LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 11 : 5 May 2011
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.

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Rhythm and Intonation Patterns in English and Urdu -
A Contrastive Analysis

Mohammad Owais Khan, Ph.D.

Abstract

In all the languages, Rhythm and Intonation play a central role in the production of statement and interrogative sentences, without which meaning remains ambiguous and is not conveyed to the listener properly. The rhythm of the languages of the world has traditionally been classified into stress-timed and syllable-timed patterns.

In syllable-timed rhythm there is a regular time interval between each syllable, languages like Hindi and Urdu are syllable-timed. An equal time interval is observed between two syllables. Rhythm is produced by the periodicity of a pattern that can be syllable, which is a language specific unit. Intonation involves a one to one interactional occasion when the addresser and the addressee talk to each other. If the addresser and the addressee are from the same social, cultural, regional provenance there are no overt problems of communications because of intonation. But if they are from different social, cultural, or regional provenance, difficulties of communication may arise quite often.

The present paper aims at a contrastive analysis of Rhythm and Intonation patterns in English and Urdu. It has been observed that Urdu speakers face difficulties in learning Rhythm and intonation patterns in English. So they use faulty rhythm and intonation patterns by which the connotation is not communicated to the listener appropriately. We devote a special attention to differentiate rhythmic and intonation patterns between the two languages. This paper will help the teachers teaching English as a foreign language as well as the students.

1. Introduction

About the two languages under study in the present investigation we can make a generalization. It is that at the phonological level there are two main divisions. They are segmental features and supra-segmental features. Segmental features are those that can have independent place and are separable from other units of the same category. Consonants and vowels are such features. Supra-segmental components are those which are not separable as independent elements and they are located at a particular point in the connected speech.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Mohammad Owais Khan, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of English
P.O. Box 1988
Najran University, Najran
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
khan_mokhan@yahoo.co.in
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