaning since the eighteenth century, and

widely spread in Central, Western, and Southwestern France (EW)

To be distinguished from quenaille: petit enfant (M); canalhb

(Orthez): enfants (P), From canis (REW 1592) and (FEW).

[dse:r] (l5’0> adv.: ce soir. (M).

[dwei] (6 8 ), n.m.: doigt.

Douet: doigt. (M).

[dwe:r] (l6k) ~ [dwe:r] (l7Jl), adv.: dehors. (M).

[ebcErne] (8 7 ), v.: ebreche.

Ebeurgner, ebergner: ebornger, contusionner. Beurgner;

enfoncer, defoncer, contusionner, eborgner; bosseler; faire

ou se faire une bosse p. la tgte en se frappant contre un ob.jet

contondant. Also bigner, beugner. Beurgne and beugne: bosse,

contusion a la tete. Old French, buyne, buignet, buigne,

beule. From *bunia, "tree-trunk" (FEW).

[ebfa.ja] (17'0 , v.: braillant.

Ebrailler, s'ebrailler; crier, hurler, avec frayeur notamment;

.japper d'une fagon extraordinaire en parlant d'un chien;

ebraillis; grand cris. (m ).

Derivative of brailler < *bragUlare (FEW) < braghre, "to bray."

[elwa:z] (318), n.f.: eclair (d'orage).

V. dloiser, eloider; faire des eclairs. (M). 193

Esloide; eclair; esloider; faire des eclairs. (Godegroy).

Probably < loukgton (Gallic): "lightning." (REW 5131b).

[eskslet] (295), n.m.: squelette.

Esqualette; squelette. (M).

Also found in Popular French and Occitanic.

[espo*ze] (92 ), v.: exposait

Espofisition: exposition. (M).

Also found in Popular French.

[etu] (102, 107) ~ [etut] (l!i3, 151, 1 75), adv.: aussi. (M).

From Old French itel: de meme (REW 8815) and et tout (DDM).

[emti] (36 , 272, etc.), adv.: un peu. (M).

From Old French un petit; un peu.

[ffeijfe] (353), n.m.: odeur de marecage.

Fraichin: odeur de marecage, d'une fadeur accentuee, en parlant

du poisson. de la maree, de la viande. etc. (M).

Old French word. Freschin: vent fais; odeur de certains

animaux; sorte de pomme. (Godefroy).

[ffy] (136), n.m.: fruit.

Employe partieuliferement pour designer le produit des arbres

fruitiers. (M).

[fymel] (365), n.f.: femme.

Fumelle; feme lie; femme, .jeune fille; femme de mauvaise vie. (M).

Female and fumble, and derivatives: femme, femeHe; may have

derogatory connotations depending on geographical area. (p).

From fern's11a; "female of animals." (REW 3238). Old French,

fumelle. [gra*le] (159), v . : bruler.

GrSler: griller, rotir; faire griller; sgcher. (M).

Old French groller; rissoler, griller; and graellir;

faire griller. (Godefroy).

(156, 158), n.f.; gril. (M).

This term nevers carries the meaning of grille, which became

diversified about the sixteenth century.

Old French, grail, grai'le, gredille, grejl. Provenqal,

grelha, grilha. (L).

From *graticula < craticUla. (FEW).

[gul] (126, 306), n.f.; visage, figure; bouche. (M).

[hile] (57) ~ [hile] (235), n.m.; vStements (de diverses sortes). (m)

[ho] (170, 171, 175) ~ [kok] (172), n.m; coq. (M).

Old French jau or jal < gallum.

[ho] (9), n.m.; haut, hauteur, (m). Also adjectival forms [ho] and

[hot] (258); haut, haute or grand, grande.

[h] due to Germanic influence has been maintained in Gascon—

haut (P)— as well as in various parts of western France.

[ho-bjae3] (331), n.m.; gelee blance. (m ).

[ho] is used only when followed by [bj£a] to designate "white

frost." In other cases, "frost" is rendered by gel (M).

Different from gela: geler and gelade; gel£e (P).

From gSlu (REW 3718).

In addition to the foregoing meanings, [ho] also designates a

"wedding ring" and a "barrel tap." (m ). 195 [hot] (282), n.f.: joue. (M).

Presence of final consonant may indicate possible Occitanic

origin: gauta (L), gauto in Mod. Prov., gaute (p).

[hu*k] (336), n.m.: perchoir. (M).

V. Jouquer; percher, .jucher; se jouquer; se percher. (M).

From Frank, jttk (REW ''6 ll) or *jok (DDM).

Probably Occitanic: jouc ^ joc juc (P).

[hu*t] (368), n.f.: bettes. (M).

Doubtful or unknown etymology (REW '’637) • This word is

common in northern and southwestern France. In Armagnac,

joftto: rave, betterave (p).

[jeer] (28?'), n.m.: lierre. (M).

Same as in Old French and French up to the sixteenth century:

ierre< edre (10th cent.) < hedera.

[jo] (2 67), n.m.: de (a coudre).

Dau, diS, ya; de a coudre; det: de, doigt. (M).

In the fourteenth century deau and deaul were attested forms

in eastern and western France (BW). From digitu (FEW).

[kn/sSts] (112), n.f.: connai s sance.

[kf^*] (295), n.m.: trou. (M).

Also creuge (pron. cru) and cru; trou, espace de terre inculte

et_creux. (M). And cros, crot. (P).

Doubtful etymology: corrosus (REW 2257), *crossus (BW), *kroso

(g), *kr<5su- (FEW). Probably Gallic origin.

[kfy)(te] (’’1 2 ), v. : monter, grimper.

Crucheter; monter; grimper sur un arbre ou sur un objet; 196

se percher; s'emploie surtout en parlant des enfants. (M).

Probable analogy with crocheter: agrafer, accrocher; acrucher t

descendre un ob,jet;j encrucheter; accrocher, suspendre (see

[3kry.}(e]); also d^crocheter, decrucheter, desencrucheter. (M).

[ku-] (171), n.f.: queue. (M).

Middle French coue < Old French coe, cue < coda < cauda.

[kupj] (52, 57), n.f.: paire, couple.

! Always feminine according to Musset. Couble, coublie:

couple, paire.

V. coubier; accoupler, marier. (M).

[qite] (25), v.: laisser.

Thitter, tiiter: quitter, laisser. (m ).

[lapoortakute] (UO), adv.: pr&s.

[me] (27, etc.) ~ [me] (106, etc.), adv.: plus, davantage. (m).

From magis. It has maintained its Old French meaning, but is

also used as a conjunction.

[m£l (20, 111, 2l8), adv.: mieux. (m ).

Different from Gascon mielhe or mielhou. (M). From melius.

[mitaa] (19’’), adv.: milieu. (M).

From Middle French mitant or mitan, widely spread over

Galloroman area. Obscure etymology.

[mo*het] (5*!7), n.f.: haricot.

Mogette, mongette: haricot. (M).

From Provenqal monge: moine < *m5ri5cha < monAchus.

This is definitely an Occitanic form. Mounjete: nonnain,

haricot en general* moun.jou: haricot rond. (p). It is mongeta in Catalan. ALF map displays similar forms with same meaning

covering from the northernmost point of Aunis, extending over

most of Aquitaine, and reaching into Catalonia.

[muje] (5!0, v.: pleuvoir. (M)..

Very common verb used over the whole area. Now part of

Regional French. Numerous derivatives.

From molliare; "to wet, moisten." (REW 56’i6).

[ne-g] (190), adj.: noir, noire. (M).

Occitanic form: negre, nere (P).

[rf£t] {&'), n.f.: nuit. (M).

Probably influenced by Western Occitanic; nofet, nogyt, neyt,

net. (P).

[no:r] (286), n.f.: belle-fille. (M).

Definitely Occitanic: nore, noure. (P).

[nuke] (227), v.: nouer, attacher.

Derivative of nouc; noeud. (m ).

[Ho:l] (273), n.f. : eau-de-vie, "gnole."

Likely borrowed from military argot or Popular French. Not

listed in Musset.

Doubtful etymology: either from nineteenth century Lyonese

gniole, (G) and (DDM); or Burgundian form of Old French

(h)ieble < ebulum, "elder-tree" or "elder-berry." (BW).

[o] (6 9 , etc.) ~ [0 ] (9, etc.), pr.: "impersonal" or "neutral" il; £a.

Very likely Occitanic; Provenqal o (L), oc (p). From hoc

(REW 4158)- According to Pignon, < *illu.2

2pignon, L*evolution..., op cit.. pp. 10 and 279-80. 198

[ose:r] (15, >’2 , 122), adv.: le soir. (m) .

[osibe;] (205), adv.: aussi bien, en m§me temps.

[pomal] (l8l), adv.: assez, beaucoup.

May be a borrowing from Popular French.

[pantfo-l] (362), n.f.; genre de col^optfere. (M).

Unknown origin. Possibly < pantex (REW 6207).

[patat] (131), n.f.: pomme de terre. (M).

Also in Popular French.

[pa-sje:r] (286), n.f.: moineau. (M).

Occitanic term. However, Gascon terms differ: parrat,

parrou, parrofi; moineau; passfero; moineau femelle. (p).

This would indicate that moineau, which started to replace

derivatives of Latin passer (REW 6268) in the twelfth

century in northern France, did not penetrate Saintonge.

At present moineau is occasionally used. Musset lists

the locution moineau de trou and the term moiniche.

designating a "female sparrow."

[pSdije] (156), v.: pendre; suspendre. (m) .

Cpigose] (170, 26 9 ), v.: picorer; harceler.

Musset lists a series of synonyms: pigocer, pigocher,

picocer, pigorer meaning becqueter, monger grain a grain

en parlant des oiseaux, picoter, picorer.

All these verbs are equivalent to Standard French picoter—

derivative from piquer (BW), (DDM), (G), (REW 6 !'95)— and

picorer— possibly a derivative of pecbra (REW6325). However,

popular etymology with spicum should not be overlooked, 199

especially in the light of the following forms furnished

by Musset: epigot: epi de ble; epigoter; decapiter en

moissonnant les epis de ble; epigocer; egrener un epi,

emietter, and which is used especially with regard to

birds eating seeds.

[pja*ss] (267), n.f.: place, espace; aire d'une chambre; se dit

particuliferement d'un appartement de terre, d'un

plancher. (M).

CpJa] (H2), n.f.: peau. (M).

Different from Gascon forms: pet, pfetch, peyt. (P).

[pj3'^e] {V'2} 157, 3-’-9), n.m.: plafond en planches.

Piancher: plancher d1un appartement: appartement au-dessus

du rez-de-chaussee; grenier. (m ).

[pjo] (309), n.m. (Sg. and PI.): cheveu, poil. (M).

Provencal: peu; Gascon: peu. (P).

[ragote] (26 ), adj.; trapu, rSbld.

Musset cites: ragote, -se; ragoton, -oune. And Palay lists*

ragot, ragote.

In Standard French seldom used ragot has the same meaning,

"stocky, stumpy," and is applied to animals as well as to

people.

Cra^e] (2 28), v.: rScler.

This verb is not listed by Musset. He cites, however, rSche:

gale; and rtcheux: gpre au toucher.

[rms-j] (288), n.m.: pis (de vache).

Remeuil; pis, tetine; mamelle de la vache, de la brebis. Ameuil, vache amouyante; dont le pis se gonfle. Remeuiller;

avoir le pis gonfle au moment du part. (M). Also chet; pis

de la vache, de la brebis. (m ).

According to the ALF map, this word and its variants cover

a wide area circumscribed by the north of Gironde, half of

Charente, Haute Vienne, up to approximately the Loire River.

No definite etymology has been established^ because of an

obvious overlap as to form and meaning between a series of

derivatives based on molliare. "to wet, dampen," and

mftlgere, "to milk." This overlap is best illustrated in

Palay's dictionary, which lists the following:

moulha, mulha, mouiller, baigner, tremperj. (cmolliare);

mottlhe. mftlhe; traire une bgte; (cmftlgere)’’;

but monTbade indicates as well action de mouiller as quantite

de lait d'une traite;

moulhude: traite; moulhede; lieu de la traite; moulhedere:

bete a traire;

also remoulha: remouiller; remelha (Medoc): gonfler en

parlant du pis; and remelh (Medoc): pis, mamelle.

However, according to the FEW, this \7ord is a derivative

of *in&lliare (remouiller: mouiller de nouveau in Modern French)

which became in Saintonge "remeuiller: se gonfler (en parlant

5lbid., p. 3l>!..

*'Gerhard Rohlfs, "Le gascon," Beihefte zur Zeitschrift ftir romanische Fhilologie, Nr. 8p (1935), pp. 7&-79- 20 1

du pis des vaches quelque temps avant la parturition),”

and remeuil (remeil in Poitou): pis de la vache.5

[sake] (57, 60, 62), v.: mettre, plonger, fourrer. (M).

From sacquer; mettre quelque chose dans un recipient.

dans un sac. (M).

[sasirr] (127), v.: s'asseoir. (M).

[sSrturne] (185, 187), v.: retourner, revenir. (m).

[s2vni:r] (36, 25h ), v.: retourner, revenir. (M).

[sor?r] (253), n.m.: fraxcheur du soir. (M).

Also in Old French; rarely used in Standard French; derivative

of ser; soir (M).

[s9rvsni:r] (273), v.: revenir a. soi, reprendre ses sens.

Se revenit with same meaning, (m ).

[scs.gr] (355), v.: suivre.

S&gre: suivre. (M). Its other forms are Occitanic: je

segue (pres.); ,je seguis (perfect); segut or segue (past

part.).

There is also another infinitive form, seguer, less

frequent. (M). In Gironde: siegue. (p). Also segui and

segue. (P).

[sok] (95 ), n.m.: gros soulier.

Though archaic, this word is part of Standard French

lexicon. Soque: soulier a semelle de bois, monte sur un

5 Walter von Wartburg, Franzdsisches etymologishes Worterbuch (BSle, 1929 to present), vol. VI, p. *7• 2 0 2

pied de fer, dont on usait pour ne pas se mouiller les

pieds; sabots montes sur cuir a semelle de bois. (M).

From soccum.

[soge] (357), v.: attendre.

Soguer: attendre; attendre en badant; faire le pied de

grue; regarder sans rien faire. (m ).

[so] (292), n.f. ^ [ s e l ] (292), n.m.: sel. (M).

Feminine form is disappearing.^

[stel] (177, 27’1), v.: dit-elle. (M).

[stfl (V')y V.: dit-il.

Musset lists sti: dit-il.

[ supe] (122, 15'', 25'j), n.m.: diner. (M).

This term has maintained the same meaning it had in pre­

nineteenth century Parisian French.

[tpertu], [tiErtut] (5 8 , 63, 39), pron.: tous, toutes. (M).

From Old French trestout, tretout.

[tupje] (358), adv.: beaucoup. (M).

[turine] (6 ), v .: brasser.

Touriner: brasser souvent; se dit notamment d'un enfant

qu'il faut brasser sans cesse; a la tourinee: a tour de

role, (m). It may be related to Occitanic tourrj, "special

onion soup," and tourrina: faire mijoter un plat. (p).

[turnihote] (26’1), v . : tournoyer.

Musset lists only torniquer: tournoyer. Probably verbal

suffix -[tote] was added to this stem.

^Millardet, " L i n g u i s t i q u e . . . op. c i t ., pp. !'9-50. [tut?hu:rl (6 7 ), adv.: toute la journee.

[ u O (311), n.m. (Sg. and PI.): os. (m ) .

[uvfa:h] (66 , 220), n.f.: travail. (M).

Older meaning; also found in Popular French.

[vej] (22, 59, etc.), adj. f.: vieille. (M).

[ve-g] (309), n.f.: chienne.

Vesse; chienne; femme de mauvaise vie. (M).

Found in Provence, western France, Normandy; < vltium

(REW 9396).

[•vosfnike'] (’-'I*1), v . : aller, ou courir, de cote et d 1 autre. (M).

Besides verniquer, Musset lists; vernusser; veOrniller;

tourner, faire mille tours; veurnusseries and other

derivatives.

[vire] (355), v.: tourner.

Also, se retourner. (M).

[vwe] (25’’ ), excl.: oui! (M).

Voui is found in Popular French.

[y-s] (29-l, 295), n.m.: sourcil. (M).

Occitanic form < ostium (REW 6ll7).

Palay lists: usses, "eyebrows," and us, "entrance, door. CHAPTER HIKE

HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

In the preceding chapters we presented a descriptive

analysis of all the pertinent features that could be found in the

corpus. This analysis rested on two premises. In the first place,

the relevancy of the linguistic features chosen for examination was

solely based on the assumption that these features would not be

found in a similar corpus in either Standard or Popular French. In

the second place, the corpus— i.e. the idiolect of a single native

and permanent inhabitant of a Saintonge village— was assumed to

represent the patois spoken in the area.

However, synchronic description, no matter how thorough and

complete the analysis may be, does not suffice. Its value would be

far too restricted, and perhaps pointless, if it were not followed by

an interpretation in the light of more general and comprehensive

considerations. The present chapter, therefore, will attempt to show the significance of the corpus within the wider scope of time and area. Its ultimate end is to bring out those features which can be deemed truly characteristic of Saintongeais speech and to formulate certain generalizations about it; its purpose is not to present a detailed diachronic study.

Such a task will not fail to raise numerous and complex questions of a synchronic, diachronic and geographical nature. Of

20k foremost importance will be to determine, somewhat arbitrarily, the area where patois of the S'aintongeais type were still spoken a few decades ago. It will also involve delicate problems concerning different levels of spoken French, where importance is still so manifest today. Indeed, for almost a millennium the foreceful and deliberate push of the original Francien dialect, as it was spoken at the Court and later arbitrarily modified by successive generations of self-styled purists, reduced but did not eliminate all other dialects to various types of "non-standard," or "substandard," speech levels. Although most literary works were written according to the Court's standard of the day, the uneducated French— by far the majority— , whether in Paris or in the rural areas, kept using a wide diversity of such non-standard forms of speech, variously termed

Popular French, Regional French, poissard. patois, argots, jargons.

So important was this development that even to this day the "educated"

Frenchman has at his disposal at least three speech levels, each with a different degree of fluency: Standard French, Popular French, and some argot.’*' Unfortunately, the import of such relentless continuance of non-standard French was overlooked by most linguists. It was casually approached by a few.^ Only now does it seem to be the object of serious consideration.

■^Pierre Guiraud, Patois et dialectes franpais (Paris; P.U.F., 1968), p. 8 .

% o r instance: Charles Thurot, De la prononciation frangaise depuis le commencement du l6 e sifecle (2 vols.; Paris: Imprimerie Rationale, 180O-8 5 ); Theodore Rosset, Les orjgines de la prononciation frangaise etudiees au 17e siecle (Paris: A. Colin, 1911); Ferdinand Brunot, Histoire de la langue frangaise des orjgines h nos jours (ll vols.; Paris; A. Colin, 191’’-53)« 206

These non-standard forms of speech, though erratically-

recorded and limited in number, reveal a surprising degree of uni­

formity through time, especially in Paris and apparently for most

of the Oil-speaking area. It is even more surprising to discover

in our Saintongeais corpus a large number of non-standard features

which have been used by the Parisian people for centuries and which,

to a degree, are still used today by "uneducated" Frenchmen.

Another set of problems which must be approached in this

chapter will concern the influence that the Occitanic substratum

may have had on Saintongeais. The procedure adopted here will

consist in comparing certain Gascon features with Saintongeais.

Finally, the matter of Saintongeais should not be abandoned

without touching upon the subject of Canadian dialectology. Contrary

to general opinion the majority of settlers in New France and Acadia

did not consist of Normans, but of a great diversity of people from

all over the country. In fact, the number of settlers from Saintonge,

Aunis and Augoumois almost equalled that of settlers from Normandy. 3

It is surprising to find today certain similarities between some

Canadian dialects and Saintongeais. No systematic study of this matter having been attempted yet, these similarities may be purely coincidental.

The following discussion of such considerations and problems is based on the usual frame of analysis; phonology, morpho-syntax and lexicon.

-’Ernest Martin, Le frangais canadien et-il un patois? (Quebec; Ateliers de ”1' Action Catholique," 1931/), pp. 38-9 and 1(6-7. 207

I - Phonology

A - Consonants /h/ and /$/ (

1. Fricative /h/. The phones [h] and [hi, though no part of

the phonetic inventory of Standard French, are not special to

Saintonge. Their distribution, that of [h] particularly, is

scattered over a wide area: Gascony, Lorraine, Western Wallonia,

Alsace, Poitou, Normandy and some parts of Canada. A few centuries ago they were even more widely distributed not only in the provinces but in Paris where they existed in the eighteenth century.^ This type of fricative, which occurs in initial position, is of Germanic origin.5 c However, in a few areas such as Southwestern Poitou, some portions of Canada? and Acadia,® and especially in the Saintonge and

Aunis area, /h/ has another and quite different source: it is the reflex of older /:£/, preserved. (Here, however, the seemingly unique

Hlarcel Cohen, "L'observation des phonfemes occasionnels (H^t 9en franqais)," Proceedings of the Fourth International Congress of Phonetic Sciences, in Helsinki, 1961 (The Hague; Mouton, 1962), pp. 36L-62.

5Marcel Cohen, Nouveaux regards sur la langue frangaise (Paris; Editions Sociales, 1963), pp. 135—''0.

®Pougnard, op. cit., pp. 8 and 15.

7Abbe Rene Charbonneau, "La spirantisation du [2];" Journal of the Canadian Linguistic Association, III (1957), PP- lA-9 and 71-7*

®Genevieve Massignon, Les Parlers frangais d'Acadie (enqutte linguistique) (2 Vols.; Paris: Kincksieck, 1962). Also, J. Geddes, Study of Acadian-French dialect spoken on the north shore of the Baie-des-Chaleurs (Halle; Max Niemeyer, 1 9 o 8 ) . 0

208

case of *geusjae in which final j'if becomes /h/ in a few isolated

communities of Lorraine and Walloonia will be discarded).^

As a result, the corpus contains homonyms such as the

following: [ho] (9), 'haut,' Germanic; [ho] (170), 'coq,' from

[z] (<0.F. jal); and [ho] (331), 'gelee,' (< Latin g^lu). Another

illustration is found in: [hot] (M),^® 'hotte' (

[hot] (2 82), 'joue' (< *gauta).

The overall geographical distribution of /h/ is striking

when considered under the following two distinct historical criteria.

A cursory examination of the Atlas Linguistique de la France will

reveal that the distribution of initial /h/ from Germanic (though

limited to a few words, such as 'haut,' 'hache,' 'honte,' 'happer,'

'haie,' 'hameau') is spread over large areas in France, but that

the extent of each of these areas varies greatly with each word.

On the other hand, the distribution of /h/ < J'i./ is restricted to

Saintonge and Southwestern Poitou— Aunis being excluded— and corres­

ponds to the area mentioned by Rousselot.^ (See Map IV, based on

the distribution of symbols [h] and [jh] in the ALF). No notable

difference could be found in the corpus between the phonetic

^W. Meyer-Lubke, EinfUhrung in das Studium der romanischen Sprachwjssenschaft (3rd ed.; Heidelberg: Carl Winter, 1920), p. 2^3 • Walter von Wartburg, Franzosisches etymologisches Worterbuch (Bale, 1929 to present), Vol. IV, pp. 127-29 . Also, J. Gillieron et E. Edmont, Atlas Linguistique de la France (Paris: Champion, 1910-12), M a p 655, point s 171, 291 and 292.

^-®(M) refers to Musset, op. cit.

^•Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 195* 209

expressions of this phoneme with regard to origin except that the

one derived from Germanic tends to be voiceless. Therefore, it

is safe to assume that the phone of Germanic origin remained in

Saintonge just as it had over a large portion of the French

territory and that eventually it became fused to and assimilated

by the one evolving from /£/, whose phonetic expression is generally

unvoiced and occasionally voiced.

No evidence can be found with respect to the time the change

/z/ > /h/ took place. The earliest evidence of its occurrence is

found in the writings of nineteenth century patois authors who

adopted the graphy jjh instead of the standard or g. It seems

most likely that /h/ did occur only once /*/ had been firmly estab­

lished and that the shift fz/ > /h/ started to take place at a T O relatively "late" period. Pignon speculates that it probably

arose in Saintonge in the sixteenth century and that it progressively

spread to Southwestern Poitou during the following century. Shunning

the possibility of parallel evolution, he bases his opinion on the

fact that this sound, which is found in the Beauce region of Canada

(south of Montreal) and some parts of Acadia must have been imported by Saintongeais and Poitevin settlers into Canada during the latter part of the seventeenth century.

It is surprising to note, however, that Bourciez^ fails to acknow-ledge the presence of /h/ in the study of Gavache verb forms

^Pignon, L 1evolution..., op. cit.. pp. Ulk-15.

^Bourciez, op. cit. 2 1 0

M

• ••

• •

••

M A P I V

N

MAXIMAL DISTRIBUTION AREA

(according to ALF data for .jambe, manger, pie) 2 1 1

which he undertook some eighty years ago. Although this study deals

primarily with morphology, it is difficult to believe that he would

not have recognized or would have avoided mentioning such a

flagrant characteristic, even in a passing reference. If indeed

/h/ does not exist in Gavache one must conclude that Saintongeais

and Poitevin migration into Gascon territory did take place at a

time anterior to the evolution /2/ > /h/, that is either before or

during the sixteenth century.

2. Fricative /#/. In the ALF only four points indicate the

presence of a phone, transcribed [-eh], which seems to approximate

our [)£] (See Map V). Three of these points are located in Saintonge,

and one in Southwestern Poitou. At point 536, this symbol is used

in the transcription of the following fifteen words: 'ache,1 *chacun,1

'chandelle,' 'chanvre,1 'charbon,' 'charpentier,' 'charrue,' 'chat,1

'chSteau,' 1chatouiller,' 'chaud,' 1chaudronnier,' 1chaux,' 'chene,1

'chose.' It is used for three words at point 510: 'chandelle,'

'chandeleur,' 'charbon;' two words at point 5 27: 'champ,' 'chandeleur;' and the word 'chandelle' at point 528. It is surprising that

E. Edmont's discriminating ear identified this sound in only four rather scattered communities. Perhaps the reason lies in his choice of informants, which was not always adequate.

The sound is indeed difficult to identify because of its numerous and subtle variations ranging from a more or less breathed

[£] to the marked [)£] of our corpus and because of occasional similaries with a more or less palatalized [9] or even a [x]. It seems certain, however, that its geographical distribution is— or was— 2 1 2

more extensive than the evidence offered by the ALF, as shown on

Map V. Pougnard reports its occurrence in Southwestern Poitou.

Rousselot states that the change /?/ > /h/ and /£/ > /)£/ (which,

surprisingly, he transcribes [6], equivalent to an ach-laut) is

complete in Saintonge and the western portion of Poitou and

Angoumois.^ He adds, however, that the area covered by /%/ is

"much smaller" than that of /h/.^ Pignon expresses a similar

o p i n i o n . ^ Furthermore, oh the basis of his experience in the

field, the writer agrees that the /$/ area, though less extensive

and far more difficult to delineate than the /h/ area, is not

confined solely to the two points listed in the ALF.

No records indicate the date of emergence— even approximately—

of this sound. It is first mentioned in the nineteenth century by

local -writers, such as Burgaud des Marets who used the graphies

ch to transcribe it, stating that it must always be uttered by means of a powerful "aspiration" either at the beginning or in the 18 middle of a word.

No mention is made of a sound approximating [)£] in French

Canada. However, on the basis of first hand observation the

Pougnard, op. cit.. pp. J-Q and 1 5 •

■^Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 195-

^Ibid., p. 1 9 6 .

-^Pignon, op. cit., p. ’'15.

-*-®Burgaud des Marets, op. cit.. p. 15. 2 1 3

S

510 »lt|

••••

• ••

536

528

•••••

• •••

• • • • •

M A P V

m

« points of distribution according to ALF X points of distribution according to Rousselot 2lh

writer is convinced that it could be found in the areas where [h]

exists, and feels that in this respect a thorough investigation is

necessary.

In the light of our present lack of knowledge, it can be

surmised that /}£/ started to occur after /h/,' possibly in the

eighteenth century and that, as a result, it was not exported to

Canada. The change from /'if to /)£/ or possibly /x/ was probably in the process of occurring at a time when the penetration of

Standard French became so foreceful that it partially checked its full development, a fact which was acknowledged almost a hundred years ago. 19 ^

3. Conclusions. Before leaving the matter of /h/ and /)£/ it is difficult to refrain from speculating about the origin and cause of such a characteristic articulatory shift which at first sight suggests a parallel evolution in Castilian. Perhaps a review of observations and conjectures which have been expressed so far would be useful at this point.

Rousselot made the following remarks;

Dans un grand nombre de patois, des articulations complexes correspondent au ch et au g franqais. On distingue presque toujours; d'abord un element dental qui est t_ ou dj puis un element palatal qu'il est souvent fort difficile de determiner et qui se presente sous la forme de [and here follows a series of symbols which correspond to our [S], [s], [Ss], [S£j, Iqy], [qj]] pour le ch. 0

•*-%ousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., pp. 195-97 and 2^2-kb.

20Rousselot, "introduction a 1'etude...," op. cit.. p. 10. It is interesting to note that here he uses [9], ich-laut,

instead of [x] as in other places. Elsewhere he adds:

En somme, la transformation du ^ en h et celle de -e en 6 [equivalent to [x] in I.P.A. symbols] se produit done d’abord au contact des voyelles les plus eloignees du palais. C'est la depalatalisation du d^ t^ qui continue.^1

In the case of those French Canadians using /h/, Charbonneau

noticed also that is consonant is usually followed by /a/. This is,

in fact, what is confirmed by the examples taken from the ALF with

regard to /)£/.

These superficial observations suggest that this articulatory

shift to a more posterior area of the oral cavity would result from

a possible affrication of [2] and [S], then of palatalization followed

by depalatalization. This process would differ appreciably from the

Castilian shift: [d2] ~ [X] and [&) > [x]. The only possible common point between the two phenomena would be the rapidity of their change, which took approximately one century.

Perhaps this shift could be best explained by a rearrangement

in the phonemic structure of the consonantal system. Thus, in

Castilian, it has been interpreted as a "move away" from /z/ and /s/.

With regard to French Canadian, Hull22 postulates that /2/ > /h/

(his symbol for voiced laryngeal fricative) and /£/ > /x/ or /h /

(his symbol for voiceless laryngeal fricative). He contends that

2%ousselot, Les modifications.... op. cit., p. 191-

^Alexander Hull, "The shift from [IS] to [h] in Canadian French a study in diachronic phonemics," The Proceedings of the'Linguistic Circle of Manitoba and North Dakota, II..2(1960), pp. 20-4. See also, by the same author, ‘'The structureof the Canadian French consonant system," La Linguistique I, (l966), pp. 105-10. 216 the shift must have occurred independently in Canada and in France because, the phonemic structure, based on six orders and three series, was not economical:

p f t s £ k

b v d z 2 g

m n n

1 r

So, he proposes:

It would be natural for it to structure itself into a tighter crystal, so to speak, in which /f/ and /v/ would become the fricative correlates of /p/ and /b/, /s/ and /z/ those of /t/ and /d/. But /£/ and /2/ cannot be considered to be members ofthe same order as/k/ and /g/, and therefore, for the system to restructure itself, it is necessary for /£/ and /2/ to become velars (or laryngeals). This, then, is what is happening in Canadian French. The resulting system, if this process were carried through, would be: p t k b d g f s h V z H m n (n) 1 r

The same change might also be expected to take place in Standard French. If it has not done so, it is partly, no doubt, because of the conservatism of the standard language, and partly because the "hole in the pattern" is being filled from another source. The French /r/ is often rendered as a laryngeal fricative, voiced or \invoiced according to position. It is not at all unlikely that this will inhibit the change from /s/ to /h/ from taking place in the standard language. Note that Canadian French generally use an apical /r/. ^

^Ibid., pp. 22-3. 217

This most appealing thesis may very well fit some French

Canadian dialects. However, it would hardly apply to the situation

in otir corpus since the phonetic variants of /h/ are generally

voiceless, and seldom voiced (a fact which was carefully verified),

and since the articulation of /)£/, though always voiceless, is

quite different from that of /h/.

Nevertheless, the two phonemes /h/ and /)£/ are quite

characteristic and constitute a unique and distinctive feature in

Saintongeais.

B - Consonants f

1. Fricative [q]. In the preceding chapters [9] was defined as an "allophonic variant" of /k/. Indeed, it is at the same time an allophone of /k/, since it precedes exclusively anterior and central vowels, and a variant of /k/, since in such an environment it may at times be replaced by Ck]. It was pointed out also that upon occasions

[ql may be more or less affricated.

On the basis of the word 'ici,* which is less subject to variations than other words, the ALF indicates the presence of [q] only at point 527— which lies some fifteen miles north of St. Dizant.

Affricate [tq] is shown to occur at three points in Saintonge— 535*

536, 528— and two others in Southwestern Poitou— 510 and 5 H , although at the latter point it is attested only for the word

'culotte.' The area surrounding these two centers displays an interesting array of other forms, as shown on Map VI. The geographical distribution of palatalized /k/ covers a larger area 218

MAP VI

APPROXIMATE DISTRIBUTION OF PALATALIZED /k/ FORMS

(according to ALF data for ici; question marks refer to la answers) than that of /h/ and /^/. It spreads north and northwest from the traditional Oc/OIl border.

However, once more the ALF differs from observations reported by others. With regard to Southwestern Poitou, Pougnard identifies a non-affricated sound similar to [5] which he defines as a "palatalized variation" of [}£] ,2'’ and Pignon states that /k/ preceding a front vowel is generally expressed by.[9], usually without affrication.2^

On the other hand, Rousselot does not acknowledge this sound.

[5] appears to be one result from the widespread palatalization which started to take place some three centuries ago over Central and especially Western France^ and which sharply opposes Northern

French to Occitanic, particularly Saintongeais and Gascon. As in the case of other palatalized consonants, the palatalization of /k/ preceding front or central vowels gave rise to a multitude of complex articulatory types subject to so many subtle variations that they are often difficult to break down even in the case of a single idiolect— in the corpus, four phonetic types were identified: [5], [tg], [tgj],

[?0]. The first evidence of this type of palatalization of /k/ in

Southwestern France, especially in Poitou, appears in the writings of local writers towards the end of the sixteenth and during the

2!,Pougnard, op. cit., p. 8 . See also p. 15 and p. 109-

25pignon, op. cit., pp. 36’’-8 6 .

'-^Ringenson, op. cit.. Maps II to VI. 220 27 seventeenth century. It may have started earlier in Saintonge.

It is also attested in the Pons Manuscript, in the eighteenth pQ century. It started very likely with the phase [kj] suggested

by the graphy qui- as illustrated in the following examples:

iquieu ~ quieu, 'cela1; iquele, 'celle'; quiette, 'c e t t e quiellez ~

quiell^, 'ces1; quiettez ~ quiets, 'ceux-ci1; quiu, *cul'; quieusse,

'cuisse'; quieur, *coeur.' According to Pignon the process of

evolution must have differed somewhat in Southwestern Poitou and

Saintonge, going through the stages [k] > [kj] > [tj] before

becoming— probably in the early part of the nineteenth century—

[ t£], [tq] and/or [q] It should be noted that sixteenth century

writers were using the graphics iqui ^ yqui, 'ici,* and iqueu ~

queu, iquez ^ ique for some of the forms mentioned above, thereby

suggesting that palatalization had not started then.^®

Forms such as [kqi:r] (315), 'cuir,' [kciirvr] (317), 'cuivre,'

can be best explained by borrowing from Standard French. Rousselot

mentioned [kjp;ur] for ' cuir.

Another type of palatalization for /k/ results from its

contact with /l/. This phenomenon was so widespread that it covered

^Pignon, op. cit., pp. 386-7 and Itlty. Also, Ringenson, op. cit., pp. 106-12.

2®Doussinet, Le parler savoureux. op. cit., p. S’1-.

2^Pignon, op. cit., pp. 386-8 7 .

>wPignon,3d Iia gente poitevinrje, recueil de textes en patois poitevin du XVIe sifecle (Paris; D'Artrey, i960), see his glossary.

^Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit.. p. 2 2 1

not only most of Northern France but a^Large portion of the Massif 32 Central. The end result was [kl] or possibly [l], in which /l/ i

became palatalized. However, whether this phase took place in

Saintongeais cannot be ascertained. The evolutionary pattern must

have followed that of /k/ preceding a front or central vowel,

resulting in [kj] and [q'j], as in [kjo'jf] (31-’f), 'cloche, 1 and

[o:qj] (287), 'oncle.' As shown on Chart 3 (Chapter IV), free variation between these two types is not uncommon, and the single

occurrence of [kl] should be noted with regard to the relatively recent word [bisiklet] (107). First hand information from people interviewed as well as from our informant reveals that forms containing [qj] are considered "older" and are partly replaced by forms in [kj], which today tends to become [kl] as in Standard French.

2. Fricative f.j]. The presence of /j/ in the corpus is not surprising since this phoneme must undoubtedly be part of the inventory of any French dialect. However, in the chapter on Phonemics it was pointed out that in the case of our corpus this segment plays a dual function: it is a semi-vowel phoneme and also an allophonic variant of /g/ followed by a front or central vowel. In the latter case it is the voiced counterpart of [5]. Its variations range from [g], [gj] and [j]. Unlike [q] it was not found to be affricated in these conditions. Furthermore, it must have been more affected by external causes than [9] since forms in [g] are more frequent than those in

[gj] or [ j].

52Ibid., pp. 198-99. 2 2 2

The geographical distribution of [j] seems to correspond to

that of [q ] and its variants. Pougnard notes its occurrence in

Southwestern Poitou,^ using the examples [jere], 'gukre,' [jape],

'guSpe,' [jeta], 'guetter.'

In all likelihood the palatalization of /g/ must have

occurred concurrently with that of /k/. Pignon and Rousselot

suggest that this palatalisation may not have followed a parallel

line of evolution and that it occurred very rapidly— possibly over

a period of less than a century*--?^ from [gj] to [j], a sound most

commonly found in the nineteenth century. But probably upset by

interferences due to the penetration of Standard French its evolution

never quite crystallized into [j], as reflected by [gje:r] (221) ^

[ge:r] (215), 'gufere,' and [gejr] (3), 'guerre,' in our corpus.

However, [j] results also from three other types of

palatalization: from /g/ followed by /l/ and from /d/ or /l/

followed by a yod. It seems to have remained more stable with

respect to the group [gl], as in [av^:j] (302), 'aveugle,' and

[ja] (28l), 'glace,' (which might be contrasted with guiace (M),

’miroir’). The group[dj] becomes [gj] or [j], as in guieu ^ yeu (m ),

'Dieu,' and Yane (m ), 'Diane (nom de chienne).' Two such

occurrences are found in the corpus: [dja-b] O'12), 'diable,' and

[jo] (267), 'd£ a coudre.' This type of palatalization was widespread

^Pcugnard, op. cit., p.8.

-^'Pignon, L'evolution..., op. cit., pp. 3Q h-86.

-'^Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 187. 2 2 3

M A P V I I

APPROXIMATE DISTRIBUTION OF PALATALIZED /g/, /d/, /l/ FORMS

(according to ALF data for guepe, aiguille, ave-ugle, eglise, de, diable, dieu, souliers) 22»i

in popular French during the eighteenth century (for example, Guieu,

'Dieu, 1 in Paris-^). As for the group [lj], it invariably results

in [j], as in 'lieuse,' and [suje] (102), 'soulier.' Map VII

shows the approximate geographical distribution of these forms.

3. Other palatalizations. These are of lesser importance, for

they were part of the Popular speech. In the group [pi], the second

element is palatalized, although in final position it tends to

disappear. The following examples are taken from the corpus: [py]

(8 ), ’plus,' and [pjytu] 0 ’9) ~ [pytu] (191), 'plutSt.' Similar

remarks can be made with regard to group [bl], for instance

[djab] (2>'-9), 1 diable.' Variations with [bl], a result of Standard

French influence, as in [bjy] [bly] (306 ), 'bleu,' should be noted.

Perhaps special attention should be paid to the following

forms [pjo] (309), 'cheveu, cheveux,' [jo] (267), 'd'a coudre,'

[bja] (339), 'beau,' [pja] (112), 'peau.' Up to the sixteenth

century— that is immediately before the beginning of the generalized palatalization— these forms must have existed respectively as

*[p8 o], *[d30], *[b3 ao], *[psao].

As for group [fl] > [fj], as in [fj®-r] (193), 'fleurs,'

Pignon mentions that with respect to Poitou no evidence of this type of palatalization can be found prior to the end of the seventeenth century. ^

^Ferdinand Brunot, Histoire de la langue frangaise des origines a nos jours (l’i vols.; Paris: A. Colin, 1905-53), X, p. 2 67.

^Pignon, L' evolution.... op. cit.. p. 396. 225

*>■. Conclusions. Palatalization of the types just mentioned

started in the late sixteenth century or early seventeenth and affected

a wide portion of the French territory^® ranging from parts of the 39 Franeo-provenqal area and Auvergne to the Atlantic coast and

j !.0 Normandy.

In Canada, the palatalization of /k/ and /g/— a seventeenth

century "import" from France, remained rather stable, as present

evidence indicates.The absence of [q] and [j] points out that

these two consonants must have developed in France in the eighteenth

century, after relations with New France had been severed.

As pointed out by Gillieron and later discussed by von

1(2 Wartburg, many an aspect of this palatalization was often expressed

in a variety of erratic ways. The only resulting sound of interest

here is [q], which definitely characterizes Saintonge and parts of

Poitou.

Rousselot and Pignon1s contention that /g/ palatalized

directly into [go] and [j] is debatable. According to the ALF some

forms containing a [dj] stage are not uncommon in Saintonge, Poitou

^Adrien Millet, Les grammairiens et la phonetique (Paris: Monnier, 1933), p. lVk.

^Albert Dauzat, Geographie phonetique d'une region de la Basse-Auvernge (Paris; Chamption, 1906)•

^^Dauzat, Les patois, op. cit., pp. 31,, ,!1, 117-18, 121, l''5 a n d 155* Also, Theodore Rosset, op. cit., pp. 312-20.

^Ijean-Denis Gendron, Tendances phonetiques du franqais parld au Canada (Paris: Klincksieck, 1966), pp. 111-33-

1“Von Wartburg, Problfemes et methodes..., op. cit., pp. 19-22. 226

and Aunis, and obviously other forms are derived directly from [dj]—

for instance [djj£] ~ [ g j $ ~ ’d i e u . ’ Furthermore, on the

basis of past evolutionary processes— e.g. from Latin to Old French—

it is difficult to conceive why the palatalization of /g/ and /k/

should not have followed a somewhat parallel line of evolution.

It would therefore seem reasonable to these two parallel

stages of evolution: [kj] > [tj] > either [t§] > eventually [£], or [tq] > eventually [ [dj] > either [dz] > eventually

[2], or [j].

In this case, perhaps the articulatory shift of the palatalized allophones of /k/ and /g/ was sufficient to favor and possibly induce the shift of phonemes j't /> /}£/ and /?/ > /h/. Such a conjecture would give support to Hull's thesis of a phonemic restructuring. In this respect the articulatory differences between our /)£/ and /h/

(Hull, proposes a voiceless/voiced opposition in this case) might appear more plausible, taking into account on the one hand the low opposition yield between voiceless and voiced pharyngeals and on the other hand the different rates of speed and imperfected degrees in the palatalization of /k/ and /g/. As evidence of such partially completed processes in palatalization and articulatory shifts, the corpus reflects a highly disorganized phonemic structure and an utterly confusing inventory of phones, even to the native speaker.

Had external disturbances and interferences not taken place, the whole system would undoubtedly have achieved simplification and balance.

^^Ringenson, op. cit. t pp. l,'0-,v9» C - Co ns o n a n t / r / .

As stated in Chapters IV and V, this phoneme is expressed

by a variety of phones often difficult to identify. Of these, three

main types were tentatively isolated. One dorso/uvular type is

identical with Standard French, [r]. The other types, alveolar [ f]

and trilled [r>] do not belong to the modern phonetic inventory.

Alveolar [f] was widely used over the whole country until the

seventeenth century. During the following century, however, it

became progressively replaced by the uvular type— a recent occurrence

in most of Western Europe— which had been previously adopted by the

upper and middle classes of Paris.^ As a result, [f] still subsists

in some rural areas, though it is fast disappearing. On the other US hand, trilled [r] may be considered as a former Occitanic trait. J

Neither of these two variants could be termed characteristic of

Saintongeais.

In the section on Metathesis (Chapter IV) it was noted that in the case of the conjunction of central vowels [ce] ~ [ 3] a n d a n alveolar vibrant the position of the vowel varied freely with that of the vibrant (as in [f£sfma*h] ~ [fltema*h] (565), 1 f romage1). We might suggest that actually there is no metathesis in such cases, but rather that the vibrant is itself syllabic. This suggestion was first expressed by Jonain,*^ who transcribed this type of occurrence by

^Dauzat, Histoire de la langue..., op. cit., pp. 121-22.

liK "^Seguy, op. cit. t p. 20.

^^Pierre Jonain, Dictionnajre du patois saintongeais (Paris: Maisonneuve, 1869). 228

placing an apostrophy either before or after the r, and by Rousselot.^

As far as the writer knows, no mention of a syllabic [lH has been i reported for other French dialects. Should this be the case, it

might well be considered as being characteristic of Saintonge and I o parts of Poitou.'

D - Consonant /s/

From the auditory standpoint phonetic expressions of /s/ in

today's Standard French seem to be subject to some variation. The

corpus reflects this fact, even more so. From the articulatory point

of iew, these variants may result from a large number of possible

articulations relative to the possition of the apex or dorsum of

the tongue with regard to the teeth and alveoli and involving as

well varying degrees of tongue convexity or concavity. Two main

types were identified in the corpus: predorsoalveolar [s]— the most

common— and apicoalveolar [ 3]. In some instances the latter type was

clearly perceived, as in [paade*] (210), 'pass£.'

It is curious to note that, however seemingly erratic its

occurrence, [g] tends to be located either in final position or where

in French graphy -s- or -ss- (rather than a -c-.) would appear. This

remark would lend support to the hypothesis asserting that the once

normally used [ 3] became gradually replaced by [ s] during Medieval times?

''TAbbe J. Rousselot, Principes de phonetique expsrimentale (2 vols.; Paris: Didier, 1897-1908), II, pp. 6>'0-,'2.

1,0 Pignon, L'dvolution..., op. cit., pp. ’’93-98.

J'9Martin Joos, "The Medieval sibilants," Language, 2 8 , (1952), pp. 222-51. 229 Whether [g] derives from Latin or Early Romance substratum-*® or

from Hispanic substratum-^ is still subject to conjecture. The lack

of research regarding the presence— or absence— of [ 3] in the

northern dialects of France is most unfortunate. The occurrence of

this phone would obviously point to an Occitanic remnant if we were

to assume that it belongs exclusively to Saintongeais.

E - Final Consonants,

Chapter IV contains a section describing problems related to this matter. Two aspects of a different nature will be considered here: the traits which are common to Popular French and the corpus and those which belong strictly to the Poitou/Saintonge area.

In the first place, final clusters terminated by /r/ or /l/ tend to lose the last segment and the last remaining consonant is at times followed by chuchotement, as in [neg] (190), 'noire,' and

[egzS*pl (7 8 ) 'exeraple.' This phenomenon, which is old in French, started to separate the "uneducated" classes from the "educated" ones in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.-*2 Today it is considered one of the prime characteristics of Popular French'^ and of Regional

French in the West. On the other hand, it is worthwhile to mention

^Alvaro Galmes de Fuentes, Las sibilantes en la Romania (Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 19^2).

-^Fredrick H. Jungemann, La teorja del sustrato y los dialectos hispano-romances y gascones (Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 1955)} pp. 68-101.

5%douard Bourciez, Precis de phonetique frangaise (9e. ed. rev.; Paris: Klincksieck, 1958), pp. 180 and 1 8 7 . x\lso, Marcel Cohen, Le frangajs en 1700 d ’apres le temoignage de Gile Vaudelin (Paris; Champion, 19’'6), pp. ^5 and "Jk. Also Brunot, op. cit., X, pp. 99- 53 Guiraud, Les frangais populaire. op. cit.. p. 101. 230

the absence in the corpus of consonantic assimilations (of the type

insegue, 'insecte,' illusse, 'illustre') so common in Popular French.

The other case concerns instances which supposedly are found

only in the Poitou/Saintonge area.^ Though erratic, they involve

either the modification (or dropping) of final consonants /l/, /t/,

/h/ or the adding of a /t/ where Standard French would have /k/.

With regard to the word bet, 'bee,' Musset states:

Le c final se change en t suivant la regie a peu pres generale des mots termines par un c en franqais et qui prennent un t en Saintongeais. Ex.: rot, 'roc;' sat, 'sac;1 set, 'sec;' armanat, 'almanach;* Ghemozat. Gemozac.

Only one occurrence of this type was found in the corpus,

[*hozat] (10), 'Jonzac.'

Doussinet mentions the occasional dropping of final /k/, as

in par, 'pare. '55 Such variations may be strictly local. It would be difficult to determine their cause and the time of their emergence.

However, form [po] (132, 138, 1,,0), 'pot,' can best be explained by

the dropping of -/1/, a morpheme used formerly in the singular/ plural opposition [pot]/[po] (<[posl <[pots]).^- Perhaps a similar explanation would be valid in the case of [fbel (61*), feu,' since the form feut is listed in Musset.

In one instance, there is depalatalization of /n/, in [akopan]

(3V), 'accompagne,' although this Is not the case for [ *mDrtanl (lOV),

'Mortagne.'

^Pignon, L'evolution.. ♦, op. cit., pp. -'70-81.

^Doussinet, Le parler savoureux..., op. cit., p. 105. 5^Dauzat, Les patois, op. cit.. pp. 35 and 8l. 231

The absence of -Jff in [swa*l ^ [swei] (293), *soif,1 rather suggests that this analogical /f/ was never adopted in Saintonge as well as in Poitou. On the other hand, final -/t/ remains, as it was in seventeenth century French, for instance in [ifet] (61,), 'nuit.’

The dropping of final /r/ for some infinitives will be taken up in the section on morpho-syntax.

F - Vowels /i/, /u/, /e/, /a/

1. f I ] and [u]. These two variants for /i/ and /u/ respectively 57 were discussed in Chapters IV and V. Apparently, only Rousselot mentions the occurrence of open vowels (which he terms "moyennes") with regard to the speech of his native Angoumois. He attributes this fact to the-relative length of the vowel— the shorter, the more open. On the basis of an auditory impression during field trips, the writer is convinced that [i] and [u] are found over a large area covering not only Saintonge but parts of Vendee and Poitou. In fact, their geographical distribution may be quite extensive since Rousselot 58 states elsewhere^ that they are found also in Eastern France.

Examination of sonagrams performed in the course of this research, however, failed to reveal any definite correlation between vocalic length and aperture, nor did it justify the assumption that there is devoicing, as reported in the case of French Canadian.^

^Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., pp. 331ff.

5^Rousselot, "Introduction a 1’etude...," op. cit., p. 12.

59Qendron, Tendances phonetiques..., op. cit.. pp. ,,5-55- 2 U s l - As previously mentioned, its allophonic variants

are often erratically lengthened and diphthongized, a phenomenon which reportedly covers Poitou as well^® and probably a larger area.

3. /a/. The frequent occurrence of this vowel in the corpus points to a definite and characteristic northern— i.e. non-Occitanic—

influence.

G - Vocalic alternations

The corpus exhibits a large number of vocalic variations— or alternations— at the phonemic level, some different from French, others similar. The object of this section is to discuss those which differ from Standard French and to examine their significance— if any— with regard to the vocalic system of Saintongeais, especially from a diachronic point of view.

hJxL ///. This type of alternation is best examplified hy: [ h y n e ] (322), 'jeuner'; [apyprei] (259), 'apeupr&s'; [malyr/]

(>’.8 , 91'), 'malheureux1 ; vs. [mal/r/:z] (213), *malheureuse’ ; [ /r/;z]

(213), 'heureuse1; [ mal/aer] (172), 'malheur.' Disregarding the obvious effects of modern influences, /y/ marks, nevertheless, the conservative character of Saintongeais and in some respects may reveal certain affinities with Gascon.

Forms such as /malyr//, /hyne/, which result from a normal phonetic development, prevailed over most of France— including the

Gelin, "Les patois poitevins," La tradition en Poitou et Charentes, Societe d'Ethnographie Nationale et d'Art Populaire, Congr&s de Niort, 1896 (Paris; Librairie de la Tradition Nationale, 1897), P• hlk-

^K.R. Nyrop, Grammaire historique de la langue franqajse (6 vcQs. Copenhague; Gyldendalske Boghandel, 190''-30), I, pp. 258-59* South— until Parisian purists, reacting against these provincialisms, /fp intervened in the seventeenth century. As for [bjy] [bly] (506),

'bleu,1 it may result from an analogy between bluet ~ bleuet, bluStre ~

bleu&tre, and the hesitation between /y/ and jfif in unstressed position^

On the other hand, it may be related to Gascon blu or blah (Palay),

but such a connection is rather tenuous. Similarly, [fymel] (565),

'femme,' or 'femelle,' may either be Occitanic (Palay: fumfele.

femele) or Old French (KEW^ 5238) in origin.

Although "Gascons"— as Moliere liked to call them— were

largely blamed for helping to maintain the confusion between /y/ and

/^/, it is highly probable that /y/ in such cases was also a typically

northern feature which persisted as long in Saintonge and surrounding

areas, as in Gascony.

2. /u/ ~ /o/. The list of examples is so long that it must be limited: [pum] (3,J2), 'pomme'; [ositu] (3''5), 'aussitSt';

[mursa] (l68), 'morceau'; [akute] (127), 'a c6te'; [bune] (7*f),

'bonnet'; [gfu] (102), 'gros'; (131), 'chose'; [rpu*ze] (8),

'reposer.' The occurrence of /u/ vs. /of reflects a more conservative system in Saintongeais. It is not a characteristic since it is also found in many a dialect and in Regional French. It stems from the very complex development of Co] ( < Latin [o], [u] and [au]) which at an early date led to either [o] or [u] accordingly to each dialect— the former occurring in Francien.

^2Ibid., p. 268. Also Bourciez, Precis..., op. cit., p. 98. 23V

The preceding examples involve cases of /u/ + Nasal or +

Sibilant, mostly in unstressed position. Their evolutionary

development can be briefly— and sketchily--retraced as follows:

a) Stressed [o] + Nasal > [u] + Nasal > [5] + Nasal or

[3] + Nasal, which eventually during Middle French > [u] + Nasal

or [0] + Nasal, depending on the dialect.^1

b) Stressed Co] + Sibilant > [u] or Co] or [0 ], the former 65 widespread, in Central France especially, during the sixteenth century.

c) Unstressed [o] > [u], Cu], [o], [0], a situation further

complicated by analogies.

As a result, forms containing /u/, which were mostly used by

the rural population whether in the North or South, 66 came to be

considered vulgar by the Court— hence the famous battle between

ouistes and non-ouistes. Eventually /o/ prevailed among the

educated.^ The confusion between the use of /u/ and /of may have

led to the converse situation, as illustrated in [ko] (l!f5), 'coup'

and [kope] (265), 'coupait,' or may well reflect Gascon influence

(Palay: cop, ’coup,' coupa, 'couper1).

Nevertheless, Saintonge and surrounding areas seem to have been little affected by Parisian penetration, the use of /u/ forms being so frequent.

^'Bourciez, Precis..., op. cit., p. 79*

65Ibid., p. 8 5 .

^Palay, op. cit., p. 7 0 6 . 67 Albert Dauzat, Essais de geographie linguistique (Paris: Champion, 1921), pp. 19ff. 235

3. /u/ ~ !!. When unchecked, stressed [o] (< Latin [o, u]) became /^/ in French and /ou/ in Occitanic. The corpus contains both

types. In one instance, forms such as [aste;r] (86), 'maintenant' and [fjce*r] (193), 'fleur' are definitely from the Worth. On the other hand, the following forms, [pu;r] (36), 'peur,1 [gul] (126),

'figure' or 'bouche,' [ku] (171), 'queue,' [nuk] (M), clearly establish a relationship with Occitanic when compared with Gascon

(Palay: pou or pfru; goule; cou; noud). However, their lack of diphthongization characterizes Western French dialects,^ and thus not Saintonge only.

)'. /e/ ~ /we/ ~ /wa/. Mentioning [ei] < Latin [e], Tagliavini remarks that the vocalism in Southern Poitou is more "conservative.""^®

The corpus contains a number of such instances; [se;r] (15), 'soir';

[fre] (26), 'froid'; [Sdfe] (!l6), 'endroit'; [ne*g] (l90), ’noire.'

The importance of these forms, which are found over the whole areacf

Saintonge, Aunis, Poitou and Angoumois, is obvious."^ Since they are not even diphthongized, they correspond to Occitanic forms and as such may well be considered as part of an Occitanic substratum.

However, forms of this type are found in Uormandy as well. 2

^®Dauzat, Les patois, op. cit., p. 68.

^Pignon, L*evolution..., op. cit., pp. 217-23.

7®Carlo Tagliavini, Le origini delle lingue neolatine (3rd. ed. rev.; Bologna; Riccardo Patron, 1962), p. 369-

flpignon, L'evolution.... op. cit., pp. 209-12.

^ 2Nyrop, op. cit.. I, p. 172. 256

On the other hand, the corpus contains [dwei] (6 8 ), 'doigt,1

[ *pwerje] (260), 'Poirier,' [mwe] (185), 'moi,'— which are derived

from [e]— and[fweir] (103), 'foire,' [armweer] (233), 'armoire,'

[istweir] (92), 'histoire'— which have different derivations. And

finally others, like [mwa] (126), 'moi,' [fwa] (l6l), 'foi,' are

identical with Standard French.

To underline the conservative character of Saintongeais in

this respect, one should point out the use of [scere] (ll8, 2>'7, 2>’8),

'soiree,' unaffected by analogy and, like [ saref]-(253), 'fraicheur

du soir,' similar to Old French seree, serain (G).

h - h L /e/. This vocalic variation occurs in front of a liquid, usually /r/. It dates from the Middle French period when,

in such an environment, [e] tended to become more open. The use of

/a/ characterized the speech of the lower classes. Again, the reaction which favored /e/ over /a/ as being more courtly led to many a confusion. Nevertheless, many forms in /a/ still survive in

Popular French in some types of Regional French and in a number of patois— northern as well as southern— , including Saintongeais. Only •1 •• a few examples are listed here: [darjerr] (l^*0, 'derri&re’; [harb]

(281), 'gerbe'; [marksrdi] (285), 'mercredi'; [sarvis] (236), 'service';

[gari] ^ [geri] (JTO), 'gueri.'

Guiraud expresses a generalized formulation of this phonetic change: it applies to /e/ > /a/ and /u/ > /o/ when followed by either /r/ or /l/. Accordingly, pronoun /a/,'elle,' would derive from /a/ < /e/.^3

7 ^Guiraud, Le frangais populaire, op. cit., p. 105. 237

Musset lists; alargir, 'elargir'; ale, 'aile'; alection, 'election1;

alegant, 'elegant.'

6. fff ~ Ali/. The vowel fff is used in numerous forms, for

instance: [q^:s] (357), 'cuissei'; [net] (6>'), 'nuit1; [Sn^je] (22),

'ennuyer'; [ s/Q (l!'), 'suis'; [q^:r] (371), 'cuire.' Over the whole area of Western Poitou, Vendee, Aunis and Saintonge /e/ or fff generally correspond to Standard French /Ni/,^+ a fact which clearly

indicates an older Occitanic influence. In fact, these forms are more like modern Gascon (Palay; cofeche, 'cuisse'; nofet, 'nuit'; for instance).

Saintongeais displays a marked preference for fff— and in some cases for /y/— , in spite of partial French penetration. A form such as [kqi:r] (315), 'cuir,' for instance must be recent, since cueur is attested in the sixteenth century in Poitou,^ and today's [pHi] ~ [plqi], 'pluie,' is listed in Musset as pieue ~ plieue. Furthermore, verb [soe.gr] (355), 'suivre,' points to a definite Occitanic origin, both phonological and lexicali

In addition, the words [ajyj] (337), 'aiguille,' and [ffy]

(136), 'fruit' (which derive from fyf + yod) correspond closely to

Gascon agulhe ~ gulhe and frut ~ hrute (Palay), although Old French aguille was pronounced [agyld].

^,!Pignon, L'evolution. ♦., op. cit.. pp. 151-51'.

f^pignon, La gentq,..., op. cit.

^ M .K. Pope, From Latin to Modern French (rev. ed.; New York: Barnes and Noble, 1961), p. 161. Also Bourciez, Precis..., op. cit., p. 8 3 . 238

The lack of /t?i/ in Saintongeais is an important

characteristic.

7. //n/ ~ /je/. The corpus contains the following forms:

-[ran] (28), 'rien1; [men] (178), 'mien'; [)fen] (2,l3 ), 'chien';

[teen] (159)y 'bien.' They provide a puzzling contrast with Standard

French forms whose development consisted of the diphthongization

and nazalization of stressed free [e] when followed by a nasal

in final position. However, it seems that the yod did not always

occur; Thurot^ reports forms like [re], [b?] in the seventeenth

century. Pignon mentions their occurrence over a large area 78 west and south of Paris — so does Pougnard about Southwestern

Poitou— , but he notes the alternation [S] ~ ten] in Western

Poitou. Musset, who lists most of these forms [?], [en], [tsn],

compares them to their [?] counterparts in Normandy. It must

be added that in our corpus [be] is by far the most common

form alternating with [been] and that there is a single

occurrence of [r?].

Considering such sketchy information, it would be

reasonable to assume that /{n/ forms result from a relatively

recent development from those in /?/ or /en/ and that as such

they are characteristic of Saintonge.

Finally, according to the writer's experience in the

^Charles Thurot, op. c i t ., I, p. >183.

"^Pignon, L*evolution.... op. cit.. pp. 312-13. 239 field, the frequency of such forms in the corpus corresponds closely

to that heard in other idiolects over most of Saintonge.

8 . ^ /e/. Another group of forms contains rounded— or

labialized— // contrasting with Standard French unrounded /e/.

In most cases the labialization results from a labial environment,*^

as in: [fterv] (3 20), 'f&ve'; [amen] (1 9 ), 'amene'; [fterme] (5 5 ),

'fermer'; [-vcerni] (102), 'vernis'; [a-vosk] (122) ~ [avek] (2 ), 'avec.1

This type of conditioned labialization is frequent in Poitou as well

as in Saintonge and probably occurred during the sixteenth century.

However, in a number of cases no reasonable explanation can be

offered, except possibly analogy, dissimilation, or "spontaneous

labialization,"®® for example: [ihst] (7 5 ), 'il jette'; [)fer)£e] (1*3 ),

'chercher'; [s^e] (6 fy), 'sechd'; [kn^sa:s] (122), 'connaissance.1

This trend to labialize /e/ in stressed and unstressed

position appears to be characteristic of Poitou and Saintonge.

9. Afc/ ~ /u,j/ and /i.j/. The data provided by the corpus

is so limited that it must be completed by Musset's. They reflect

a puzzling situation with regard to phonetic evolution:

a) [hncB* j] (269, 329), 'genou' (also listed as geneuil and genoil (M)); gueurneuille (m), 1grenouille'; fensuil (M), 'fenouil'j and on the other hand, pouil (M), 'pou1; verouil (M), 'verrou,' for which /^j/ forms are listed. Pignon notes that /f$/ occurs only

7%osset, op. cit.t p. 189.

®®Pignon, L 1 evolution..., op. cit., pp. 3,l7-50 and 367-70. 2><0

in the case of 'genou' and that it covers Southern Poitou and Vendde, o1 which /ej/ ~ /uj/ ~ /ul/ are found in all aother cases. In

Standard French most forms in -/ul/ (singular) became ultimately

reduced to their plural ending in -/u/.

b) cheneuil (M), 'chenille' (a form usually heard in

Saintonge and Aunis, though the informant used Standard French

[/ni*j] (329)); feuille (M), 'fille' (also very common); gueneuille

(M), 'guenille.' Pignon notes /ej/ ~ /el/ for these forms and proposes

that the evolution /ij/ > /ej/ ~ //j/ is special to Poitou and

Saintonge.e • * 82

With respect to (a) and (b), Pougnard lists quite different

forms for his area.

This confusing situation (/o/ > /// and /i/ > /// ^ /e/)

must be ascribed to the various effects the palatal environment (/l/

or /j/) in which these vowels were placed.Whatever the develop­

ment may have been, it is important to note that //j/ forms are— or

were— more prevalent in Saintonge.

H - Vocalization of final /l/.

a) Final /el/ yields /a/: [a] ~ [au], as in [nursa] (135),

'morceau'; [bja] (339) ~ [hjau] (55), 'beau';[pja] (112), 'peau';

[ siza] (266), 'ciseaux.1 Little change due to Standard French

8lIbid.. pp. 308-09.

82Ibid.. p. 322.

8^Ibid., p. 31^• 2lil

penetration is noticeable. This feature covers Poitou as well as 8h Saintonge and points to a northern development.

b) Final /al/ > /o/: [o] ^ [ou], as i n [ho] (330), 'coq1;

[jo] (267), 'de1; [mo] (269) ~ [mou] (1 85), 'mal';[/ou] (6 0 ),

'chaud1; [/vo] (h5), 'cheval'; [so] (292), 'sel.1 Same comments

as to (a).8-*

Final /il/ > /o/: [o], as in [pjo] (309), 'poil' or 'cheveux';

[o] (5 3 ), 'il' (impersonal pronoun); [do] (320), 'du1 (< de l U o ) . 86 Same comments as for (a).

c) Special mention should be made of final /ol/ and /ul/ +

voiceless Sibilant which yield respectively /u/ and /y/ + voiced

sibilant, as in [pu:z] (290), 'pouce' and [py:z] (290), 'puce.1^

These forms, though sporadic, are found in Vendee, Poitou, and 88 S a i n t o n g e .

According to these derivations [q/] (ll), 'ce, 1 cannot originate from *ecce-illu— which yielded [90] in Southwestern Poitou8^-, but from *ecce-hoc— which also yielded [92] in Southwestern Poitou.^®

Similarly, [ 9/] (as in [q/kS] (19), 'quelqu'un') could hardly derive

8lfIbid.. pp. 265-75.

®5 Ibid., pp. 169-7 0 .

86Ibid., pp. 276-90 .

^Bourciez, Precis..., op. cit., p. 117. 8ft Pignon, L*evolution..., op. cit., pp. 357-58*

8 ^Ibid., pp. 277-79 and Map 1 7 .Also, Pougnard, op. cit.. p.1,8 .

^ I b i d . , pp. 289-90 and Map 7 . Also, Pougnard, op. cit.. pJ'8 . 2h2

from quale. These matters will be discussed in the section on

Morpho-syntax. However, with regard to [m/1 (20), 'mieux' (cmelius),

which is found sporadically over most of Western France, no opinion

can be ventured.^

I - Nasalization.

In some Occitanic dialects such as Languedocian for instance,

nasal vowels are non-existent. In other dialects, when they do exist

they are said never to occur in "pure" form: they are followed by a

nasal occlusion— or implosion— ranging to velar to dental. This is

especially the case in Gascony. For instance, Standard French

moment varies between [mumen] or [mume^], chanter becomes [£ante] or

[Sante], and lampe is [lamps] or [lamps]. 92

The corpus contains stressed nasal vowels which are diphthon­

gized. All were transcribed without a nasal implosion, since auditory

perception and examinations made on sonagrams had failed to provide

any definite evidence of this phenomenon. Yet, in several instances

auditory perception seemed to reveal the presence of an implosive

partially devoiced [n] or [13]— the latter being by far more frequent.

In cases such as [mumSa] (2), 'moment,' [dao] (19), 'done,' or [harder]

(192), 'jardin,' considerable temptation was felt to transcribe them

simply as [mimon], [dap] or [harden].

Although Rousselot does not make any clear reference to i t ^

91Ibid., pp. 121-2 2 .

92seguy, op. cit., pp. 31-2.

93Rousselot, Les modifications.... op. cit., pp. 219-33, 310-15 and 3!,3-’'5. and the ALF fails to indicate it, others mention the possible oL occurrence of this final nasal consonant. In the writer's opinion

the marked diphthongization of stressed nasal vowels— even if the

presence of any implosive consonant is ruled out— could well be

interpreted as the effect of Occitanic substratum.

A considerable amount of confusion exists from village to

village and even in many idiolects, both in Saintonge and the whole

Poitou area with regard to nasal vowels. One finds Standard French

/a/, /o/, /o/ alternating with local /of} /e/, /a/ respectively.^

A lack of denalization should be noted in [one] (l£2), 1ann^e,

and [mosj^] (ll), ’monsieur,' as was still the case in Standard 96 French in the sixteenth century.

On the other hand, denasalization occurs in a few words, in

spite of French influence: [afajs] (l), 'enfance,' and [emti] (l!?9) ~

[emti] (2l8), 'un peu.' This trait seems to characterize Saintongeais

Another case of denasalization stems from Old French [tin ~ on] 98 > [0 ] in Modern French and [un] in many regions. These forms are

o!* * Musset, op. cit.. Ill, p. xiv. Also, Doussinet, Le parler.. op. cit.. p. 8 8 . ------

95pjgnon. Involution..■. op. cit., pp. 335-^3 and Map 15 . Also, Pignon, La gente..., op. cit., pp. 39-’'-I •

^Georges Gougenheim, Grammajre de la langue frangaise du seizieme sifeele (Paris: I.A.C., Collection "Les langues du Monde": W iTTvp^^B.

^Rousselot, Les modifications..., op. cit., p. 315* Also, Doussinet, Le parler..., op. cit., p. 190.

9®Rosset, op. cit., pp. 173-7^- still found in Poitou.^ In the corpus they occur either before a vowel--otherwise [o] is used— (as in: [mjnarh] (l»), 'mon §ge')> or in fixed expressions (as in: [bunhSa] (*t6 ), 'malheureuxl1).

J - Conclusions

The object of the preceding discussion was to resolve the phonological features which characterize Saintongeais in the light of the data provided by the corpus and on the basis of their most obvious differences with respect to Standard French. Disregarding all those features diffused over large areas in France, it is striking to notice that most of the remaining features fall into the Saintonge/Western Poitou area. Though it is not possible to trace definite isoglosses for each one of them, they cover areas which correspond roughly to the ones pictured on Maps IV and VI for /h/ and [9].

Consequently, these data will be classified and summarized

Tinder the following headings:

1. Features mutually shared by Saintonge and Southwestern

Poitou. They are: /h/; /^/; [9]; possibly [1] and [u], which may be found in a few other areas in France; alternations /u/ vs. / % h i vs. /wa/, /^/ vs. /tri/, possibly /^/ vs. /e/; and most vocalizations of final /l/.

2. Features inherent to Saintonge alone. They are limited to these two vocalic alternations: /fn/ vs. /j§/, which are typical;

/ h i Zi* /u o/ or h i / , although shared in part with Southwestern

99pignon, L 1 evolution..., op. cit., pp. 3,'2-^'3. 2^5

Poitou. The occasional nasal consonant implosive following a nasal

vowel in final position might be included.

5. Features suggesting an Occitanic link. No single phono­

logical feature can be ascertained as being of an Occitanic—

specifically Gascon— origin (any mention of the basic differences

between Oc/Oil tongues— such as the palatalization of /k/— is

avoided here). The following features might suggest such a linking:

non-diphthongized /e/; alternations of the type /y/ vs. /^/ are not

conclusive, /u/ vs. /o/ seems more likely, /u/ vs. /^/ may be the

result of lexical remnants, /^/ vs. /ui/ is most likely; and the a. occurrence of^nasal consonant following a stressed nasal vowel

remains unproven.

Little can be added to Pignon's remarkable and exhaustive

presentation of differences, both synchronic and diachronic, between

Standard French, Poitevin, Saintongeais and Occitanic. 100

As a whole, the diachronic evolution may be briefly retraced

as follows. By the seventeenth century, the consonantal system was undergoing a sudden and important structural change, probably centered in Saintonge, which spread rapidly over the surrounding areas north and east (Aunis, parts of Vendee and Poitou, and Angoumois). On

the other hand, the vocalic system, essentially Northern— but rural and regional— and partly Occitanic, tended to retain its conservative character. However, the rapid penetration of Standard French during the ensuing centuries disrupted in various degrees, depending on

100Ibid., pp. 8 X-6 and 511-25• Also, Pignon, La Gente..., op. cit., pp. 25-,,S. »' 2h 6 each specific area, the phonological changes which had just begun.

The areas most exposed to French— Aunis and Poitou, especially— lost most of their characteristics. The least exposed areas—

Saintonge, Southwestern Poitou, and possibly parts of Angoumois— shared, if erratically, a few affinities in their respective patois.

Such an instability is best examplified by the marked differences between the phonological system of the corpus and that of the patois of Cellefrouin, studied less than a century ago.

II - Morpho-syntax

The main morpho-syntactic features of the corpus were presented in Chapters VI and VII. The object of this section is to determine their differences with respect to Standard French and to assess the relevance of these differences with regard to time and geography. Ultimately, we may hope to isolate the features characterizing Saintongeais.

A - Determiners

1. Definite and Indefinite Except for morphemes /§/, ' un, 1

/in/, 'une,' and /do/, ’du,' which are widely spread over Aunis,

Poitou and Vendee, all others are similar to Standard French.

2. Demonstrative Morpheme /kf/ + C, 'ce' (Masc. Sing.) is homonymous with the Neuter Substitute, /k//, 'ceci, qa.1 In this respect, it is typically Saintongeais since all other patois— including those in Southwestern Poitou— distinction is made between the Determiner /ko/ and Substitute forms. This matter is discussed

•*~^I b i d ., p. 86. Also, Pougnard, op. cit., p. >'8 . 2l*7 under the section on Demonstrative Substitutes.

The morphemes /ket/ /kel/ (Fern. Sing.), in free

variation, are also commongly found outside Saintonge; /ket/,

the most frequent variant in the corpus, is reported to be the

least frequent in Poitou.

Plural morpheme /kele/ has no other variant in the corpus.

Yet, it should be considered characteristic of Saintonge, since

Musset lists other forms found in Poitou as well.

B - Substantives

Identical singular and plural forms of some Substantives,

such as //j/, 'oeil/yeux,' //vo/, 1cheval/chevaux,' /b//, 'boeuf/

boeufs,' /hn/j/, 1genou/genoux,1 /u/, 'os/os,1 used to be wide­

spread in France during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

They still survive in a number of rural areas, though under

different forms (Pougnard notes [al] for 'oeil/yeux).

Although our informant used Standard French forms in

the opposition 'oeuf/oeufs,1 Musset lists usse ~ eu, Pougnard

/y/, and Pignon /o/, all presumably for both numbers.

C - Substitutes

1. Personal Sub.ject Morpheme /h/ is used for first person

singular and plural, in the corpus it is sometimes used in conjunction with the plural flexion morpheme of the verb. This lack of opposition as to number results from a confusion which existed in the sixteenth century— and probably before— over most 2^8 102 of France and which remained until the nineteenth century as one

of the characteristics of Popular and rural speech. It still

subsists sporadically in the southern and western portion of the

non-Occitanic area, as attested in the ALF^ ^ Two morphemes, /h/

and /i/,"^ are reported in Poitou, while in Aunis only /i/ is

present. When inverted, or in the case of interrogation, the

variant /hi/ (109) is used.

Third persons singular and plural /i/ (masculine) and /a/

(feminine) were commonly used in France in the sixteenth century;

today, they are part of Popular French. Morphophonernes /in/ and

/an/ ( + Nasal Vowel) are widely spread in Southwestern France.

In the corpus, the infrequent alternation of /e/ for /a/ demotes

Standard French interference.

2. Personal Indirect The indirect third person singular morpheme /zi/, which is expressed by the various morphs /ji/,/li/, 105 h i, /zi/, originates from the ancient and popular form li.

Today /li/ and /j/ still subsist as part of Popular French. Plural

■'"^Gougenheim, Grammaire..., op. cit., p. 53*

•*-®^Dauzat, Les patois, op. c i t ., p. 1''0, Also, -Albert Dauzat, Precis d'histoire de la langue et du vocabulaire franqais (Paris; Larousse, 1 9 !i9 ) , p. 91•

''■^Pignon, L 1 evolution..., op. cit., p. 8 and Map 28.

-^Edmond Huguet, Dictionnajre de la langue franqaise du l6e. siecle (3 vols.; Paris: Champion. 1925-35)i refer to luy. morpheme /z// is from lllos^^ and corresponds to /l// in Popular

French. The morphemes /zi/ and /z// extend not only throughout

Saintonge but over most of Poitou.

The omission of the direct object substitute in front of an

indirect object substitute— as in [h^zidpn] (3’'3), 'je la lui donne1

107 was used in Old French and still persists in Popular French.

3. Personal Neutral Morpheme /o/ (< *illu) is typical of

a large area covering Saintonge, Aunis, most of Poitou, and parts

o f Vendee.It is attested in the sixteenth century.-^9 It

functions as subject.

The corresponding morpheme for direct object is /zu/. It

covers about the same area as the preceding (Pougnard, however,

reports /lu/). The sixteenth century form was /u/.

H. Personal Disjunctive The masculine singular /li/

covers approximately the same areas, although /i/ is found in Poitou

as well. The form was used at the Court as late as the seventeenth

century,^® and today it is part of Popular French.

On the other hand, the masculine plural /z//, (15), feminine

106pignon, L 1evolution..., op. cit., pp. 277-78 and Map 12. It should be noted that initial /z/ comesfrom a sandhi form.

lC7Guy Raynaud de Lage, Introduction a l'Ancien Franpais (Paris; Societe d'Edition d'Enseignement Superieur, 1962), p. 51* 108 Pignon, L*evolution.... op. cit.. p. 275 . and Map 13. Also, Pougnard, op. cit., p. ^3-

l09pignon, La gente..., op. cit., pp. 50-1.

■^■^Brunot, op. cit.. Ill, p. 288. 250

singular /le/ (170), and feminine plural /z/l/ (6) are restricted-

to the rural speech of Poitou, Aunis and Saintonge. ^

5. Demonstrative Saintongeais speakers use an identical

morpheme, /k//, both for masculine singular (Substitute as well as

Adjective) and for neuter, as in [ q //v o ] (h6), 'ce cheval,1 vs.

[q/feiten] (108), 'q^ie fait rien.' All over Poitou, the opposition

is expressed by two separate morphemes, usually /ko/ for masculine,

and /k// for neuter. The phonological aspect of this matter was previously discussed.

The obvious analogical action of neuter /k// (<*ecce-hoc) not only on the masculine but in some Substitutes— /k/ke/, 1quelqu'un,'

for instance— can be termed strictly a Saintongeais characteristic.

This morpheme suggests an Occitanic relationship. For the neuter

Palay lists the following forms: go, ’ce, qa1; aqb, 'ceci’; and acb, ’cela.’ And he opposes them to masculine aqueste. 'ce...ci,' and aquet, 'ce.-.la.'

Feminine plural morpheme /kele/ is Poitevin as well as

Saintongeais.

6. Relative The morpheme /ki/ ([qi]) covers the whole area of Poitou and Saintonge. Its occurrence seems to be much less frequent in Saintonge, where it is being replaced by Standard

French [ki].

D - Adverbs

One adverb, interrogative /ketok/, 'qu’est-ce que,' deserves mentioning here simply because of its wide distribution among the 251 patois of Aunis, Poitou and Saintonge. All other adverbs are more interesting from the lexical viewpoint.

E - Prepositions

Only the morpheme /p/r/ is of special interest for its meaning 'par1 as well as 'pour.' As such it is a very conservative feature for the Saintonge/Poitou area. Undoubtedly, it should be considered Occitanic with regard to its origin (Palay; per, 'par, pour'; also, per + lou > pbu). Its fixed and unmodified occurrence throughout the corpus is most remarkable.

F - Verbs

Three major works must be mentioned with regard to the historical and geographical approach to Saintongeais verbs:

a) In his study of verb forms taken from the thirteenth m century texts Tote listoire de France, Pignon attempts to 11? separate Northern from Occitanic features. The texts consist of two different translations from Latin, one written in the first half of the century, the other, which appears to be less Occitanic in character, in the second half. Both were the work of supposedly

Saintongeais clerks.

b) In another study based on more reliable sixteenth century

i :liF.W. Bourdillon, Tote listoire de France (Chronique saintongeaise) now first edited from the only two mss., with introduction, appendices, and notes. (London: 1897).

-^Jacques Pignon, "Les formes verbales de Tote listoire de France, texte saintongeais du Xllle. siecle, Melanges de linguistique offerts a Albert Dauzat (Paris: D'Artrey, 1951), pp. 257-7*1 • 25 2

texts, La Gente Poitevinrie, Pignon again presents a summary of

the characterizing Poitevin verb morphemes.

c) In addition, Bourciez's thorough study on Gavache verb

is worthy of interest especially with regard to its more conservative

forms.

1. Infinitive During the Kiddle French period final /r/ tended to disappear— especially in verbs in -/er/ and - /ir/.

During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, however, this final consonant was restored for verbs in -/ir/ in the language used of the Court. Nevertheless, the loss of final /r/ generally persisted among the lower classes and remains to this day in some patois. In fact, the matter as to whether -/r/ should or should 115 not be pronounced led to some most interesting confusions. In the case of Saintongeais, infinitives in -/ir/ were affected, as illustrated in the corpus: /gari/ (570), 'guerir'; /kuri/ (175),

'courir'; /s3ti/ (5JT), 'sentir'; /vni/ (55), 'venir.' Perhaps the occurrence of Substantive /le suvni/ (l), 'les souvenirs,' is due to an anology with the verb.

2. Moods and Tenses We shall not attempt a thorough and systematic study of this subject. On the one hand, the variety of verb forms found in the corpus (and which are listed at the end of

Chapter VII) is extremely limited. On the other hand, the available data concerning the surrounding areas are too scant and erratic to

•^•^Marcel Cohen, "Un fait de morphologie dans le franqais de Fressines (Deux-Sfevres)# " Ibid., PP. 77-9. 2 5 3

allow solid geographical comparisons. In this respect, it must be

pointed out that from one patois to the next verb forms are especially i prone to variations, usually due to the many possibilities of

paradigmatic analogy. In spite of such difficulties, a selection

of the features deemed most relevant will be discussed here:

a) Except for a few forms, the Present Indicative offers

little worthy of mention. The first person singular of 'etre,'

/hs//, results from the characteristic /// ^ /qi/ alternation which,

may have occurred between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries.

The neuter third Pers. Sing, /ole/, 'c'est,' is typical of the whole

Southwest, from Vendee to Angoumois, from Aunis to Poitou. Irregular

forms of the type /hmasi/, 1je m'asseois,* etc., and /akudo/, 'elles

cousent,' deserve a passing reference— the latter typical of

Saintongeais and Gavache, according to Bourciez.

b) One of the most remarkable morphemes is the -/i/ suffix which characterizes the first person singular. Imperfect Indicative— and which is opposed to the third person— , is in /heti/, 'j'etais'j

/hsavi/, 'je savais'; /havi/, 'j'avais,' vs. /ilave/, 'il avait.1

Its geographical distribution is limited to Saintonge and, according to Pignon, J to the "Crescent Zone"— an area characterized by marked

Occitanic features lying between .Angoumois, Poitou and Limousin.

c) With regard to the Perfect Indicative, only one very curious form, /osmeti/ (5*t)> 'il se mit,1 should be noted. No

Pignon, L' evolution.... op. cit., p. 313.

^ ^ Ibid., p. 515 and Map 28. 25>+

evidence of strong Perfects in gi or gu was found in the corpus,

though they are reported to be present in Poitou as well as in

Saintonge.3"^ Under the heading "it," Musset states this suffix

is used for the third person singular no matter what the type of

conjugation and gives the following examples: a chantit, 'elle

chanta'; a venit, 'elle vint'.; a fasit, 'elle fit.' There is no

way of finding out whether this -it is merely orthographic.

d) First Person Singular Present Conditional is characterized

by a flexion in -/x/, as in: /hsri/ 'je serais'; /hpuri/, 'je

pourrais'; /htruvri/, 'je trouverais.' It suggests an Occitanic

origin, and it covers parts of Poitou as well.^7 opposed

to third person /sre/ 'serait.'

e) The Present Subjunctive is /sej/ in the singular. This

form, which used to cover most of the southwest, is now found in

Poitou and Saintonge. It bears a marked Occitanic origin.

f) Past Participles /sgy/, 'suivi,' and /pojy/, 'pu,' denote

a definite Occitanic influence. Participles in /g/ are common in 118 Poitou as well, though upon occasions subject to palatalization.

3. First and Third Person Plurcl Flexions Because of

their often closely similar phonetic expressions, especially when

-^I b i d ., p. 512. Also, Edouard Bourciez, Elements de linguistique romane (!>e. ed. rev.; .Paris; Klincksieck, 1956), p. 3^2; and Dauzat, Les Patois, op. cit., pp. 83 and m 2.

117Ibid.

■^Pignon, La gente..., op. cit., p. 55- 255

lengthened, it was previously noted that the distinction between

/o/ and /a/ is not easy to determine. In fact the instability of

these two phonemes is due to the tendency of /a/— or /a/--to become

closer to /o/ in Poitou, as well as in the Southwest in general.

Consequently, it is not surprising to find that the morphemes for

first and third person plural tend to become fused into one,

identified as /o/ in the corpus (Rousselot reported /&/ for the

third person).

The occurrence of -/&/ for third person started about the 120 thirteenth century in Southern and Eastern France, a fact

corroborated for Poitou by Pignon, who mentions also the occurrence

of morpheme /om/— without final /s/— for the first person.'*"^' The

confusion between /of and /a/ was common in popular speech in the

sixteenth century. It was considered "rural" in the eighteenth 122 century.

h. /st£/ and /stel/ In the informant's idiolect /st^/ is apparently an unusual variant of /sti/. These two forms are translated as 'dit-il,' 'dit-elle,' respectively (m). They present a problem as- to whether they are actually verb forms or Demonstrative

Substitutes. On the one hand, 'se dit-il* was commonly used by the lower classes all over France, for instance sditi, sdit in the

■^-^pignon^ L 1 evolution..., op. cit.. pp. 335-58•

-*-2%yrop, op. cit., II, pp. !*5-6.

121Pignon, "Les formes...," op. cit.. pp. 259-60.

■*"22Rosset, op. cit., pp. l6 ’'-65 and 385-86. 256

seventeenth century. 123 On the other hand, popular speech used also

demonstrative sti-ci, sti-la (< cestui) N a t u r a l l y the

corresponding feminine forms must be assumed.

With regard to Saintongeais, it seems that /sti/ and /stel/

became confused with the Demonstrative, thus producing a typical and

rather complex syntactical structure, as shown by the following

examples; veux-tu sti me donner la paix qui dit, 'veux-tu, dit-il,

me donner la paix’ (M); dissit stelle qu'a dit:, 'elle dit dit-elle

qu'elle dit:;' or even, ere, sti dit-i qu'i dit, que..., 'je crois,

dit-il qu'il dit, que...,

G - Conclusions

The preceding discussion reveals how few morpho-syntactic

features can be termed distinctively and exclusively Saintongeais.

Of these, only /k//, used as Masculine Demonstrative, is truly

characteristic. Imperfects in -/i/ are distributed over most of

Saintonge and also over a thin belt of territory lying immediately north of the Oc border. Syntactic structures involving /sti/ may have been typically Saintongeais only a few generations ago; in the writer's opinion they are now obsolete.

The rather close relationship between Saintonge and South­ western Poitou 'with regard to a number of phonological characteristics is absent in this case. In fact, most of the morpho-syntactic features

^•^xbid., Appendice, p. 13.

1-^Brunot et Bruneau, op. cit., p. 252.

^■-^Burgaud des Marets, op. cit., pp. l6h-6j. 257 are unevenly distributed not only over Poitou and Angoumqis but

over larger and often undefined areas in Southwestern France.

Disregarding phonological differences, all other features of

interest either belong to a great number of patois or types of

Regional speech covering most of France or are— or were— part of

Popular French. For example, the morphological leveling of first

singular and first plural persons with regard to Personal Substitutes

and sometimes flexion morphemes on the one hand, and that of flexion

morphemes for first and third persons plural on the other hand, were

widespread in France. Similarly, the use of double Conditional

(instead of Standard /si/ + Imperfect in the subordinate clause) is

commonly found in rural areas and is part of Popular French.

These morpho-syntactic features are so generalized in French because they are deeply rooted in the dialectal history of the language. Under the unrelenting push of Standard French they even­

tually blended into surprisingly similar forms of popular speech.

A casual glance at a few of the older French popular forms of speech that have been recorded will reveal little difference with Saintongeais 126 with regard to morphology and syntax. The only significant differaioes result from the few Determiners and Verbal forms which are presumably part of the Occitanic substratum in Saintongeais.

°For the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries: Brunot, op. cit., VI, pp. 1212-16; X, pp. 89-101, 259-68 and 29'!-301. For the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, an excellent study of the speech of vgens de qualite": Marcel Cohen, Le frangajs en 1700, d'aprfes le temoignage de Gile Vaudelin (Paris: Champion, 19*»6); also, Marcel Cohen, "Comment on parlait franqais en 1700,” Grammaire et Style (Paris: Editions Sociales, 195k). For the seventeenth century: Rosset, op. cit.. pp. 38l-9*f; and Appendice pp. 2-71. 258

III - Lexicon

It would be beyond the scope of this work to undertake a

detailed study of each of the lexical items listed in Chapter VIII

from the point of view of its historical development and geographical

distribution.

Until a few decades ago, the rural people of Saintonge had

at their disposal a substantial number of words characterizing their

patois. These words have been carefully recorded. Nothing, indeed, 127 can be added to the Saintongeais dictionaires published last century

and especially to Musset1s remarkable Glossaire, which covers both

Saintonge and Aunis but unfortunately does not always distinguish between them. However, a large proportion of these words is also found, though often phonetically altered, in the surrounding areas,

especially in Poitou. Furthermore, it is almost impossible to

characterize and identify each one of them with any degree of certainty, for both their use and the area in which some might be used are

subject to considerable variations.

Yet, in spite of obvious difficulties, it seemed most tempting to find out what proportion of the lexical items used in the corpus belong to Saintongeais, first by eliminating all those common to Standard and Popular French and then by separating the

Occitanic from the Northern ones. Naturally, the significance of such an attempt is highly questionable. On the one hand, the corpus is much too limited to provide an adequate sampling. On the

Jonain, op. cit.; and Marie-Andre-Arthur Eveille, Glossaire saintongeais (Paris. 1887). 259

other hand, the criteria upon which the separation of these lexical

items is based is far from rigorous, since phonological modifications

should be taken into consideration. Out of the 75 non-Standard and

non-Popular words which were selected from the Lexicon, the

distribution is as follows:

a) 22 are found both in the Worth and South of France (29/0).

b) lf2 are Worthern, of which 22 are still used in various rural areas (29/) and 20 are either no longer used or belong to Old

French (26/0).

c) 6 are found in Occitanic-speaking areas, especially

Gascony (8/«). They are: /agraiat/ (70), 'attrayante'; /huk/ (336),

'perchoir'; /mohet/ (3''7 ), 'haricot'; /nor/ (2 86), 'belle-fille';

/s/gr/ (355), 'suivre'; /ys/ (295), 'sourcil.' However, all of them, with the possible exception of the first one, are found in Poitou and Aunis and some probably in Angoumois and Vendee.

d) 5 were untraceable as to their origin (7/«)* They are:

/pantrol/ (362), 'genre de coleoptere'; /soge/ (357), 'attendre';

/turine/ (6 ), 'brasser'; /v/rnike/ (J+l^), 'aller, ou courir, de c8te et d'autre'; /rm/j/ (288), 'pis (de vache). The first four appear to be characteristically Saintongeais. The last one covers a wide area, as mentioned in the Lexicon.

No matter how crude the method, these figures nevertheless point out that Occitanic influences, whether due to a substratum or to recent borrowings, are much less important than some have implied.

-^®For instance, Dauzat, Les patois, op. cit., p. 1*'2. 260

In this respect, Pignon's tentative listing amounts to a small number 129 of words. Furthermore, these figures reveal that most Saintongeais

lexical items are shared to a greater or lesser extent with the patois

of neighboring areas, especially Poitou, and that few indeed are the

ones which might be termed typically Saintongeais.

With regard to the present situation it must be clearly

pointed out that Saintongeais vocabulary has been assaulted from all

sides by Standard French, Popular French and even argot. As a

result, most of it has fallen into disuse but for a few words and

fixed expressions. In fact, this situation created one of the main

difficulties the writer encountered in the field regarding the choice of informants. Not only does vocabulary vary appreciably from one

speaker to another, from one generation to the next, but even with each idiolect, as so flagrantly examplified in the case of our informant, who was the most "conservative" that could be found.

A most important aspect of lexicon involves semantics and culture. In this respect, Doussinet*s publications, though often dealing with stereotypes, would provide a good introduction to anyone interested in these aspects of Saintongeais.

IV - Variations

Special attention must be brought with regard to those variations in the corpus which involve patois, Standard French and occasionally Popular French and which occur at every level of linguistic analysis. They are particularly significant because

T3Q -'Tignon, L 1Evolution..., op. cit., pp. 26l

they take place in the "conservative" speech of our informant, and,

consequently, reveal how general is the deterioration of the patois

of the area.

Only a few of those which have been deemed the most important

are listed here.

1. Phonological Variations [hy-3] (l52) ~ [hystl (125),

'juste’; [qi] (9 5 ) ~ [ki] (l2lf-), 'qui'; [malyr^l (9,t) ~ [makcr^tz]

(215), 'malheurejux, malheureuse1; [apypfei] (259) ~ [ap/p^e] (2 2 6 ),

'a peu prfes1• [repa>] (7 2 ) ^ [repo*] (8 5 ), 'reponds1; [epi] (31) ~

[epqi] (29), *et puis'; [mwe] (1 83) ~ [mwa] (123), 'moi.'

2. Morphological and Syntactic Variations [via] (123) ~

[vwala] (185), 'voila'; [zj£] (6 5 ) ~ [l/] (61f-), 'leurs' (the latter form was, and still is, used in popular speech), although it may well be that the former occurs only in frontof a consonant; [a] (229)

~ [e] (228, 231), 'elle.'

[ q/] ~ [sa], as in [sskshtfuvjdboo] (139), 'ce que nous trou- vions bon'; and [ole] ~ [se], and in [ sekomfemou] (271), 'c’est que qa une fait mal.' In these examples /kf / and /ole/ are followed by

/k/. Since occurrences of this type are fairly common in the corpus, the matter of variation is not questionable. However, with regard to the second case, the writer recollects having heard /olek/ in

S a i n t o n g e .

3. Lexical Variations [ho] (170, 171) ~ [kok] (172), 'coq';

[istweir] (192) ~ [ istwa:r] (257), 'histoire'; [so;] (292) ~ [ sell

(1^9), 1s e l ' ; and, curiously, [swell (293) ~ [swa-] (293), *soif.' V - Conclusions

In spite of the obvious limitations and cursory character of the preceding discussion, a number of general observations now emerge as to the significance of this study.

What actually is— or was, rather— Saintongeais? If we take only the geographical area which corresponds to the territory of the former province of Saintonge, no single major trait characterizes— or seems to have characterized— the speech used there, except perhaps a few morphological features and some doubtful lexical items. In other words, it might better be said that there is no Saintongeais properly speaking.

However, the speech used by the people of Saintonge does contain phonological traits absolutely unique in Gallo-Romance: /h/, f'i/ and Lq] (though the latter is occasionally found in Central

France). The distribution of these outstanding characteristics, however, extends beyond the borders of Saintonge proper and encompasses most of Southwestern Poitou and the edges of Aunis, Vendee and Angou- mois. Altogether, these three characteristics are so remarkable indeed, that they will be recognized here as forming the basic .and necessary criteria for a dialect. In addition, it is important to note that the area over which these criteria are distributed contains not only a number of other phonological characteristics, but several lexical items and possibly a few morphological features as well.

Accordingly, any corpus containing these three basic criteria plus most of the vocalic alternations and /l/ vocalizations, some of the morphological features previously outlined, and words such as /rm^j/, 2 6 3

/nor/, /mohet/, etc., will thereby be acknowledged as pertaining to

the same dialect. In other words, such a dialect is to be found

within the areas grossly circumscribed by the isoglosses shown on

Map IV (Maps V, VI and VII have to be interpreted in the light of

our discussion). This should suffice to put to rest the venerable

and bitter debate between the Meyer and Ascoli camps. For the sake

of simplicity and because of the lack of a better term, this dialect

will still be called "Saintongeais" since it covers most of

Saintonge.

The historical implications of the geographical spread of

Saintongeais are many and of considerable significance. Accordingly,

three main phases are identified.

a) Prior to the end of the twelth century, an Occitanic

dialect related to the one spoken in Aquitania prevailed as far as

and including Poitou. Evidence of this substratum remains at every

linguistic level in the modern patois.

b) Though scant, linguistic and external evidence points to

a sudden northern influence in the thirteenth century. According:

to the most plausible hypothesis, this penetration into Poitou and

Saintonge took place southwards from the Loire valley through the age-old invasion route and eastwards from the thriving free city of

La Rochelle, whose citizenry was quite heterogeneous. From these two focal points, the whole area was submitted to the relentless linguistic penetration of "aristocratic" French originating from the Court. (Had the fiery and domineering Eleanor not rid herself of Louis, the linguistic face of France would have been altered). The only area of resistance centered in Southwestern Poitou and Saintonge. As a

result, there must have been at that time a true Saintongeais

dialect, i.e. a form of speech which had become more Northern than

Occitanic in character. The speech community during that period

must have remained stable, migrations from north to south taking

place mostly within that very area.

c) Then, there took place an event of most extraordinary

significance because of its uniqueness and recency in the history

of the French language: the sudden attempt at a phonemic

restructuration involving the shift of /£/ and /£/ as well as a

characteristic evolution of palatalization. This event, surprisingly

overlooked by most dialectologists, may have been due to an incoming

migratory wave from the outside which disturbed seriously the

phonological stability of the dialect. Such a phenomenon deserves 130 close attention from the point of view of diachronic phonemics.

No matter what the external causes, the /2/ to /h/ and /^/

to /%/ shift on the one hand, and the palatalization of /g/ and /k/

on the other hand, can hardly be considered as independent and

unrelated events. It seems rather obvious that the latter was the

cause of the former. The hypothesis presented here rests upon the

following assumptions: (l) About the end of the sixteenth century,

/g/, /d/, and /k/ placed in a specific vocalic environment underwent

*3®As expressed, for instance, by: Andre Martinet, Economie des changements phonetiques (Berne: A. Francke, 1955); J- Fourquet, "Classification dialectale et phonologie evolutive," Misceldnea Homenaje a Andre Martinet (3 vols.; Canarias: Universidad de La Laguna Biblioteca Filoldgica,1957-62). II, pp. 55-62; and Hull, op. cit. 265 a complex but rather parallel process.of affrication/assibilation/ palatalization, in v-hich /g/ and /d/ evolved from [ dz] (though, not attested) to [dj] to [gj] to [j] and /k/ from [tSl to [tSj] to [tgj],

[90]^ [9] (Maps VI and VII, based on ALF data, reflect imperfectly the end result of this process); (2 ) such a phonetic evolution towards palatalization made necessary the phonemic restructuration

/£/ > /h/ and /£/ > /^/. In principle, the phenomenon ressembles that of the Castilian shift of [d2l, [2] and [£] to

In fact, this hypothesis could be applied to French Canadian as well. The sporadic and "hesitant" phonetic expressions.corresponding to /h/ (and possibly to /)£/, a matter not investigated yet) should be regarded as the result initiated by the assibilation of /t/ and /d/ 132 preceding /i/ and /y/. In this case, the process, which is quite different, and not as extreme— since it never achieved palatalization— from that of Saintongeais, must be considered as being totally independent. Yet, the end result is similar.

With regard to Saintongeais, however, French influence during the ensuing centuries was not sufficient to cancel out the restruc­ turation process but sufficient to frustrate it, leaving a markedly disrupted phonological system. In fact, a glance at our phonetic and phonemic charts (Chapters IV and V) will suffice to reveal the

■^Martinet, Economie..., pp. 297'■325.

-*-32charbonneau, La palatalisation..., op. cit.; and "La spriantisation...," op. cit. 266

instability of the system. Only in the last decades have the

inroads of Standard French been powerful enough to eradicate the

dialect and break it up into separate patois.

At present, even the patois of Saintonge have all but disappeared. The rural population now uses a form of Regional

French resulting from the mixture of Standard and Popular French, occasionally colored by local features mostly of a phonetic and lexical nature. In this respect, it is hoped that, thanks to our remarkable informant, this study constitutes a worthy and meaningful contribution which may lead to further investigations in France and in French Canada.

« A P P E N D I X A

PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTION OF TEXT1

1 . [piskavuvule kahvurako•t lesuvni dnunafars | damahanefi ||

2 . hva vuparle demtimumaa kahavipaose | avekindamekamarad

3. ^edezami if oletedehaa kifazjadegrelf if oletetekamaraddageir

amopeir # ilaved^-fij ketjatapypredmunarh if javetin

5 * ketetemtipyhen if inane | mabels£*r aveytindfolel & iqi ||

6 . havipa-se q^ktSa oturdazcel | azuturine || hetifatige ||

7« indaqeledfolei§ | laba | mekrivi j| veda-paseq^ghu:r aveknu: #

8. hasotisylokaozjao | ehmanalilabao | marpu'ze $ ojavete*mtitako

9- kipa-setiqi dalho # ifaze*se:t*hozat # olalepwe •vi: #

1 0 . meafe | onarivekamel m $ hapra• q^ptitako | hariva*hozat

11. sylkodmidi | em5sj^*pero | | oletekumq^ kisaple q^lom | |

1 2 . matadetanotomobil # ahavo pwemilo t*§a anUzanaledlodboor #

13* harivola | imdi tytamyzrapdgjeir | paskahsoatfedfe*rdegreif #

I*)- • o:be* | kahjedi | ometegal || has/pweinapfa- ti | hvuzedfe if

15- anefe | deose:r hamasj^abo^e | avakz^ if havogrefe if

1 6 . imargarde j| mesi ) olevre | tysezufelr § afei | hegrefe ||

1 7 . avakz^ | padaq$£iu:r # hnusopfomne emti dalezavirao |

1 8 . avekledfoleis # epl h&srvanyiqi # imdi | pi ska tesiabil | |

-4fote: informant's repetitions and hesitations, whenever deemed to be pointless or meaningless, were not transcribed; asterisks are used here to indicate a proper noun.

267 ^68

19. la’nepro^en | raturndao # e antsnnuq^ke • sstypre: # anefe |

20. havi iiikamarad iqi if hanavebcenmedi n | meafe qela mkovnem^

21. klezortr jj= hazidi | foktyvjena-vakmwa if eamdi j mwa hvodfi’ccen |

22. memame*r | vodfate # afe | afo*rs | aforsdan^jelavej | alafini

23* posrlaqiteanale # sekdotfwa | ledfolets sanaljapwe kumtqj^ if

2h. alalja pwekuribelve tutsoel § afe | harivolaba | tutled^ if

2 5 - cg'anave katro: | ketjcb'la # led^fijdopati'o• do | epid^zo: #

2 6 . jave la*kjematin | indfole'g be*ragote | ekave pwe•ffetozcej if

2 7 * ojave la*$arlot | | qela paregzarp | alave bemelalyr

2 8 . de^artje | kdinhenfij if me ofensn | alete b e ’bundtfolel S |

29* kamefm # epqi | la*j£arlot | lafijdopattfa | | olete d^*/£arlot #

30. meafe haapjo in*lolot j elot*$arlot if alete fukin | lanekro^y j

31. pwe*befet || mealete be»nema if episaas’r | inholictfole’S ||

32. ketebepyhen j eketeberpyholi # hvuzarepo | tutsirz | |

33* hnufazjapwe• dmovesaa ff haljoobal | | havjoeteinfwa obal

3^- Xe^a*)^arl0't I I eoletepwe*kestjo klavejnuzakopan if e oletedalebwa*

35« pernuzavni if rennuzo:t if oletepwe kcivnab if epi sekhavjo

3 6 . emtipu:r if afe ojavetinkupdaga* | ketjala # isetjatSvny

37* taveknu | poerpcckhejoputr if epi havodi | hzudiropao jf

3 8 . havoetedase | hnuzetjabenamyze* # inotfwa | la%jematinnudi | |

39* olelbaldekoskfi dima^enu if hvuzevit toertutasupe | | efiiro

40. da*se if e w e kahjavodi | me: | seka ^ v u | olepwelaportalajte ||

41. havSpwe dbisiklet if havopwe’datomobil if kuma fe:r if o-ssekq^ | | h2. vuzan/jepa* # hamanire samdiose*r | | eldima*^mat? | hvedfi

^3* vu^bsr^e | avekla^vo ela^aret if anefe if ladima*^ | nuvlalve

Ml-. pweta:r if hfazolmena*h. | hfazonuttwx’let | e alatafive ||

45. eositu btfidsylku | hamoto tut daqetbanol | | enuvlaparti if 2 69

b6. o: q$£vo || bunhaa | iletetabitqeatfene lkorbijarr | dasunadfe

b"J • laba if hvuzarepo kilalepwevirt if e* po:v /fevo | ilatade

48. tcerhu lehemi'snEea | dlafamij dsqelemalyrj^ kipartjatate :r if

k-9. ehvuzarepo kla | ole tepwedehemisma kilatade if oletepjytu

5 0 . dezekjadrijr if etuskahvwajo nuzamyze if katonavetaa |

5 1 - kvulevu # nuvla radylabce,* | | hssupao | ehnuzanala obal if

5 2 . havo da'se || ojavetinkupjdadfo'l | kinuzavja sgy # seka

53* inuzabadonja pwegeir if da lkuradobal | ovetinora’h §

9b. osmetitatune if eamuje if meamuje # evwala ka lahu:r

55* arivebetu 11 lmastrokevuleftermesapoft | e ofaze pwebjaJU if

56. afe I | hnusoanale kamelm # lame • ra % jematl n asorti sokotijo' |

5 7 * posrnuzabije if janatinkupj kissctsake sulehiledegaU if

5 8 . olapvrenape^ekkahavoarivealamezo | hetjottertu afody if

59* lavejadi | mepo• vfij . | vuvuzanirepwel aq^taia # movj^eku$e| |

6 0 . lalite^ou | vuzalevusake avekli if mvra. | hvom^ahe 11

61. hiremku^e dalakre^ dsmeva/£ if e nuzo:t | ledfolers | be |

6 2 . havoete dala^a • b da%jematin if ojave d^-li if ehnuso sake

6 3 . laddffia | | toertut | e havodofmi if elaladme | | qelegao |

6 b . l^zafelr avjas^e padalanet | dvaeboffce if issatanale

6 5 . avekz^bisiklet if enu havo rnxrte dala^a-ret | | elvj/ evny

66. nurturne | parks*kjematin pqisrspfa*d sunuvtfa’h 11 pasks

6 7 . ematin | oletele | lataj^iz dsgtfefoo if etutehusr | apuse

68. lbazair if memadefva | askope dalbudedwel if afe if javedegocu

6 9 . etu kisetjatapersy | ks^emosj^*pero | ojaveqelesi*dfoleI£ ||

70. eketja tutbenagralaat if janate || iletemalad | lspo*v goo #

7 1 - ilavetatfape domou | etatorehinfia # ivne kazima tulehurr if 270

7 2 . elebja.* zffij dala*vava likovnjcto | la j hvuzarepo.• # inhume |

7 3 * ive avekino’t goo # ilavja, defyzl | iditalo't || tirdo

7k . tobunetalesr # havo, litireekotfyziddSa § o* staler t |

7 5 * tylatfapfapwet # anefe | itot sobunetalerr | | katila^taba* |

7 6 . ilave^ahednoo # oletetinekymwarr # vuparle sihavori #

7 7 * inotfwa || onuzarive tsrhudetu:r | inanavetamne ino:t $ 0 4

7 8 . q/la paregza'p | inukovne pwef # ilete pwe* tfopoli #

79* inurak5tedezistwa:r || olorefe^elr lepuldslapatfon doho #

8 0 . havodi | wSvjfS*rena' | | hanu^ofopa dq^bwaJU # eq^gao

81. tynulamnra. py # afe inhume* j | ojave *rem5 do | ojave

8 2 . %obe:r | ooavet*a'dfe # iletja, la trwaukat | ilavjdtete/£akote

8 3 . la%.jematin # ehvuzarepo* ka: | aletepoma^ot # lavla

8k. kastotv || levla asbagno*de || lapatfon ave torhu sabutejesove*r % 8 5 . sylbudlatab || alaveyltadlsve lez/d£e*pul # alavemiqelez^

86. akutedqetbu* te j # levla kastatr |sbagnodffia | ifutdteko tqy

8 7 . alatab | | ora-voerslabutej | o^sylez/ [ tulez^ eboerRe # iletja,

88. melmpaboaferinomlet # ebosn | oletetako*r derigolad §

8 9 . inotfwa 11 fovudi'r kancisj^*pero | oletetinom kosekaa #

90. iletelme :r dalakomyn § eovne suva deheea | pBrzidmade

91. derasenmaa # onanarivel # o: bunhaa. | iletepweholi # 92. egrabale | enel tupwety || iletela # ilespo-ze sUnistwelr |

93- akote o^abfarl dalaport § tudeku | jjanatindanu qisdevi*r 11

9^. q^malyr^ | i/£osetomwe ekaratsi: # edasepje | ilave

95- degfa* sok | avekdesmeldab woJU # a: | lapfamjerqilavy

96. tafutyteko dkud alo:t § fopadmade 6itulmo:d qihavSvy

97• qelegfa*pje | esihnusomizaritr # ilavotevite adehyne # 2 7 1

98. oleiXEr^ qila kilapwef rests | | paskabesyrr | kehorjci pwe*

99* pydehynee jf me hnusopejeiribo sdari:r | katilateteparti* # i

100. havo'di | avevuvyg^ga: 3ilavedebelbotin # besy:r |

101. kasilavekrytruve insosjete kumqj$emosj^*pero j | iloremi

102. desujevcefni | mepa degfu*£ok | kumilavel # afe # ojavetetu |

103. infweir | a^afbszjj^ || koletepwe: tf0 lwe• dla # eqetfwerr ||

10^. oletelaba* | kumlafwerr da*mortan | iqi / oleteteportaa. # e:

105 . q^lakijorepaete | ssrebekfy dezonore # o qeledfolei£ |

106. aparlja bcenmedqihu'r alavaas # alo *r9 | astce*r | horjobe*

1 07. vulyjale nuzo*tetu # me havjopwe * dbisiklet # afe | havodi

108. q^fe:ften | hefesttfoiqi nu # alezi vuzo:t # me: keltwa-let

109* metfo *hi § lafobdatyso :r | lafobafjce^r | udymweekorsa*h

110. aswa: | | avakiribelllyp § e: lave jzj^di | emetedo* | | vutfob

111. atyso :r | olelapjyholi: # o* | kalavadi | no* hemom^lort #

112. ebcenaln*r | devirevudo lapjadefes dasylateit || sivuvule #

113. hma'fu § aletepwepoli [ lavej # abave | kataparle* § me* llU. 0 oletetinsibunvej | kahlemjd bcenkameim # afe | lafeeta^barbazj^

1 15. atarive: | | assada anale* | | nuzo*t havodi tastoe*r | ofonuzokype

1 16. kamefm jj= havo, felmenarh |havo ekf itanU tf ami j | | havo ete$er)fe

1 17 * dlasaladdapisa*li || havo etegardeleva*/£ |j e: | pimafwa |

118. lasoereetarivee | | lezo* tavSxturne $ anuzavo. rakote zj^fwerr j

119. dafilanagjyrj | | e telnfia | kahavjokfy | kahjavjoete # q^etut

120. oletetako*r inafe*r dapaSe § ofovudirka* la*^arlot | la |

121. alavetegalsa # meilete so Ida # afe | inhurne | | ivetapermisjd #

122. ifaza kn/sars || ilete vnydehyneavceknu | oserilaresteasupe | epi

123- vlakdalkuradlascerel j | olj^dsokype dla*$arlot | olete mwa | 272

12 b . kivnebagno•de if ebe hvuzafepoo | kilataptfi kumaklefij

1 2 5 . d9*sedi2^a fazja- valselegab # olebe- tuhyst | sihjepa,

1 2 6 . futymame* sylagu-1 # ehjidi didcto | eto psrmwa | j kteiqsi

127 . upoerla*^arlot ?f e: iletetupano # ilaetesasi-rakutedle if e-

128 . imafutylapee # emwaheete mku^e # e olapaapeye I khavoreste

129 * bozami | apfel # meafe | ilavebe kopfi § hmahjobcen | vusave 130. labcUJ # havjo • bunapti # lame-r *pero | anufaze deboo rpocu # 131. anufa ze• dlado'b | avekdepatat dadSa # ekathavjapctgr e$u: z

132. amahe optidehyne 11 ametelpo sylatab | | egf a • po tavekd^zorej |

133- keteho* kumc^ # e avekingra‘qyj e:r | hatapjdddSa § atfap

13k . kip^ # javedenttmaa, | hatfapjoinpa • tat # lezotmumaa |

135* hatf ap jo enwrsadv ja :d if odepa'de # metuteteboo if hmahjSetu

136. dorezine # medorezine | vusave 11 olefetavek de-ffy |

137 * mepodsykr # olepwe • tfoboo # alave dlakofityr dapweir

138. edfi-h if vuparlekkahpuvjometlame: syepo | larezine

139 * irestedkute if lavej | azuvwajepatfshu # sakahtfuvjoboo | |

1^0. olete dokofidwou | kafaze # ametelpoo | avekde/fave:r | | eamete

1^1. ^ofeekofidwa'ddaa if o* | qetsup eteboun if havuzafepo |

1^2. hafazja so-telemihet opja*)£e if elkofidwab | apfei if a: |

1^3 • oleteq^! | | kinuregale if e ot^u'rz etut | ketebo if oletelegrl :v if l^U. hetja daepei | ukolave kde'bwao # edarjerlamezo | javedojeir ||

1^5* dae/fo,:S if la*/£arlot | alavepwe’pu T datireekodfy zi if

146. alalesestale daege | epi legfi'v afivja: | epffia [ ejffia § hakotjS

147. lekotfyzi if ekatojanaveqit || hadizjo astesr | havonutsu*pe # lA8. anefet alarive tavakse•gfi :v if lamer*pero pjymeq^ | zuvide • |

1^9* ara-petingu’daj kaz^metedalvadt | avakegfe'dsel eemtidboe^r || 275

1 5 0 . vuparlekoleteboo # afe | havjopweme•gfi | hvuzarepoo |

151. kahnusoanaledla # ojaytetutinno • s | padag^ietjo * labao H

1 5 2 . nuzo't hetjopwenevite || kumd0hy‘£ | etjo dezetf3ie:r if melefij

153- dopatfa | elapatfon etjatevite || ejavatete # amava-di* |j

15^ • ofodfaktyfa-slssupe | dsetr if ebe: | hedi* | w e | | me * |

1 5 5 * ofodfapakosejq^k)£u*z | dstfo difisil # e: amava-dinoo | tyffa*

1 5 6 . tqffljr dcha*boo j sylagfij if ojanavetfoiiu trwccukat | kipadijcL

157- topja^e dalamezo if anefe | amlavekope tupfel # katolatetelce^r |

1 5 8 . hedebo’^e | hefedlabfeiz || hemiq^ha-bo• sylagfij #

159. iletebcsnemtigra-le deboor | epatroq^ dlo-t || se'ka |

1 6 0 . havipwe*netealekolmenahe:r || olegzistepwei daq^tSa |

161. ehsavipafeT gra'^urz if meafe | havomahe kame:m if e* | mafwa ||

1 6 2 . poerinfwa | olaetebd: kamefm if ja inotfwa | | hetjdpwedbunyirtBT

1 63. qethurne if onuzafivee # dstazatsa # kvulevu | hetjo•si: | |

16^. alo t havjopwelkarakte :r | tultSa benegal # la*$arlot ||

1 6 5 . oletele kirunelebwoJU # alatfape sopake tdabwoJU | | asanaledwe:r |

1 66. asasisteaqypja dvaqetport if aenuma-dune | | hlavwaja, |

167 . kikopeseb-wcOJ || alatfapinkord | kordsjj^:z kolete |

1 68. eemursodpapje || ealata^q^nursodpapje avsksakord $ hetjola |

169. hlargardja, atraverlavi• t | ekslidizja || meketo kav^feir if

170. ojavedepul kipigo sjatoturdale || tudeko | hop || alatfapeho #

1 71. alata^ q^po*vho || alata^ alaku* sakordesopapje | epiallo,:^ if

1 72. o: gramakB^r if vlaq^kok partitakuri" if eq^papje kivoltdhe

173- darjesr # eme ikure | emelpapjevoltdhe || pardi # eme

17^. lpapjevoltihe | emelkokkuretasebfa- ja if enuvlatutdwe :r

175- akufitapfelho || nuzotetut § e-h9 rijao | m^hafijao # e: 27'-

1 7 6 . pimafwa | hetjaturt | | dabunym^:r jr oletetu'rvany § infwa |

1 7 7 * avakla*^arlot || havjaete: if amadi | stela: tysepa. | hal3

1 7 8 . alevwa-r letSa | a*semeg£e # tyvapfard qetbisiklet | | epi mwa

1 7 9 - lantBn | epi: halo ide-sa:d # onufodrapwebelota if nuvlapafti ||

180. medaq^t^a | lerutetjapagudfone if ojave do-sabjdasy |

181. epipamal # hetipwenabitqe aqelerut | hetipwenabitqe

1 8 2 . aqetbisiklet | aenwmaadune | vlaka: zuvlatupatfti if

1 83. mavlapartiadera-pe | hevulyffeene || dhpa-sposrdasy | mwe |

18^. hvalaburelsabj aveknSnel # heti daeneta | bunheSa if

1 8 5 . hmaparesipwer if vwala *$arlot kisarturn | etetyfet domou | |

1 86. meaxije telmaa | kahkrebcen kahmesritqe | oloritetepafej if

1 8 7 . afel | nUtvizit aletSa aetefet § hnuso arturne- ||

1 8 8 . ehma s^debafbuj e | dehobtfe | earahe emtilagUl if

1 8 9 . kahmas^evejelladmemate | onoridikahmetidebafbujeavekinara-p

190. affama-h # havilafigy-r tutne*g # oleteholi: # a-fe #

191. padagfretila | | kahetjo • la | pytu- | avakla*vava | haviabute

192. mezaane if la^arlot | | alavetehardef if alemeboen

193- aavwa-rdebelf jOB-r dadaa # 0 : tulmo*davetetenatqjy’ 3i- 11

19^. ofovudi:r kalame zoo | aletetintutpatitmezabars j omitaa

195* debwau # ojavepweddahe klavaala-port if hapasjoosiboen

196. poerlafnelt kapcerlaport || havjo pabzwedlave laharb be*ho:t if

197* qeledfolels || alavjatutpasepasrlafne•t | amavjataportedebuket ||

198. onoridithetiinmort | symo’li if lapatfon | | qethurnela | avefe

1 9 9 . de^ualakfe :m | aveklame: *laid | invwezin ketevnyje • de if

200. vuparle kshnuzetjao tfegale- if el*femaS j| nUtkopel kivnetulehurr |

201. q^po-vga: qjetemalad | la | kofalepwe* kitravaj | idi | 2 7 5

202. tuna-vo, vuzamne || lekipdafutbal da*semegfe: | hu* # o- |

203* hmarapelpydakeladfekolete || paskojavedenoo | oletedalebwe: ||

20^. hvuzarepo kahpurizirtu*rne if hatfuvfi-pwe tulezadfetuheete if

2 0 5 . nuvlaparti || a: | stelame’r*pero | osibergvuzale aleporte

2 0 6 . ae^ualakfem amapeir eamamerr if enuvla partitanoto | avek*rem0 ’ ||

2 0 7 . e* havoete^eqelepowj^ if cb: burihaa | dj^powj^ tutapilote if

2 0 8 . mehvuzarepo | khavjoetebe-rsy if pikilavjaeteko • taa || dma*he

209- de/faalakfem | zjfetu | a-lurcs^r dameve • ta • # e: tuqrf | pafdi |

210. oletebe’holi # melt^apao £e • # e- olafaly sa-rtu-rne # alo:r |

211. mosj^*pero adi || vuzalepwenako ■ rpfa rdq^t'ako # *remo* vatale

212. vuvmne # nuvlada pafti | anoto | diqi if eolafalyssepare if

213* elavi-akotinqe if cer^rz | umaksr^rz || janakavay dla^Sas |

21^. dezo • tkinanavapay if olekUmq^ # ]

215* [datuqetistwarr || havuzepagelr parledopatfao # oletetinom |

2 1 6 . kiave dale-tfyksjoo if ilaveteffelr | ketetestitytos^r if

2 1 7 . li | avetetealekol [[ me ilavetarive afosn # meafe | ofefffin if

2 1 8 . inanavekameemgarde emtirest # i:lemebem^* luvtfarh fet |

219- ha: qela qetetafe:r # iletepwe* tfovajaa # olete

220. £apo:v fam || kietetingfu•speizan | kifaze luvfa*h # li |

221. i: vulepwe-gjelr sokypedobetaj # ilavjadeva*^ | kifazja

222. tfavaje # me oletepwe-li: || kalelezatle | leje* | hvuzarepao #

223- sihame | ipasedainbuiz | | ilesesegalo*^ padaqihurr # itruve

22^. kosatepwe *boo if ogresf | ifazepwegfaa^U:z no -py 5f inurgarde

225* fe:r if irgarde qelqitravaje | sihzufazjobcen # ilemete

2 2 6 . tapepinje:r # oletetap^pfe tusunuvtfarh # eoletepwe• graa^u:z if

2.ZJ. lapatfon lenuke if q^etut | oletinafe-r kofokisejbe• fet # 276

2 2 8 . falera/e leburhSo be-kumofo | pxrpa korpu* s # epi* elata/e

2 2 9 * legrelf # a* paseleb/ | apaselepul | afazetama*he #

2 3 0 . oletepwe deb/: | oletedeva/ # meafel | omatiedlamelmfasoo | |

2 3 1 . eosatledlameimfasoo # e: enufazetama-he § lamena*h || o: q/ |

2 3 2 . 0 faportatfaen j eofepasedote&a # osi hvuzarepoo || kanefe*

233* lmena'h safazepwe* suva* daqetmezoo $ javetinarmweer | me

23^. aletepapjen # lale:h | ilete tu'tatlamatla* elso*mje #

235* eka*tledfole:6 | vuljatinpe•rda/o:s uehile || ofaleka/er/a*

2 3 6 . te*mumaa # afe | q/lom | telkilete | | ilete dba*sai?vis |

237* kameem posrlezo*t | | eidune dba*rasenmaa § eojave Suva’q/kel $

2 3 8 . eahenei'al | ilarivja* | | aloe:r dorpoo # iletja* tftehube *rsy |

239* lefia* ladcKa # ismetjatalatab avaknu # 0 : fazepwe*me:

2^0 . pcfirq/ imshja | kumnu # emafwa | 0 sketetan/jaa | |

2^1. olekatojavedegrl :v | ekahnanavja* k/cckinln # oletepwe*dmod

2^2. dazukope a*d/: / 0 | melapatfon truvetftehu q/k/u:z #

2h3. la*/arlot 11 le | alavete/oen # a: alemebcsn lebeit # so/fen

2bk. esoharde* | oleteq/ ketebe’vy # tulehurr | q/jfen | |

2U5 . ilavesasJup # sialavewsnazimet | azimetedlo/o:d avekdosel #

2h6. hasepwes iole tebo o | meafel/snzumahekamelm epi • | sef jce/r jf

2^7 * devjo let | depf imve :r | deheranjom # insOBre* | ojavela*remix ||

2k8. y:m | eqe*l*vava | hvuzarepao | ilattfuveho li: || inscere |

2^9* I*rem5,- etela || e: la*vavaetetapsaat # ha"vodi | todja:b || ueto

2 5 0 . kalepa*Se #hafazaltu:r dolameza | hletruvS* tuled/* || e etja.

2 5 1 * telmaokype | kissradjo pako*t kiletjatatfe*dpjetine levjolet

2 5 2 . ala*/arlot # hajavodi | dido: *remoo || tyse kofopaktyrest

253* osaref # e hvuzarepd* | kilatatfape larutda*pqideifia || 277

25k. oletekUmq^ | kosaple | li | sopei # e: la%ava | setavny supe #

2 5 5 . havodi | dicla* || mabu *n # ofoktyso:h ka;jar*norbe*r | kita-tasa

2 5 6 . ta*se*diz£a

2 5 7 - [ebe alo*r | havarakote ag^lom | | la | getistwa:r dagedne:n |.

2 5 8 . kojaveta*se *tf ame: # inpetit bunfam keteho* t | kumtfwapum //

2 5 9 - o* | kumladorn dala/£ei z j apyptfel # aletetaj^rz # e: afaze

2 6 0 . tinfob | alagra:d*ali n # lamerds^pwerje # nutfa foiharSo |

261. nutgarahist || hasepwe•skifet | ifetemtidtu # alo*r | avule

262. jesejegelxob || ekumlo*t dhort | katfwa kumle || kumaa felr #

263- alamote dain^elz |j aletepwe*nas^lo:t # alami e^o*fpje |

26k. asetakry^e ladsy | j e aturnikote toturdale | Qzama'^yjr |

265- ozakolytr || anakopetemtitigi | ananahute temtila | efo’fil

2 6 6 . de'boor | ekotsiza pylwef # epi tude■ku | alafetefomuvnffia ||

2 6 7 . olatu*)^ dalapja*s # Is^o’fpje j la^e:z | labunfam ) lajo |

2 68. lezaju:j || bce*rdede: # e: lagfa*d*alin etedatusezeta: ]j

2 6 9 . asemizahrsej | asemizalapigose | | etetyfet do*mo | mapo-v

2 7 0 . fij § o* | hamesj&fet inb^*n odsydirtej || b e r s y r # posrta*

2 7 1 . hvuzarepo: j sekomfemou la § eketokhala feir # deko*ptfeeS |

2 7 2 . egru*su: dotfwa la | tgelesuabtfo:z || kajabe ftfotedsy* #

2 73* afe* # ajafepfaid emtidfiorl | daemtive:r § asietfvany: # e:

27^. kumaa feir | stelastce*r | poeriesej'e g e l A b # a*ba* | labau }

275* ovabcen || hs^ aseho:t | mea*ho* $ ealafetasi-r agypja |

2 7 6 . dalapja*s # hvuzarepo* | kolalepwettfobCBn || meafe | alakameim

277* reysi* # ajeseje gelarob # epi: alabe*di kinotfwa |

2 7 8 . hamotfepwe* dae^o'fp^e j| sye^o'fpje | hvuzarepa | psreseje

279* inafob # olifa | kumatopura # hmdtfepytu* sylatab | osre

2 8 0 . py*Solid] A P P E N D I X B

PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTION OF CITATION FORMS

281. [leha:fb] les gerbes; [do'ja] de la glace; [inorlorh]

2 8 2 . une horloge: [leharb] les .jambes: [idiot] la .joue;

2 8 3 . [irhsmaa] ~ [lehmaa] line .jument, la .jument; [ Ismwadhe • ]

28k. le mois de .juin: [do*le:] du lait; [dojeer] du lierre;

2 8 5 . [e•lu] un loup; [markerdi] mereredi; [lanje-£] la nifece;

2 8 6 . [ironvErr] mon neveu: [lano:r] la belle-fille: [lapa*sje:r]

2 8 7 . le moineau: [e nu’he] un noyer; [ino:

2 8 8 . [inortyth] une ortie; [larnl8 *j] le pis de vache; [pjePdr]

2 8 9 . plaindre; [olepja't] c'est plat; [pje*zi*t] plaisir;

2 9 0 . [lapy:z] la puce: [lspu:z] le pouce; [hepars] ,je pense;

291. [ilapojy] il a pu; [

2 9 2 . [inpefn] une prune: [dosel] ~ [dlaso:] du sel; [lasajerr]

293- la salifere; [do savao] du savon; [laswa*] ~ [laswel] la soif;

29^- [laserr] le soir; [lasu-je] le soulier; [iny*s] un souroil;

295* [dezys] des sourcils: [ineskalet] un squelette; [e

2 9 6 . un trou; [ina*^e] un ver de terre: [dalardil] del'argile;

297* [sasirr] s'asseoir; [hmasi-] tje m'asseois; [tytasi*] tu t'assois;

2 98. [isasi*] il s'assoit: [hnuza*sja] nous nous assoyons;

299> [vuvuza*sje] vous vous assoyez; [isa*sja] ils s'assoient;

30 0 . [kud] coudre; [haku*] je couds; [tyku*] tu couds; [akuda*]

3 01. elles cousent: [heku’dy] .j'al cousu: [0 fia*be*boo]

278 279

302. M e n bon; [iletav^rj] il est aveugle; [qeta*ne] cette annse;

303. [larhaa fepwe* lburffitr] 1'argent ne fait -pas le bonheur;

30^. [vusave] vous savez; [vuzave] vous avez; [havoo] nous avons;

305. [ilavo-] ils ont; [he*y] .j'ai eu; [bato] bateau; [bja:^]

306. blanche; [bly] ~ [bjy] bleu; [gul] bouche; [labu/feo]

307- le bouchon; [labute*j] la bouteille; [inka:h] une cage;

308. [le*^aa] les champs; [ala^a-s] a la chasse; [ole^elr]

309* c'est cher; [lepjo• ] les cheveux; [lajb• n] ~ [lave• £]

310. la chienne; [ls^B*n] le chien; [lave*s vato^e*n] la chienne

311. va au chien; [iiJB’j] un oeil; [leztB'j] les yeux; [inu*]

312. un os; [de*zu*] des os; [iris] un oeuf; [dez^*] des oeufs;

313. [laqjarinet] ~ [lakjarinet] la clarinette; [leq jo•)0 ~

31^. [lekjo•$] les cloches; [ eqju*] ~ [ekju-] un clou;

315- [ekoje d)fevo:] un collier de cheval; [do-kqi;r] du cuir;

316. [inkoqi'j] une coquille; [laqy] le cul; [ekutaJu] un

317- couteau; [dokqi;vr] du cuivre; [ineqjerr] ~ [inekj e:r] ~

318. [inelwatz] un eclair; [inpaswetr] une -passoire, une ecumoire;

319* [inekyros-j] un ecureuil; [ inegji;z] une

320. une epingle; [infte:v] une ffeve; [inje:p] une guepe; [do gi*]

321. du gui; [ekotpje] un coup de pied; [lehe-n] les .jeunes;

3 2 2 . [hyne] .jeuner; [dehyne] dejeuner; [is^a] le chat;

323. [/fer)£e] chercher; [abwe:r] a boire; [$§• te] chanter;

32^. [Is^mef] le chemin; [la^mlrz] la chemise; [ma*he] manger;

325- [ma*)£e] macher; [la bu^e] le boucher; [/Se’nu] chez nous;

326. [la^urz] la chose; [q^k^urz] quelque chose; [lemar^aa]

327. le marchand; [lama*)£weer] la machoire; [ri:/f] riche; 280

328. [forhe] forger; [bu*/e] boucher; [bu*he] bouger; [e hrce*j]

329- un genou; [la/ni*j] la chenille; [le/ln] le dos, l'schine; 1

330. [laqffi:r] le coeur; [ine*qy] un £cu; [laho*] le cog;

331- [laho’bjffla] la gelee blanche; [qyji‘] eueillir; [haqoej]

332. ,je cueille; [tyqoej] tu cueilles; [ iqcej] il cueille;

333* [haqEja] nous cueillons; [vuqoeje] vous cueillez;

33^ - [i

335- I'ecurie; [lakjym] l'enclume; [ha*ti] gentil; [iqi] ici;

336. [e hu*k] un perchoir; [hy*£kiqi ] jusqu'ici; [laharde*] le

337- .jardin; [laq/:s] la cuisse; [lajyj] l1 aiguille: [£a*ti]

338. sentir; [q/] ceci. cela; [q/la] celui-la; [ometunre

339- kofre bja* dme* kumq/ | heatady laqjo*/ da*sedizaa be-kje:r

3^0. amate*] pa m'etonnerait qu'il fasse beau demain comme pa.

3*H. .i'ai entendu la cloche de Saint-Dizant bien elaire ce matin;

3^2. [q/ kisre boo] pa qui serait bon!: [hazidUn inpum] je lui

3^3* donne une pomme; [hazidun] ,je la lui donne; [hazidun

3kk. euursa dpe1] ,je lui donne un morceau de pain; [hazidun]

3^5* ,je le lui donne; [feir] faire; [hmava feir laq/*zin]

3b6. ,je m'en vais faire la cuisine; [lemu:/] les mouches; [in

3^7* pote dmo*het] une pot^e de haricots; [kumofo*] comme il

3^8. faut; [qela] celle-la; [e-bosf] un boeuf; [deb/] des

3^9* boeufs; [lapja'/e] le grenier; [heme* dpum kali’] .j'ai

350. plus de pommes que lui; [e/fo*] un cheval; [de/fo*] des

351* chevaux; [qetsup] cette soupe, cette soupe-ci; [q/dfol]

3 5 2 - ce garpon. ce garpon-ci; [paskofo•dfe] parce qu'il faudrait;

353* [fre*] frais; [fre;/] fraxche; [laffel/e] l'odeur des marscages; 281

35^. [osaa] Qa sent; [ovusceg pceftu] ca vous suit par tout;

355- - [ 333 • gr] suivre; [tyscegra q 0 m e • | etyvirra adfet utyvirra

3 5 6 . ago• )0 tu suivras ce chemin et tu tourneras a droite ou tu

357- tourneras a gauche; [soge] attendre; [astoe^r] maintenant:

35S* [hamurro pwe] nous n'en mourrons pas; [haffo tupje] nous en

359- ferons beaueoup; [foen] rien; [been] bien; [vadcefdi]

3 6 0 . vendredi; [otfanffia] ~ [otarnHia] autrement; [kamelm] quand

361. meme; [ten^rt] connaitre; [he tosny*] j1 ai connu;

3 6 2 . [la pantfo•l] genre de coleoptere; [lava:$] la vache;

363- [is menash] le menage; [lakarh] la cage; [lu’vrarh] le

3Sh. travail; [hlava ddhadi] nous l'ayons de.ja dit; [la:^e]

3 6 5 * lacher; [ ftefma-h] ~ [frcema-h] fromage ; [ lafyme lama • he

366. tulfterma■ h] la femme a mange tout le fromage; [do sabj]

367 * du sable; [labisiklet] ~ [labisikjet] la bic.yclette;

368. [la^aas] la chance; [le/fu] les choux; [lehu*t] les bettes;

369- [je-r] hier; [anj£| aujourd'hui; [z^] eux; [li] lui;

370. [gelela] ceux-la; [ge :r] guerre; [gari] ~ [geri] guirir;

371- [j£elr] tomber; [5^ :r] cuire; [ila^e] il est tombe;

372. [ileg^] il est cuit; [etotu*] est-ce tout?; [tuskofo•

373- vudirr] tout ce qu1il faut vous dire; [havodfi zu$a*he]

37^-• je voudrais le changer; [tyvodfi zu^a-he] tu voudrais le

375- changer; [ivodfe zu^a-he] il voudrait le changer;

376 . [havodaf jo zu$a•he] nous voudrions le changer; [vuvodarje

377- zu^a-he] vous voudriez le changer; [ivodafja zu^a-he] ils

378- voudraient le changer; [habwe] ,je bois; [tybwe] tu bois;

379- [ibwe] il boit; [haboevoo] nous buvons; [vubceve] vous buvez; 28 2

380. [ibcevcco] ~ [ ibcsva] ils boivent; [h8zve atady] ,je l'ai

381. entendu; [tyzwa atady] tu l'as entendu; [izwa atady] il l'a

382. entendu; [hzwavd atady] nous l'avons entendu; [vuzwave

3 8 3 . atady] vous l'avez entendu; [izvavo, atady] ils l'ont entendu;

38^. [he ma*r^e] f\1 ai marche; [ta ma-r^e] tu as marche; [ila

3 85. ma*r$e] il a marche; [havo ma-r^e] nous avons marche;

386. [vuzave ma*rj£e] vous avez marche; [ilava ma’r^e] ils ont

3 87. marche; [ba^e-re*] ,je tomberai; [ty^e-rao] tu toniberas;

388. [i^e’ra] il tomibera; [ha^e-ro] nous tomberons; [vr$e*re]

3 8 9 . vous tomb ere z; [i/£e*rao] ils toniberont; [hma;h] ,je mange;

390- [tymarh] tu manges; [ima:h] il mange; [hma*ho] nous

391* mangeons; [vuma-he] vous mange z; [ima'ha] ils mangent;

392. [hama*vuo] ,je m* en vais; [tyta-voo] tu t'en \ras; [isa*va]

393* il s'en va; [hnuzanaloo] nous nous en allons; [vuvuzanale]

39^- vous vous en allez; [isanalo] ils s'en vont; [has^ bu*he]

395- ,je suis parti; [tebu'he] tu es parti; [ile bu*he] il est

396. parti; [hso bu'he] nous sommes partis; [vuzet b u ’he] vous

397- ttes partis; [iso bu*he] ils sont partis; [ha-i^ea]

398. ,j' entends; [ta’teea] tu entends; [ila’teea] il entend;

399- [hata-dcL] nous entendons; [vuzata•de] vous entendez; [ ilata•do]

^•00. ils entendent; [hma-r^J ,je marche; [tyma*r^] tu marches; hoi. [ ima-r/fj il marche; [hma*r$oo] nous marchons; [vuma-r^e]

*f-02. vous marchez; [ima'r/fo*] ils marchent; [hma-r/£re*] ,je

^■03. marcherai; [tyma-r^ra*] tu marcheras; [ima*r^ra*] il marcher a;

[hma*r)£ro •] nous marcherons; [vuma*r^re] vous marcherez;

U05- [ima-r^roo] ils marcheront; [hale j&B-r^e] ,je l'ai cherchd; 2 8 J

* to6. [tyla jfee*r$e] tu 1* as cherch£; [ila )fe*r)£e] il l'a cherche: t()7. [hlavo $x-r)£e] nous I'avons cherche; [vulave )fe‘r^e] vous to8. l'avez cherche: [ilavci, ^be*r^e] ils I'ont cherche; [hzwe vy] to9* .je l'ai vu; [tyzwa vy] tu l'as v u ; [izwa vy] il l ’a vu: tlO. [hzwavS vy] nous I'avons vu; [vuzwave vy] vous l'avez vu: til. [izwava vy] ils l'ont vu; [ *ho :ih | hshu- oka*rt] Georges. bl2. ,je .joue aux cartes I; [dfol dodja*b | kfy^tedapa* ladsy j blj. ktyva $elr] enfant du diable, ne monte done pas.la-dessus,

Int. que tu vas toniberl: [havo, e^oen | if ekvcef nike • ] nous avons tl5. un chien. il ne fait que d'aller d'un cote a 1'autre! APPENDIX C

FRENCH ADAPTATION OF TEXT IN APPENDIX (A)1

1. Puisque vous voulez que je vous raconte les souvenirs dfe men

enfance, de ma jeunesse,

2. je vais vous parler d'un petit moment que j'avais passe

avec une de mes camarades

3. chez des amis. C'staient des gens qui faisaient des greffes-

C'etait un camarade de guerre

*1-. a mon pere. II avait deux filles qui etaient a peu. pr§s cfe

mon age. II y en avait une

5- qui etait un peu plus jeune. Une annse, ma belle-soeur'

avait eu une (petite) fille ici;

6. j'avais passe quelque temps autour d'ellesa (m’en occuper’);

j'etais fatiguee;

7. une de ces filles, la-has, m'ecrivit: "Viens done passer1

quelques jours avec nous’."

8.1 Je sautais sur l1occasion et je m'en allais la-bas me

reposer. II y avait un petit tacot

9. qui passait ici dans le haut. II faisait Saintes-Jonzacv

Ca n'allait pas vitel

10. Mais enfin, on arrivait quand meme. Je prends ce petit.

^-Parentheses are used to indicate portions not existing: in the corpus as veil as non-literal adaptations.

28). 2 8 5

tacot, j 1 arrive a Jonzac

11. sur le coup de midi, et Konsieur Perreau -c'etait comme qa

qu'il s'appelait cet homme-

12. m'attendait en automobile. Ah! nous n'avons pas mis longtemps

a nous en aller de 1'autre cot6.

13. Kous arrivons la, il me dit: "Tu net'amuseras guere, parce

que nous sommes en train de faire des greffes. it. -Oh! bien, que Je lui dis, qa m'est egal. Je ne suis pas

une apprentie; je vous aiderai."

15- En effet, des au soir je me suis embauchee, avec eux. J'ai'

greffe. 16. II me regardait: "Kais si, c'est vraii Tu sais le faire!" Enfin, j 'ai greff^

17- avec eux pendant quelques jours. IIous nous sommes promen^s

uri peu dans les environs

18. avec les filles. Et puis je suis revenue ici. II me dit:

"Puisque tu es si habile,

19- 1'annee prochaine, retourne done. Et amene-nous quelqu'un

si tu peux." En effet,

20. j'avais une camarade ici. J'en avais bien plus d'une, mais

enfin celle-la me convenait mieux

2 1 . que les autres. Je lui dis: "(il) faut que tu viennes avec

moi.11 Et elle me dit: "Moi, je voudrais bien,

22. mais ma mere, voudra-t-elle?" Enfin, a force, a force

d'ennuyer la vieille, elle a fini par la laisser partir. C’est qu'autrefois les filles ne

partaient pas comme 9a:

elles n'allaient pas courir bien loin toutes seules. Enfin,

nous arrivons la-bas, toutes les deux.

II y en avait quatre autres qui etaient la: les deux filles

du patron, done, et puis deux autres.

II y avait la Clementine, une fille bien rablee et qui

n 1avait pas froid aux yeux.

II y avait la Charlotte. Celle-la, par exemple, elle avait bien plus 1 'allure

d'un charretier que d'une jeune fille. Mais 9a ne fait rien,

elle etait bien bonne fille quand meme. Et puis, la Charlotte, la fille du patron

-(elles) etaient deux Charlotte-, mais enfin nous en appelions une Lolotte et 1'autre

Charlotte. Elle etait rouquine, le nez crochu, pas bien faite, mais elle etait bien aimable. Et puis sa soeur, une jolie fille qui etait bien plus jeune et qui etait bien plus jolie. Je vous en reponds: toutes six nous ne nous faisions pas de mauvais sang. IIous allions au bal. Nous sommes aliees une fois au bal chez la Charlotte. Et il n'etait pas question que la vieille nous accompagne. Et c’etait dans les bois...

Pour revenir, rien que nous! Ce n'etait pas convenable! Et puis e'est que nous avions un peu peur. Enfin, il y avait (deux) gars, qui dtaient la.

Ils etaient revenus

avec nous pour que nous n'ayons pas peur. Etpuis nous avons

dit: "Nous ne le dirons pas."

Nous sommes allees danser; nous nous etions bien aiausees.

Une autre fois, la Clementine nous dit:

"C'est le bal des conscrits, dimanche chez nous! Je vous

invite toutes a diner et nous irons

danser. -Et oui, que nous lui avons dit,mais c'estque chez

vous, ce n'est pas la porte (d') a c6te.

Nous n1avons pas de bicyclettes; nous n'avons pas d 1automo­ bile. Comment faire? -Oh, ce n'est que qa!

Ne vous inquietez pas! Je m'en irai samedi soir, et le dimanche matin je viendrai vous chercher avec le cheval et la charrette." En effet, le dimanche, nous voila levees pas tard. Nous faisons le menage, nous faisons notre toilette, et elle est arrivee.

Et aussitot, bride sur le cou, nous montons toutes dans cette bagnole, et nous voila parties.

Oh, ce cheval! (Pauvre bete)'. II etait habitue a trainer le corbillard dans son pays, la-bas. Je vous en reponds qu'il n'allait pas vite! Et, pauvre cheval, il entendait toujours les gemissements de la famille de ces malheureux qui partaient en terre. Je vous en reponds que la, ce n'etaient pas des g^missements qu'il entendait. C'dtaient plutot des Eclats de rire. Et tout ce que nous voyions nous amusait.

Quand on a vingt ans,.., que voulez-vousi Nous voila rendues la-bas, nous dinons, et nous nous en allons au bal.

Nous avons dansd. II y avait (deux) gargons qui nous avaient suivies. C'est que... - _ ils ne nous abandonnaient guere. Dans le courant du bal, il vint un orage.

II se mit a tonner. Et a pleuvoir. Mais a pleuvoirl Et voila que le Jour arrivait bientot; le mastroquet voulait fermer sa porte; et il ne faisait pas beau.

Erifin, nous sommes parties quand meme. La mere (de) Clemen­ tine a sorti son cotillon pour nous couvrir. II y en a (deux) qui se sont fourrees sous les (vetements) des gars.

Ca n'a pas empech£ que quand nous sommes arrivees a la maison, nous etions tous mouilles Jusqu'aux os.

La vieille a dit: "Mes pauvres filles, vous ne partirez pas

(par) ce temps. Mon vieux est couche, le lit est chaud, vous allez vous mettre avec lui. Moi, Je vais me changer,

J'irai me coucher dans la creche de mes vaches." Et nous, les filles, (eh) bien... nous sommes allees dans la chambre de Clementine. II y avait

deux lits. Et nous nous sommes plongees

la-dedans, toutes, et nous avons dormi. Et le lendemain, ces

gars

-leurs affaires avaient ssche pendant la nuit, devant un bon

feu- ils se sont en alles

avec leurs bicyclettes. Et nous, nous sommes remontees dans

la charrette, et le vieux est venu

nous retourner pour que Clementine puisse reprendre son

travail, parce que,

Clementine, c 1etait elle la tailleuse de greffons. Et pendant

toute la journ^e elle poussait

le bazar. Meme quelquefois, elle se coupait dans le bout des

doigts. Enfini II y avait des gars

aussi qui s'etaient aperqus que chez Monsieur Perreau, il y

avait ces six (jeunes) filles,

et qui etaient toutes bien attrayantes. II y en a un; il

£tait malade, le pauvre gars: il avait attrap£ du mal, etant au regiment. II venait presque tous les jours.

Et les beaux yeux de la Vava lui convenaient, la, je vous en reponds. Une journee il vint avec un autre gars. Ils avaient des fusils; il dit a 1’autre: "Tire done ton bonnet en l 1air. Je vais lui tirer un coup de fusil dedans -Oh, dit 1'autre, tu ne l'attraperas pas." En effet, il jette son bonnet en

I 1air; quand il est tombd en bas,

il avait change de nom: c'etait une ecumoire! Vous parlez si

nous avons ri!

Une autre fois -il nous arrivait toujours des tours-, il en

avait amend un autre. Oh!

Celui-la, par exemple, il ne nous eonvenait pas. II n'etait pas trop poli.

II nous racontait des histoires; qa aurait fait tomber les poules de la patronne du haut.

Nous avons dit: "Mon vieux Raymond, nous ne nous chauffons pas de ce bois, et ce gars, tu ne nous l'ameneras plus. Enfin, une journde, il y avait

Raymond done, il y avait

Robert, il y avait Andrd. Ils etaient la, trois ou quatre; ils dtaient allds taquiner la Cldmentine. Et je vous en reponds que... elle n'dtait pas manchote. La voila qui se leve; les voila a se baguenauder. La patronne avait toujours sa bouteille et son verre sur le bout de la table. Elle avait eu le temps de lever les oeufs de ses poules. Elle avait mis ces oeufs a cote de cette bouteille. Les voila que maintenant, se baguenaudant, ils foutent un coup de cul a la table, qa renverse la bouteille, qa tombe sur les oeufs: tous les oeufs cassds. Ils n'dtaient 291

88. meme pas bons a faire une omelette. Eh bien, c1etaient

encore des rigolades!

89. Une autre fois... II faut vous dire que Monsieur Perreau,

c 1etait un homme important.

90. II etait le maire de la commune. Et il venait souvent des

gens pour lui demander

91. des renseignements. II en arrive un. Oh, (pauvre garqonl),

il n'etait pas joli:

92. un grand balai, un nez tout pointu. II etait la. II exposait

son histoire,

95- accote au chambranle de la porte. Tout d'un coup, il y en a

une de nous qui se retourne:

9U. ce malheureux, il chaussait au moins un quarante-six. Et

dans ses pieds, il avait

95- de grands (souliers a semelle de bois). Ah! la premiere qui

I'a vu

96. a foutu un coup de coude a l 1autre. II ne faut pas demander

si tout le monde... qui (a) vu

97- ces grands pieds, et si nous nous sommes mises a rire. Ils

1'avaient invite a dejeuner.

98. II est heureux qu'il ne soit pas rests, parce que bien sur,

que nous n'aurions pas pu

99- dejeuner. Mais nous nous sommes pays une bosse de rire, quand

il a eti parti!

100. Nous avons dit: "Avez-vous vu ce gars, s'il avait de belles

bottines?" Bien sur 292

101. que s'il avait cru trouver une soci^ti comme 5a chez Mon­

sieur Perreau, il aurait mis

102. des souliers vernis, mais pas de gros souliers comme il

avait. Enfin, il y avait aussi

103. une foire a Barbezieux, qui n'etait pas trop loin de la.

Et cette foire, loV. c'.itait la-bas comme la foire de Mortagne ici. C'etait

important. Et

1 05 . ceux qui n'y seraient pas alles se seraient bien crus

deshonor^s. Oh, ces filles

106 . en parlaient bien plus de huit jours a l'avance. Alors,

maintenant, nous aurions bien

107 . voulu y aller nous aussi, mais nous n'avions pas de bicy­

cle tte s. Enfin, nous avons dit:

108 . "Ca ne fait rien, nous resterons ici, nous. Allez-y vous

autres. -Mais quelle toilette

109 . mettrons-nous? La robe de tussor, la robe a fleurs ou du

moins un corsage

1 10 . en soie, avec une belle jupe? -Et, la vieille leur dit, et

mettez done votre robe

111. en tussor, e'est la plus jolie. -Oh!, qu'elles ont dit, non,

nous aimons mieux 1 'autre.

112 . -Eh bien alors, retournez-vous done la peau des fesses sur

la tete, si vous voulez.

113. Je m'en fous!" Elle n'etait pas trop polie, la vieille. Elle

bavait quand elle parlait. Mais 295

llU. c'dtait une si bonne vieille que nous l'aimions bien quand

meme. Enfin, la fete a Barbezieux

115 . est arrivee. Elies se sont done en allees. Kous autres, nous

avons dit: maintenant, il faut nous occuper

116. quand meme. Ilous avons fait le manage, nous avons ecrit a

notre famille, nous sommes allees chercher

1 17 . de la salade de pissenlit, nous sommes allees garder les

vaches. Et puis ma foi,

1 18 . la soiree est arrivee; aes autres sont revenues. Elies nous

ont raconte leur foire

1 1 9 . de fil en aiguille, et tellement que nous (avons) cru que

nous y etions allees. Ca aussi

120. c'etait encore une affaire de passde. II faut vous dire que

la Charlotte, la,

121. elle avait un galant, mais il etait soldat. Enfin, une journ^e, il vint en permission.

122. Ils font connaissance, il etait venu dejeuner avec nous, le

soir il est rest£ S. diner,

123. et puis voila que dans le courant de la soiree, au lieu de

s'occuper de la Charlotte, c'etait moi

12k. qu'il venait baguenauder. Eh bien, je vous en r^ponds qu'il

a appris comment les filles

125. de Saint-Dizant faisaient valser les gars. C'est bien tout

juste si je ne lui ai pas

126. foutu ma main sur la figure. Je lui dis: "Dis done, est-ce

pour moi que tu es ici, 127. ou pour la Charlotte?" Et il dtait tout penaud. II est alls

s'asseoir a cote d'elle, et

128. il m'a foutu la paix. Et moi je suis allee me coucher. Et

9a n ’a pas empeche que nous sommes rest£s

129. bons amis apres. Mais enfin il avait bien compris. IIous

mangions bien, vous savez,

150. l§.-bas. Nous avions bon app^tit. La mere Perreau, elle nous

faisait de bons repas.

131. Elle nous faisait de la daube, avec des (pommes de terre)

dedans. Et quand nous n'avions pas grand-chose

132 . a. manger au petit dejeuner, elle mettait le pot sur la

table -un grand pot avec des oreilles,

133* qui etait gros comme 9a- et avec une grande cuillfere nous

tapions dedans: attrape

13^. qui peuti II y avait des moments, nous attrapions une (pomme

de terre). Les autres moments

135" nous attrapions un morceau de viande. Ca dependait. Mais

tout etait bon. Nous mangions aussi

136. du raising. Mais du raising, vous savez, c'est fait avec

des fruits,

137* mais pas de sucre. Ce n'est pas trop bon. Elle avait de la

confiture de poires

138. et de figues. Vous parlez que quand nous pouvions mettre la

main sur un pot, le raising

139. il restait de c6 t£. La vieille, elle ne le voyait pas

toujours. Ce que nous trouvions bon, 295

l4o. c'etait le confit d'oie... qu'elle faisait.. Elle mettait le

pot avec des choux verts, et elle mettait

lfcl. chauffer un confit d.oie dedans. Oh, cette soupe dtait

bonne! Je vous en reponds,

Ib2. j'en faisais sauter les miettes au plafond. Et le confit

d'oie, aprfes! Ah,

143. c'etait qa qui nous regalait! Et autre chose aussi qui

etait bon: c'fetaient les grives!

144. Nous etions dans un pays oft il n'y avait que des bois. Et

derrifere la maison, il y avait du lierre

145. dans un chene. La Charlotte, elle n'avait pas peur de tirer

un coup de fusil.

146. Elle allait s'installer dans un gue; et puis les grives

arrivaient: et pan! Et pan! Nous coraptions

147. les coups de fusil. Et quand il y en avait huit, nous

disions: maintenant, nous avons notre diner!

148. En effet, elle arrivait avec ses grives. La infere Perreau

plumait 9a, le vidait;

149. elle rapait line gousse d'ail qu'elle leur mettait dans le

ventre, avec un grain de sel et un peu de beurre...

150. Vous parlez que c'etait bon! Enfin nous n'avions pas maigri,

je vous en reponds,

151. quand nous sommes parties de la. II y a eu aussi une noce,

pendant que nous etions la-bas.

152. Nous autres, nous n'etions pas invitees: comme de juste

nous etions des etrangferes. Mais les filles 296

153. du patron et la patronne ^taient invitdes et y sont allees.

Elies m'ont dit:

151*. "II faudra que tu fasses le diner ce soir. -Eh bien, j'ai

dit, oui, mais

155- il ne faudra pas que ce soit quelque chose de trop difficile."

Et elles m'ont dit: "Eon, tu feras

156 . cuire du jambon sur le gril." II y en avait toujours trois

ou quatre qui pendaient

157- au plafond dans la maison. En effet, elles me l'avaient

coupe tout pret. Quand qa a 4te l'heure,

158 . j'ai debauche, j'ai fait de la braise, j'ai mis ce jambon

sur le gril.

159- II dtait bien un peu brule sur un cote et pas trop de

1'autre. C'est que

160 . je n'etais pas allee a l'^cole menagere; qa n'existait pas

dans le temps,

161 . et je ne savais pas faire grand-chose. Mais enfin, nous

avons mange quand meme. Et, ma foi,

162 . pour une fois, qa a ete bon quand meme. II y a une autre

fois, nous n'etions pas de bonne humeur

165 . cette journee. Ca nous arrivait, de temps en temps. Que

voulez-vous: nous etions six,

16b. alors nous n'avions pas le caract&re tout le temps bien

£gal. La Charlotte,

1 65 . c'etait elle qui rognait les bois. Elle attrapait son

paquet de bois, elle s'en allait dehors, *97

166. elle s'asseyait par terre devant cette porte. A un moment

donne, nous la voyons

167- qui coupait ses bois: elle attrape une corde -une corde

lieuse que c'etait-

168. et un morceau de papier, et elle attache ce morceau de

papier avec sa corde. Nous etions la,

169. nous la regardions a travers la vitre, et (alors) nous

disions: mais qu'est-ce qu'elle va faire?

170. II y avait des poules qui picotaient autour d'elle. Tout

d'un coup, hop, elle attrape un coq I

171. Elle attache ce pauvre coq, elle attache a la queue sa

corde et son papier, et puis elle le lache.

172 . Oh, grand nalheurI Voila ce coq parti a courirl Et ce

papier qui voltigeait

173- derriere! Et plus il courait, et plus le papier voltigeait,

pardil Et plus

Ilk. le papier voltigeait, et plus le coq courait en poussant des

cris! Et nous voila toutes dehors

175- a courir apres le coq, nous autres aussil Et nous riions,

mais nous riionsI Et

176 . puis ma foi, nous etions toutes de bonne humeur. C'etait

tout revenu. Une fois

177- avec la Charlotte nous sommes allees... Elle m'a dit: "Tu

ne sais pas?, dit-elle. Nous allons

178. aller voir l'etang a Saint-Maigrin. Tu vas prendre cette

bicyclette, et puis moi 1 79- la mienne, et puis nous allons y descendre. II ne nous

faudra pas bien longtemps." IIous voila parties,

180. mais dans le temps, les routes n'etaient pas goudronn^es.

II y avait du sable dessus,

181. .et puis pas mal. Je n'etais pas habituee a ces routes, je

n'etais pas habituee

1 82. a cette bicyclette, a un moment donne voila que... voila

tout 9a parti.

18 3 . Me voila partie a deraper, j'ai voulu freiner..., et je

passe par dessus, moi!

l8t. Je vais labourer le sable avec mon nez. J'etais dans un

£tat, (pauvre fille)!

1 85. (j'etais toute etourdie). Voila Charlotte qui revient: "Et

t'es-tu fait du mal?"

186. Mais elle riait tellement que je crois bien que je me serais

tuee, Qa aurait ete pareil.

187. Enfin, notre visite a l'etang a ete faite. IIous sommes

revenues,

1 88. et je me suis debarbouillee, nettoyee, et arrange un peu la

figure.

189. Quand je me suis reveillee le lendemain matin, on aurait dit

que je m'etais debarbouillee avec une rape

190. a fromage... J'avais la figure toute noire. C'etait joli!

Enfin!

191* Pendant que j'etais la -que nous etions la, plutSt-, avec

la Vava, j'etais arrivee au bout de 2 99

192. mes annees. La Charlotte, elle avait un jardin. Elle aimait

b i e n

195- avoir de belles fleurs dedans. Oh, tout le monde etait all£

en cueillir.

iSh. II faut vous dire que la maison, elle dtait une toute

petite maison basse, au milieu

195- des bois. II n.'y avait pas de danger que le vent l'emporte.

Kous passions aussi bien

196. par la fenetre que par la porte; nous n'avions pas besoin

de lever la jambe bien haut.

197- Ces filles, elles dtaient toutes passees par la fenetre;

elles m'avaient apport£ des bouquets;

198. on aurait dit que j'etais une morte, sur mon lit. La

patronne, cette journ^e-la, avait fait

199- des choux a la creme avec la mere Lahide, une voisine qui

etait venue lui aider.

200. Vous parlez que nous nous etions r^galees'. Et le Raymond,

notre copain qui venait tous les jours

201. -ce pauvre gars qui etait malade, la, qui ne devait pas

travailler-, il dit:

202. "Je vais vous emmener... L'dquipe de football de Saint-

Maigrin joue." Oh,

205. je ne me rappelle plus dans quel endroit que c'etait, parce

que il y avait des noms... C'etait dans les bois.

20k. Je vous en reponds que je pourrais y retourner, je ne

trouverais pas tous les endroits oil je suis all£e. 500

205. IIous voila partis: "Ah!, dit la m&re Perreau, (en meme temps)

que vous allez porter des choux a la creme

2 0 6 . a mon pere et a ma mere!" Et nous voila partis en auto avec

Raymond,

2 0 7 . et nous sommes alles chez les pauvres vieux. Euh! (Pauvres)

gens! Deux pauvres*^Vieux tout ratatines!

2 0 8 . Mais je vous en reponds que nous avons ete bien requs. (Et)

puis qu'ils ont ete contents de manger

2 0 9 . des choux a la crfeme aussi, en l'honneur de mes vingt ans.

Et tout qa, pardi,

210. c'etait bien joli, mais le temps passait. Et il a fallu s'en

retourner. Alors

211. Monsieur Perreau a dit: "Vous n'allez pas encore prendre ce

tacot. Raymond va aller

212. vous mener." Nous voila done partis, en auto, d'ici. Et il

a fallu se separer. \ 213. Et la vie a continue, heureuse ou malheureuse. II y en a

qui ont eu de la chance,

21^. d'autres qui n'en ont pas eu. C'est comme qa!

215. Dans toute cette histoire, je ne vous ai guere parle du

patron. C'etait un homme

216. qui avait de 1'instruction. II avait un frere qui etait

instituteur.

217. Lui, (il) etait alle a 1'ecole, mais il n'etait arrive a

rien. Mais enfin, qa ne fait rien. 301

213. II en avait quand meme gard£ un petit reste. II aimait bien

mieux le travail fait

219. que celui qui etait a faire: il n'etait pas trop courageux.

C'etait

220. sa pauvre femme, qui etait une grosse paysanne, qui faisait

le travail. Lui,

221. il ne voulait guere s'occuper du betail. Ils avaient des

vaches qu'ils faisaient

222. travailler. Mais ce n'dtait pas lui qui allait les atteler,

les lier, je vous en reponds.

223. Si jamais il passait dans une bouse, il laissait ses sabots

pendant huit jours. II trouvait

22k. que ga ne sentait pas bon. Aux greffes, il ne faisait pas

grand-chose non plus. II nous regardait

225. faire. II regardait celles qui travaillaient, si nous

faisions bien. II les mettait

226. en pepiniere. C'etait a peu pres tout son travail.' Et ce

n'etait pas grand-chose.

227. La patronne les nouait. Ca aussi, c'est une affaire qui

(doit) etre bien faite.

228. II fallait racier les bourgeons bien comme il faut pour

qu'ils ne repoussent pas. Et puis elle attachait

229. les greffes. Elle pansait les bceufs; elle donnait a

manger aux poules; elle faisait a manger.

230. -Ce n'etaient pas des boeufs, c'etaient des vaches- Mais

enfin ga mangeait de la meme fagon 302

231. et 9 a s’attelait de la meme faqon. Et elle nous faisait a

manger. Le manage ?...

232. Oh, qa! Ca ne rappcrte rien et qa fait passer du temps.

Aussi je vous en reponds, qu'en effet

233. le menage ne se faisait pas souvent dans cette maison. II y

avait une armoire, mais

231l- elle n'etait pas pleine. Le linge, il etait tout entre le

matelas et le sommier.

233- Et quand les filles voulaient une paire de bas ou un

(vetement), il fallait qu'elles cherchent

2 5 6 . un moment. Enfin, cet homme, tel qu'il etait, il etait de

bon service

2 7J. quand meme pour les autres; et il donnait de bons renseigne-

ments. Et il y avait souvent quelqu'un.

23 8 . Et en general ils arrivaient a l'heure des repas. Ils

etaient toujours bien requs,

239. les gens la-dedans. Ils se mettaient a table avec nous. On

ne faisait pas plus

2Uo. pour qa. Ils mangeaient comme nous. Et ma foi,. ce qui etait

ennuyant,

2kl. c'etait quand il y avait des grives et que nous n'en avions

que chacun une. Ce n'etait pas de mode

2k2. de les couper en deux. Oh, mais la patronne trouvait

toujours quelque chose.

2h3. La Charlotte, elle, elle avait un chien. Ah, elle aimait

bien les betes! Son chien 303

2hk. et son jardih, c'etait qa qui etait bien vu! Tous les jours,

ce chien,

2>*5. il avait sa soupe. Si elle n 1avait rien a y mettre, elle y

mettait de l'eau chaude avec du sel.

2X6. Je ne sais pas si c'etait bon, mais enfin le chien le

mangeait quand meme. Et puis ses fleurs:

2X7. des violettes,. des primeveres, des geraniums. Une soiree,

il y avait le Raymond...

2X8. Hum, et cette Vava, je vous en reponds! II la trouvait

jolie! Une soiree,

2X9. le Raymond etait la, et la Vava etait absente. Nous avons

dit: au diable, ou est-ce

250. qu'elle est passee? Nous faisons le tour de la maison, nous

les trouvons tous les deux, et ils etaient

251. tellement occupes qu'ils ne se rendaient pas compte qu'ils

etaient en train de pietiner les violettes

252. de la Charlotte! Je lui ai dit: "Dis done, Raymond, tu sais

qu'il ne faut pas que tu restes

253. a la fraicheur du soir!" Et je vous en reponds qu'il a

attrape la route de Puyderand

23b. -c'etait comme qa que qa s'appelait son pays-; et la Vava

est venue diner.

255. Nous avons dit: "Dis done, ma bonne, il faut que tu songes

qu'il y a le Norbert qui t'attend

2 5 6 . a Saint-Dizant. 30'-

257- Eh "bien alors, je vais raconter a cet homme, la, cette

histoire de cette naine

258. qu'il y avait a Saint-Trame. Une petite bonne femme qui

etait haute comme trois pommes.

259- Oh, comme le ("fond") dela chaise a peu pres. Elle etait

tailleuse. Et elle faisait

26c. une robe a la grande Aline, la mere de Poirier, notre

forgeron,

261. notre garagiste -je ne sais pas ce qu'il fait; il fait un

peu de tout. Alors, elle voulait

262. lui essayer cette robe, et comme 1'autre est grande quatre

fois plus qu'elle, comment faire?

265. Elle est montee (sur) une chaise; elle n'etait pas assez

haute. Elle a mis un chauffe-pieds,

26^. elle s'est perchee la-dessus, et elle tournoyait autour

d'elle, aux emmanchures,.

265. aux encolures. Elle en coupait un peu ici, elle en ajoutait

un peu la, un faufil

266. d'un cote, un coup de ciseaux plus loin. Et puis tout d'un

coup, elle a fait un faux mouvement,

267. tout est toicibe dans la piece: le chauffe-pieds, la chaise,

la bonne femme, le de,

268. les aiguilles. CracI Pouf'. Et la grande Aline etait dans

tous ses etats.

269. Elle s’est mise a genoux, elle s'est mise a la (harceler):

"Et t'es-tu fait du mal, ma pauvre 305

270. fille? -Oh, je me suis fait une bosse au-dessus d'un oeil,

bien sur. Pourtant,

271. je vous en reponds, c'est que 9a me fait mal, la. Et

qu'est-ce que nous allons faire?" Des compresses:

272. un gros sou d'autrefois, la, ces sous en bronze, qu'elle

lui a bien frotte dessus.

273. EnfinI Elle lui a fait prendre un peu de gnoledans un

petit verre. Elle est revenue a elle. "Et,

2 7 b. comment faire, dit-elle maintenant, pour lui essayer cette

robe? En bas, le bas,

275- 9a va bien, je suis assez haute; mais en haut?" Et elle l'a

fait asseoir par terre,

2 7 6 . dans la piece. Je vous en reponds que 9a n'allait pas trop

bien, mais enfin elle a quand meme

277. reussi... a lui essayer cette robe. Et puis, elle a bien

dit qu'"une autre fois,

2 7 8 . je ne monterai pas dans un chauffe-pieds, sur un chauffe-

pieds, je vous en reponds pour lui essayer

279. une robe. Qa ira comme 9 a pourra. Je monterai plutot sur la

table, 9a serait

2 8 0 . plus solide." BIBLIOGRAPHY

Atlas de France. Paris: Comite National de Geographie, 1933-V5.

Bauche, Henri. Le langage populajre. Nouvelle Edition. Paris: Payot, 1951.

Bloch, 0., et Wartburg, Walter von. Dictionnaire etymologique de la langue frangaise. 3e edition refondue. Paris; P.U.F., I960.

Bloomfield, Leonard. Language. New York: Holt and Co., 1933.

Bourciez, Edouard. Precis de phonetique frangaise. Neuvifeme Edition. Paris: Klincksieck, 1958*

______. "La conjugaison dans le gavache du' sud," Revue des Universites du Midi, II (1896), pp. l,'2-82. n ______. Elements de linguistique romane. 4e Ed. Rev. Paris; Klincksieck, 1956. "

Bourdillon, F.W. Tote listoire de France (Chronique saintongeajse) now first edited from the only two mss., with introduction, appendices, and notes. London: 1897.

Brun, Auguste. "Linguistique et peuplement," Revue de Linguistique Romane, XII (1938), pp. 165-251 .

______. Recherches historiques sur 1'introduction du franqais dans les provinces du Midi. Paris; Champion, 19^3.

Brunot, Ferdinand. Histolre de la langue frangaise des origines a nos jours. 14 vols. Paris; A. Colin, 1914-53.

Brunot, Ferdinand, et Bruneau, Charles. Precis de grammaire historique de la langue frangaise. 5e Edition. Paris; Masson et Cie., 19''9«

Burgaud des Marets. Fables et Contes en patois saintongeais, reunis par Camille Beaulieu. 2e Edition. La Rochelle; Editions Rupella, 1930.

Canet, L. Textes et recits d'histoire locale; l'Aunis et la Saintonge. 3 vols. La Rochelle; F. Pijollet, 1933-3^,

Castelo, Lutgarda M. "The phonetic and phonemic treatment of English /h/," Phonetica, II (196^), pp. 31-8.

306 Chao, Yuen-Ren. "The non-uniqueness of phonemic solutions of phonetic systems," Bulletin of the Institute of History and Philology .Academia Sinica, IV, '■ (193'-), pp. 363-97*

Charbonneau, Abbefiene. La palatalisation t /d en canadien-franpais. 'Montreal: Publications de la Section de Linguistique, Fhilologie et Phonetique Experimental, serie II, no. 3, 1955*

______. "La spirantisation du [2]," Journal of the Canadian Linguistic Association, III (1957)* PP* 1V-9 and 71-7*

Cohen, Marcel. Histoire d'une langue; le franqais. Paris: Hier et Aujourd'hui, 19^7 •

______. Grammaire et .Style (ll'30-1950) • Paris: Editions Sociales, 195 V.

______. Le franqais en 1700, d'apres le temoignage de Gile Vaudelin. Paris: Champion, 19V6.

______. Nouveaux regards sur la langue frangaise. Paris: Editions Sociales, 1963.

______. "L'observation des phonemes occasionnels (H et ’) en franqais ," Proceedings of the Fourth International Congress of Phonetic Sciences, in Helsinki, 1961 (The Hague: Mouton, 1 9 6 2 7 , - ^ s------

______. "Un fait de morphologie dans le franqais de Fressines (Deux-Sfevres)," Melanges de linguistique offers a Albert Dauzat. Paris; d'Artrey, 1951-

Collas, J.p. "A note on final consonants in the Poitevin area," Studies in French language and Medieval literature presented to Professor Mildred K. Pope. (Publications of the University of Manchester, No. 268). Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1939-

Corominas, J. Diccionaxio crjftico etimoldgico de la lengua castellana. !f vols. Berne-Madrid, 195^-57*

Coustenoble, Helene N. and Armstrong, Lilias E. Studies in French intonation. Cambridge: Heffer, 193^.

Dauzat, Albert. Dictionnaire des noms de famille et prenoms de France. 3e Edition. Paris; Larousse, 1951*

______. Essais de geographie linguistique. Paris; Champion, 1921.

______. Geographie phonetique d'une region de la Basse-Auvergne. Etudes linguistiques sur la Basse-Auvergne. Paris; Champion, 190^ 508

Dauzat, Albert. Histoire de la langue frangaise. Paris: Payot, 1930.

______. Les patois. Paris: Delagrave, 1927-

. Les noms de famille de France. 2e Edition. Paris: Payot. 19^9-

______. Les noms de lieux. Paris; Delagrave, 1932.

______. Precis d1histoire de la langue et du vocabulaire frangajs. Paris; Larousse, 19('9-

______. Ou en sont les etudes de franqais. Paris; d’Artrey, 19\9.

______. Tableau de la langue frangaise. Paris; Payot, 1939*

______. "Le franqais regional de Saint-Georges-de-Didonne," Etudes de linguistique frangaise. Paris: d'Artrey, pp. l!*6-59.

_____ "La diffusion du franqais en France et le franqais regional," Le Franqais Moderne. I (1933), pp. 133-^3.

Dauzat, Albert, Dubois, Jean, et Mitterand, Henri. Nouveau dictionnaire etymologique et historique. Paris, Larousse.

DeCamp, David. "Review of Pictorial Linguistic Interview Manual, by Stanley M. Sapon," Language, XXXI (1959), pp. 39’'-!,02.

Delattre, Pierre. Studies in French and Comparative Linguistics. The Hague; Mouton and Co., 1966. “

______. Advanced training in French pronunciation. Boulder: University of Colorado, 19J,9*

______. Principes de phonetique frangaise s. I1usage des etudiants anglo-amsricains. 2nd Ed. Middlebury: Ecole Franqaise d'ete de Middlebury, 1951*

______• "Accent de mot et accent de groupe," French Review, XII, 2 (December 1939), PP* 1-6.

______• "L'accent final eri franqais; accent d’intensity, accent de hauteur, accent de duree," French Review, XII, 2 (December 1938), pp. 3-7-

______. "Les attributs acoustiques de la nasalite vocalique et consonantique," Studia Linguistica, VIII, 2 (195V), pp. 103-9- 309

Delattre, Pierre. "Les dix intonations de base du frangais," French Review, XL, 1 (October 1966), pp. 1-iJf.

______. "Duree vocalique et consonnes subsequentes," Le Maxtre Phonetique, 67 (july-Sept., 1939).

"Les indices acoustiques de la parole," Fhonetica, II (1958), pp. 108-18 and 226-51.

______. "Le jeu de l'E instable interieur en franqais," French Review, XXIV, ^ (February 1951), pp. 3!'1-51.

______. "La nasalite vocalique en frangais et en anglais," French Review, XXXIX, 1 (October 1965), pp. 9--109-

______. "Un triangle acoustique des voyelles orales du frangais," French Review, XXI, 6 (May 19>'8), pp. hTT — .

______. "Voyelles diphtonguees et voyelles pures," French Review, XXXVII, 1 (October 1963), pp. Sb-7 6 .

Doussinet, Raymond. Le paysan saintongeais "dans ses bots". La Rochelle: Edition Rupella, 1963.

______. Le parler savoureux de Saintonge. La Rochelle; Edition Rupella, 1958.

Dubois, Jean. Grammaire structurale du franqais. Paris: Larousse, 1965.

Elcock, W.D. The Romance Languages. New York: Macmillan, i960.

Eveille, Marie-Andre-Arthur. Glossaire saintongeais: etude sur la signification, l'origine et l'historique des mots et noms usites dans les deux Charentes.

Fouche, Pierre. Traite de prononciation frangaise. 2e Edition. Paris: Klincksieck, 1959-

Fourquet, J. "Classification dialectale et phonologie evolutive," Misceldnea Homenaje a Andre Martinet. 3 vols. Canarias; Universidad de la Laguna, Biblioteca Filoldgica, 1957-62.

Galmes de Fuentes, Alvaro. Las sibilantes en la Romania. Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 1962.

Gamillscheg, E. Etymologisches VTorterbuch der franzosischen Sprache. Heidelberg: Carl Winters, 1928. 310

Geddes, J. Study of Acadjan-French dialect spoken on the north shore of the Baie-des-ChaleursTI Halle: Max Neimeyer, 1908.

Gelin, H. "Les patois poitevins," La tradition en Poitou et Charentes, Societe d'Ethnographie Nationale et d1art Populaire, Congrfes de Niort, 1896. Paris: Librairie de la Tradition Nationale, 1897. Gendron, Jean-Denis. Tendances phonetiques du frangais parle au Canada. Paris; C. Klincksieck, and Quebec: Presses de l'Universite Laval, 1966 .

Gendron, Jean-Denis, et Straka, Georges (ed.). Etudes de linguistique franco-canadienne. Paris; Klincksieck, 19^7*

Gillieron, J., et Edmont, E. Atlas linguistique de la France. Paris; Champion, 1 9 0 2 - 1 2 .

Godefroy, Frederic. Lexique de l'Ancien Franqais. Paris; Champion, 196^.

Goerlich, Ewald. "Die siidvjestlichen Dialekte der langue d'oi'l. Poitou, Aunis, Saintonge und Angoumois," Franzosische Studien, III, Heilbronn, 1882.

Gougenheim, Georges. Systeme grammatical de la langue frangaise. Nouveau tirage. Paris: d'Artrey, 1962.

______. Grammaire de la langue frangaise du l6 e. si&cle. Lyon et Paris; I.A.C., 1951*

Grolher, Hermann. Uber Ursprung und Bedeutung der franzosischen Ortsnamen. 2 vols. Heidelberg: Carl Winter's Univer s its tbuchhandlung, 1913-and 1933.

Guiraud, Pierre. Le frangais populajre. Paris; P.U.F., 1965-

______• Patois et dialectes frangais. Paris; P.U.F., 1965.

Hakala, A. and Savolainen, H. "Messproblem bei der .Analyse von Sonagrammen,” Phonetica. XIV, (19 6 6 ), pp. 91-6.

Hall, Robert A. "idiolect and linguistic super-ego," Studia Linguistica, V (1951), PP- 21-7.

Harris, Zellig S. Structural Linguistics. 2fth Impression. Chicago; University of Chicago Press, i9 6 0 .

Huguet, Edmond. Dictionnaire de la langue frangaise du l6e siecle. 3 vols. Paris; Champion, 1925-33* 311

Hull, Alexander. "The structure of the Canadian French consonant system," La Linguistique, I (l966), pp. 103-10.

______. "The shift from [S] to [h] in Canadian French: a study in diachronic phonemics," The proceedings of the Linguistic " Circle of Manitoba and North Dakota, II. 2 (I960), pp. ^0-4.

Jonain, Pierre. Dictionnajre du patois saintongeais. Paris: Ma i s onneuve, 1869.

Joos, Martin. "The Medieval Sibilants," Language, 28 (1952), pp. 222-51.

Jungemann, Fredrick H. ' La teoria del sustrato y los djalectos hispano-romances y gascones. Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 1955*

Kaziol, von H. "Die Artikulation der englischen h-Laute," Fhonetica, I (1957), PP. 31-8.

Lafon, Jean-Claude. Message et Phonetique. Paris: P.U.F., 1961.

Lagarenne, Pierre. "Notice sur le patois saintongeais," Revue des Langues Romanes, VII (l8f5), pp. 13U.-hL and IX (1876), pp. )i!t-59.

Lalanne, Abbe Th. "La limite nord du gascon," Le Franqais Moderne, XIX (1951), PP. 135-52.

Lanusse, Maxime. De l1influence du dialecte gascon sur la langue frangaise. Paris: Maisonneuve, 1893-

Lehiste, Ilse. Acoustical characteristics of selected English consonants. The Hague: Mouton Co., 196)1.

Leon, Pierre. Introduetuion a"la phonetique corrective. Paris; Hache tte-Larousse, 196k .

______. "Apparition, maintien et chute du ’E* caduc," La Linguistique, 2 (1966), pp. 111-22.

Malmberg, Bertil. "Le probleme du classement des sons du langage et quelques questions connexes," Studia Linguistica, VI (1952), pp. 1-58.

______. Phonetics. New York: Dover Publications, 1963.

Martin, Ernest. Le franqais canadien est-il un patois? Quebec; Ateliers de "l1 Action Catholique," 193!’.

Martin, Marcelle. "Le saintongeais, etude structurale et comparative." Unpublished Master of Arts thesis, Department of Linguistics, University of Montreal, 1962. 3m

Martinet, Andre. Elements de linguistique generale. Paris: A. Colin, I960.

. Economie des changements phonetiques. Berne: A. Francke, 1955.

______. La description phonologique avec application au parler franco-provengal d'Hauteville (Savoiej. Geneve: Droz, 1956.

______. "Dialect," Romance Philology, VIII (l95',)> pp. 1-11.

Massignon, Genevieve. Les parlers frangais d'Acadie (enqu@te linguistique). 2 vols. Paris: Klincksieck, 1962.

Meyer-Lubke, W. Romanisches etymologisches Worterbuch. 3rd ed. Heidelberg: Carl Winters, 1935-

______. Einftihrung in das Studium der romanischen Sprachvissen- schaft. 3rd ed. Heidelberg: Carl Winter, 1920.

Millardet, G. "Linguistique et dialectologie romanes," Revue des Langues Romanes, Vol. 6l (1921-22), pp. 1-160 and 193-366, and Vol. 62 (1923), pp. 1-157•

"Reponse S. quelques critiques," Revue des Langue Romanes, vol. 62 (1924), pp. y n - ^ 2 .

Millet, Adrien. Les grammajriens et la Phonetique (ou 1*enseignement des sons du frangais depuis le l6e siecle .jusqu's. nos .jours). Paris: J. Monnier, 1933-

Musset, Georges. Glossaire des patois et des parlers de l'Aunis et de la'Saintonge. 5 vols. La Rochelle; Masson fils et Cie., 1929-'|B.

Navarro, Tomis. Manual de pronunciaeidn espafiola. 5th ed. revised. New York: Hafner, 1957*

Nauton, P. "Les formes en -iec du suffixe -iacu," Melanges de linguistique offerts a Albert Dauzat. (Paris: d'Artrey, 1951) pp. 255-^'".

N&gre, Ernest. Les noms de lieux en France. Paris: A. Colin, 1963-

Nida, Eugene. Morphology: the descriptive analysis of words. 2nd ed. Ann Arbor; University of Michigan Press, 19^9*

Nyrop, Kr.^;. Grammajre historique de la langue frangaise. 6 vols. Copenhague; Gyldendalske Bochaudel Nordisk Forlag, 1904-30.

Palay, Simin. Dictionnaire du bearnajs et du gascon modernes. Paris: Editions du C.N.R.S., 1961. 313

Papy, Louis. Aunis et Saintonge. Grenoble: B. Arthaud, 1937*

Pignon, Jacques. L 1Evolution phonetique des parlers du Poitou (Vienne et Deux-Sevres)" Paris: d1artrey, i9 60.

______. La gente Poitevinrie. Paris; d’Artrey, i960.

______. "Les formes verbales de Tote listoire de France, textt. saintongeais du 13e sifecle," Melanges de linguistique offerts a Albert Dauzat. (Paris: d'Artrey, 1951), PP- 257-7 ^•

______. "L'enqugte en Poitou," Franqais Moderne, XV (l9'47), pp. 18-&

______. "Les etudes de dialectologie poitevine," Orbis, II (1953), pp. 137-^2.

Pop, Sever. La dialectologie: aperqu historique et methodes d'enqu§tes linguistiques. 2 vols. Louvain: Bibliothfeque de l'Universite, 1950.

Pope, M.K. From Latin to Modern French. Revised edition. New York: Barnes and Noble, 1961.

Pougnard, G. Le parler "franco-provenqal" d'Aiript. La Rochelle; chez 1'auteur, 1952.

Raynaud de Lage, Guy. Introduction a l'Ancien Franqais. Paris; Societe d'Editions d’Enseignement Superieur, 1962.

Rigault, Andre. "Role de la frequence, de 1'intensity et de la duree vocaliques dans la perception de 1'accent frangais," Proceedings of the Fourth' International Congress of Phonetic Sciences; in Helsinki. 1961 (The Hague; Mouton Co.. 1962). pp. 735-,l8*

Ringenson, Karin. Etude sur la palatalisation de K devant une voyelle anterieure en franqais. Paris; Champion, 1 9 2 2 .

Rohlfs, Gerhard. "Le Gascon," Beihefte zur Zeitschrift ftir romanische Philologie. 85 (1935).

Ronjat, Jules. Grammaire historique des parlers provenqaux modernes. !f vols. Montpellier: Societe des Langues Romanes, 1930-^1.

Rosset, Theodore. Les origines de la prononciation frangaise etudiees au 17e siecle. Paris; A. Colin, 1911. _

Rostaing, Charles. Les noms de lieux. Paris: P.U.F., 1961.

Rousselot, Abbe P.J. Les modifications phonetiques du langage etudies dans le patois d'une fami He de Cellefrouin (charente). Paris; H. Welter, 1891. ' 31>'

Rousselot, Abbe P.J. Principes de Phonetique Expcrimentale. 2 vols. Paris: Didier, l897-1968.

______. "introduction a 1'etude des patois," Revue des patois gallo-romans. I (1887), pp. 1-22.

Saint-Ac&re, Yan. La marine a Nastasje. Saintes: M. Savary, 1930.

Scharten, T. "La posizione linguistica del 'Poitou'," Studi Romanzi, 29 (19’<2), pp. 5-130.

Schv.’an-Behrens. Grammaire de 1'Ancien Franqais. Traduction Oscar Bloch. Leipzig: C.R. Reisland, 1932.

Seguy, Jean. Le frangais parle a Toulouse. Toulouse: Edouard Privat, 1951.

Suchier, K. Le frangais et le provengal. Traduction P. Monet. Paris; E. Bouillon, 1891. "

Sten, Manuel de phonetique frangaise. Copenhagen: Munksgaard, 1963-

Straka, Georges. Album phonetique. Quebec; Presses de l'Universite Laval, 1965I '

______. "Systeme des voyelles du franqais moderne," Bulletin de la Faculte des Lettres de Strasbourg, 28e annee (l950), pp. 1-!|1 and 220-33-

______. "L'evolution phonetique du latin au franqais sous l'effet de l'energie et de la faiblesse articulatoires," Travaux de Linguistique et de Litterature (Centre de Philologie et de Litterature Romanes de l'Universite de Strasbourg), I et II, 19 ^

Tagliavini, Carlo. Le origini delle lingue neolatine. Bologna;Patron, 1902.

Terracher, A.L. Les aires morphologiques dans les parlers nopulaires - du nord-ouest de l'Angoumois, 1800-1900. Paris: Champion, 191t.

Thurot, Charles. De la prononciation frangaise depuis le commencement du l6e siecle. 2 vols. Paris; Imprimerie Rationale, 1880-8 3 .

Tourtoulon, Charles de, et Bringuier, 0. "Rapport sur la limite geographique de la langue d'oc et de la langue d'oi‘1," Archives des Missions Scientifiques et Litterajres, III, 3e serie (1876), pp. 363-97-

Trocme, E., et Delafosse, M. Le commerce rochelais de la fin du 15e siecle au debut du 17e. Paris; A. Colin, 195-'. 315

Wartburg, Walter von. Evolution et structure de la langue franchise. 5e edition revises et augmentee. Berne: A. Francke, 195®.

______. Franzosisches etymologisches Worterbuch. BUle, 19=9 to present.

. Problemes et methodes de la linguistiq.ue. 2e edition augmentee et refondue. Paris: P.U.F., 19^3-

______. La fragmentacidn linguxstica de la Romania. Traducido Manuel Munoz Cortes. Madrid; Editorial Gredos, 1952.