Re: USAGE: indefinite "a" before vowel-initial words

Thomas wrote:

<<So, it seems to be something more than my crazy "language
module" acting up again.  Maybe a sound change in progress?>>

Lots of young people (meaning people my age) do it.   It's not so much a 
sound change, as a reanalysis of all vowel initial forms.   The result of the 
reanalysis is that all vowel-initial forms begin with a glottal stop, and that 
this glottal stop is treated as an actual consonant, and so the natural choice 
for the indefinite article is [@].   I think it sounds hideous, and is far too 
difficult to produce naturally.   Lots do it fine, though.

Another biproduct is the neutralization of "the".   In my speech, I have [D@] 
or [D] before consonants, and [Dij] before vowels (the glide smoothing the 
transition).   People who have [@] everywhere, though, tend to have [D@] 
everywhere, also, and for the same reason.

Some other things I've noticed:
-/nt/ > [4~] (or [n]), so that "sentence" sounds like "sennence", and 
"renting" sounds like "renning" (this one *really* grates on my nerves.   But, hey, 
it's sound change: What can you do?)
-/O/ > [A] / _syl syl (both unstressed), so "Florida" sounds like "Flahrida" 
(ick!)
-/IN/ > [in] for the "-ing" suffix (I've got this) (backformation from /-In/, 
I think)
-Back vowels deround

These changes are distinct from some other changes I've noticed, where /?/ 
gets inserted all over the place, vowels merge, elision abounds...

Anyway, I'm not familiar with any work on this.   Hey, maybe I can do it!   
Gotta do something.

-David
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