Generational Changes in VOT in Qatari Arabic

Abstract

The current study investigates variation in production of VOT in voiceless stops in Qatari Arabic. In line with Labov’s Cascade model, longer VOT in this dialect might be viewed as a new variable developing in the metropolitan area of Doha, Qatar. The results of the acoustic study of VOT in initial voiceless stops produced by 40 female native speakers reveal that variation in VOT can be explained by speakers’ age and social affiliation. VOT was 10 ms longer in younger speakers than in older speakers, and 10 ms longer in Hadar speakers than in Bedouin speakers. The results suggest that young urban females in Qatar produce long-lag VOT (M = 69 ms) comparable with VOT in aspirating languages like English.