Re: Furrin phones in my own lect!

>>Dunno about Germans (the ones I've heard either get it right or
>>(sometimes) use [v] for /w/), but a Sinhalese-speaker I know says [w] for
>>/v/ quite frequently, as well as the reverse.
>
>Are you sure they're not simply saying /v\/, which is phonemic in
>Sinhalese, and the closest thing to either [w] or [v] in that language? It
>can sound deceptively like the "opposite" member of the pair, when you're
>expecting one in particular and get neither.
>
>Paul
Probably applies to Finnish, too. For /w/ stuff ranging from [v\_G] to [B]
can also be commonly heard. I think I've heard [B] for /v/ a couple of
times, too.

I can't tell directly (since the [v] <> [v\] contrast is for me one of the
most difficult ones to hear) but judging by the reports, I still think
German /v/ might be closer to [v\] than its English counterpart, which could
explain some of the confusion. There was a mention some time back of /v/ and
/v\/ contrasting in some Dutch dialects... Would we happen to have any such
persons on the list??

John Vertical