Re: Lovin' the liquids (was: Re: Mutable R's)

Christophe wrote:

> En réponse à "Douglas Koller, Latin & French"
<latinfrench@...>:
>
> >
> > Stateside, the only real chance we have here to practice this sound
> > is with the composer's name, Dvorak, which classical music stations
> > pronounce, quelle surprise, /"dvorZak/.
>
> A correct adaptation of the name as far as it goes :) .
With an American /r/, not quite, but at least they try. One encounters the
spelling Dworshak too, probably due to some Ellis Island clerk's tin ear or
bad day.

I've always  assumed Polish "rz" originally meant the same sound?? Nowadays
it seems to be simply /S/; is it still a complex trill in any dialect area?

> > A tad extreme, perhaps, but as it can take a while for native
> > English-speaking children to master /l/ ("I wuv you, Mommy."), I
> > could see it taking at least a little time to nail /r_r/.
> >
> I thought this was only true of children with a speech impediment?
I don't think so.  It's quite common (also /r/ = [w] too) in children up to
about 3 yrs, when most outgrow it.  If it persists into adulthood, then it's
an "impediment"-- listen closely to Barbara Walters (Baba Wawa in SNL's old
satire).  IIRC some British politico of recent vintage also had the r/w
problem.

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